My running shoes only last about 6 months before my toes make holes in the top. I use them every day for walking or running but this is getting expensive! How often do you buy new shoes? Do you have any tips for making them go the extra mile?
How often do you replace your shoes? - Bridge to 10K
How often do you replace your shoes?
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Kiwi_Fi
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UnfitNoMoreGraduate10
I only use my running shoes for running, which helps… then I get between 300 and 500 miles from a pair. Another tip is to buy more than one pair at a time… the soles can take 24 hours or so to recover themselves, so running too close together in the same pair is going to shorten their life.
Road shoes can get pretty expensive, but get off road, then (virtually) all shoes are neutral… so you can buy a brand you know the fit of, but get them online at bargain prices. Also after gait analysis this is possible with road shoes… and bargains are to be had in last seasons (or in Nike’s case last weeks) colours
I’ve also found that buying just before/after the autumn marathons means there’s more bargains to be found as less people run in the winter and no sensible marathoner is putting new shoes on a week or two before race day.
Great tips thanks! I also go for last season's shoes as I don't care what colour I get (they all end up grey after running through a few puddles). I'll try saving these new ones for running and use my old ones for walking the dog until they really fall apart.
Do you have special trail shoes for running off-road?
Yes, currently I only have light trail shoes which are good on grass and well trodden paths… there are shoes which can handle more mud, snow, rocks and even ice.
BeatlesforeverGraduate10
I also use my running shoes just for running. I have a pair of trail running shoes and another pair of road running shoes, which are a lot more cushioned and you can really feel the difference. I prefer the trail ones even when running on pavements, I like to feel the ground under my feet 🙂
YesletsgoGraduate10
My Garmin tracks how far you've run in your shoes. I did just over 400km in my ASICS and found they'd lost all their support. It's not worth risking injury by running in knackered shoes. I'm hoping the Brooks I just bought will last longer.PS I only used the ASICS for running and am a bit peeved they didn't last longer.
I've run about 500km in my Brooks (Divide 2, road-trail hybrid) and the cushioning still feels great. I can see that I have worn down part of the tread, but probably only to where a road shoe would be anyway, and the fabric material on the outside of one shoe is showing signs of wear. I don't have experience of other running shoes to compare them with but I've been happy with them and will probably buy another pair when it comes to replacement time. Hopefully your Brooks will last you better than your ASICS.
This is good to know, I'll keep my fingers crossed!
One way to justify the cost is to think of all the things you do without your car! If your walking/biking to the shop to drop off your kids at school or whatever - think of all the petrol you save, easily justifies buying new trainers or a few for the different tasks you do. At least that’s how I don’t feel like it’s eating a hole in my wallet.
I just think about what I'm not spending on a gym membership that I don't use 😂
Bladerunner2049Graduate10
About 600km for me. Which is about every 3 months during my marathon training. I tend to buy two pairs at the same time and alternate between them. I know that Brooks GTS 21s work for me so it’s an easy decision.
Every 3 months! Wow, that's a lot of kms!
Yep, marathon training is certainly hard work 😀 I’ll drop back to normal levels after this weekend
RunWillieGraduate10
I replace mine at 500k or just over 300miles depending how you track. I run most days so also rotate two pairs 👍🏻
IrishprincessGraduate10
Are you wearing a full size or half size bigger than your everyday shoes? If not that could explain why your toe wears out first.
As UnfitNoMore says, shop around. If you know what style and brand works for you then look for previous seasons stock and go online for bargains. I can buy my shoes for half price mostly. Try these:
Thanks Irishprincess I'll have a look. As if I needed any encouragement to buy more shoes...
It doesn’t take much does it? 🙂
Irishprincess thanks. I’m never sure if those bargain websites are legit so tend to buy last season’s model from the Brooks website. I learnt the hard way (blisters) about getting a bigger size!
I know what you mean. I always do a bit of research on any new websites before I shop with them but I’ve bought from these two companies and they have a quick delivery service and great prices. If you sign up to their emails you’ll be notified when their sales start.
Thommo23Graduate10
I got 600Km out of my last Mizunos which was about 6 months use - I only use them for running so buy 2 pairs a year on average. The shoes are expensive but when you consider they give you around 50-70 hours of use, its not bad value for money.
I only used the ASICS for running (and the warm up walk). I suppose I've had them for 7 months which is about the same as you but I didn't run as far.
sTrongFuseGraduate10
My goto shoes are Brooks Ghost for road/path and Brooks Divide for trail (and like UnfitNoMore , I'm not talking serious, rough, potentially ankle braking trails, just woodland tracks, fields, dirt track roads and stretches where I might encounter more mud than I do on tarmac). Typically, I'm looking to get 800km/500mi out of a pair. At any given time I have two road pairs (one may be the goretex version for when it's raining/snowing) and one trail pair.
For me, rotating between the three pairs I have generally means, due to the distances I cover, I get about 6-7 months out of a pair before it gets relegated to being used for tromping about in the garden. That equates to a working life of about 60-65 runs each pair. So, yeah, unless you can find a bargain on the previous year's iteration, it can be quite pricey.
I'm mostly running across fields and it can get quite uneven underfoot. Do you know if this wears shoes out quicker than running on the pavement?I've never spend so much on shoes as since I started running 
I would have thought grass being softer than pavement. it would cause less impact and so cause less wear, but honest answer is, no idea. I don't really do a lot of grass running, and when it come to impact, hard dry dirt is just as tough as tarmac.
It will wear them slower in the sole, but the midsole still takes the impact of every step… so they may not wear as designed in that department. I wouldn’t see this making a big difference though.
Also occurs to me that grass having its precipitation retaining properties, your shoes probably get wetter more often than running on pavements. The constant getting wet and drying out possibly doesn't do the fabric of the uppers any good.
I forgot that it’s sometimes not raining out there 🤣
Tarmac is sometimes drier than grass/mud
Almost always… especially for morning runners
What is this "morning running" you speak of?
I don’t know… I’ve heard rumours that some crazy folk get up early and run, but I’m asleep so never see it.
sTrongFuse I’m a ghost wearer too, so thanks for the trail shoe tip! Maybe I’ll save my ghosts for the road and go for something with a bit more oomph on the trails.
In the summer, when the ground dries out and gets quite hard, I'll wear the Ghosts when I'm on my local trails too as although the Divides are cushioned, the Ghosts have a bit more "give". The Divides give me a bit more security of grip when it's muddy/greasy.
nowsterGraduate10
I find my shoes last almost 800 km (from brand new) before they start to give me problems. That translates to about six months of use at the moment.
Support in them is minimal as they're minimalist. I don't use the ones I run in other than for running.
I need the support and cushioning, not sure I could run in your shoes nowster (especially as they wouldn't fit me 😂)
I need neither support nor cushioning. I can (and have) run barefoot. I do like to have something to stop things sticking into my soles. The blisters have healed now. 🤣
And I take M46 in Vibram FiveFingers, EU46(UK11) in Merrell Barefoot and EU47(UK 12) in Vivobarefoot. They'd probably look like clown shoes on many here.
Dexy5Graduate10
My first advice is to only wear your running shoes for running.
Secondly, if your shoes have a thumb width space in front of your toes, your shoes should be the correct size for you. So don’t worry about your toes breaking through the top of the shoes, as it doesn’t affect your running. Apparently this is quite common among runners. My husband does the same and I have occasionally sewn them up again.
Our running shop actually provides a service of putting a reinforcement patch inside to delay the breakthrough.
Happy running.
I get this, but only on my right foot. I actually lost that toenail after doing the Yorkshire 3 Peaks back in August and it hasn't fully grown back yet and, guess what, the problem hasn't occurred since then. Bit extreme as measures go, and it would only ever be a temporary "fix" at best anyway...
Ouch! I’ve heard of runners loosing a toenail. I wonder if taping them would help with both the shoe problem and the toenail loss problem?
Once it finally grows back, I'll give that a try...
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