New Shoes

Wow, Paolo Nutini's star fizzled out faster than you can say "supernova". I heard his song "New Shoes" on the radio for several weeks and then... nothing. Anyway this post isn't about the song, it's about my new Nike Air Edge!

At RM270 it is the most expensive shoe I have bought, but the search for this shoe did not come easy.

I've been looking for a good pair of cross-training shoes not long after I started teaching. I read up on some websites and found that running shoes are not suitable at all for doing aerobics and gym work (unless you only run on the treadmill). But look around any gym and you'll find 90% of people wearing running shoes to do their heavy lifting and aerobic classes. I can personally attest that this is probably due to ignorance.

You see, running shoes are running shoes because they are optimized for, well, running! (That was an example of how you can lengthen your blog posts) Running shoes allow you to move forwards comfortably, and part of this is to make your foot naturally roll outwards in each step.

This becomes a problem in heavy weight lifting and aerobics. Especially in heavy weight lifting, you want to have an equal distribution of force on your feet, not just the outside. Using running shoes put you at risk of improper form, which in turn risks serious injury.

When it comes to aerobics, the diversity of movements (front to back, left to right) mean that running shoes are not suitable as the natural outward roll of your foot can put you off balance. Next time when you're barefoot, try walking side to side on the outside of your feet, and you'll see why you're at risk from ankle sprains. Thus, having a cross training shoe that has lateral stability (stability when moving side to side) is beneficial.

Frankly, I've never had much problem from the Admiral sports shoes I bought last year, but now that I'm an instructor (ahem) I think maintaining proper form and being a good example is of paramount importance. Plus I wouldn't want to sprain my ankle while doing lateral movements. That would be so UNCOOL.

At first the Nike Free 7.0 caught my eye but they ran out of my size (UK 11 for those of you looking for my birthday present...)

Another shoe that I fancied after looking around was the Nike Free 5.0:

It felt very soft and comfortable. When I put it on it felt as if I'm almost barefoot, but it also felt kinda tight and strange. So I didn't buy it and went home to do some research. Apparently this "cross training" shoe is optimized for running, and is meant to simulate barefoot running. Luckily I didn't buy it! Or it's be back to square one.

I only saw my current shoe the third time I went looking. This time I was more knowledgable about what I should be looking for. I initially hated shoes with leather but now I understand it gives the shoe rigidity and stabilizes the foot. After trying a pair of tennis shoes (not flexible!), the salesgirl recommended me the Air Edge.

Suffice to say I fell in love with it the moment I slipped it on. Talk about a Cinderella match! It is my first Nike shoe and now I know why they're so popular. It's not just the upward curve logo, guys. In fact, it was so comfortable I didn't need to break in to the shoe - no chafing or crampness at all.

The only thing I needed to get accustomed to is the feel of the shoe. As weight is more evenly distributed it uses different leg muscles and my posture has to shift slightly as well. But once I get that down I'll be unstoppable!

P.S. Today's long post is to buffer up the past few days disappearance. Been pretty busy. Could be quiet the next few days too.