I can remember my first run with “real” running shoes. It was a Mizuno Wave Rider running shoe, and although I had been running for a good few years by then, it was my first real dedicated running shoe. Before that, I ran in my all-purpose trainers.
Going back to my first run in running shoes was a great experience. I had the feeling of “yeah, can this be like that?”. So soft, so cozy, so comfortable, less tiring, faster, JOBB.
I’d read quite a few articles about running by then, and they all said that you should buy a real running shoe if you’re serious about running.
And I was serious, and I agree with those who wrote that it’s worth investing in a real running shoe because it really is different.
I stuck with Mizuno and the Wave Rider for a long time. A lot of people say that runners are brand loyal, I was for quite a long time. Then, starting on a path that many runners start on, I realized that different running shoes are needed for different types of running. I’m not talking about the differences between trail and road running, but that for slow, fast, interval training, it’s good to be able to “dress for the occasion”.
I bought my first second running shoe.
That’s a clumsy way to put it, because it wasn’t my second running shoe, it was my first running shoe that I didn’t buy because I had run out of the previous one, but I got two running shoes at the same time. I had one running shoe for everyday runs and one for fast runs.
Of course, now in many people’s minds it might be “anyone who can afford it”. I can only partly agree. In a running shoe you can run 800-1000 km (and after 2-3 years without running the sole material will age). If you have two running shoes, they wear out more slowly, so I’ve really just brought forward the inevitable running shoe purchase.
Justifying myself and how different the character of a running shoe can be, I of course lost my medicine and found myself not knowing where to put my running shoes.
I had running shoes for everything. I even had running shoes to go to work. Yes, I wore running shoes to work, I walk when I can. I read somewhere that a runner should not only wear comfortable good shoes when running, but also give the feet the luxury of walking in comfortable, well-cushioned proper shoes for everyday use.
There is a professional argument for more running shoes beyond the above. Different running shoes with different character, support, cushioning and energy return put different strains on different muscles and joints in different ways and to different degrees. This allows us to both relax and train different muscles better.
So that’s how I ended up with 4-5 active running shoes at the same time. But I don’t think that’s normal at all, and that it’s necessary for everyone. For me, the first second pair of running shoes got someone else going. An infatuation, an adoration towards running shoes. I read more and more about the shoes, watched 4-5 youtube videos of shoe reviews a day, eagerly awaited the shoe releases.
So, I became a huge running shoe fan, and I often think that I’m actually running to run out of a shoe and buy a new one as soon as possible. I love choosing running shoes to buy, trying them on, writing reviews about them.
