Regular runner attempting first marathon - footwear advice

Rule #1 - Never wear new shoes for a marathon. They must be at least slightly broken in.

The rest is common sense. Increase your mileage. Increase your distance of long run. Do tempos/hill repeats

Which model of On shoes have you been using? Most manufacturers (I don't know about AllBirds or Hylo) make several different models, some of which may be better suited for marathon training than others.

If you know what you like, stick with it until you don't like it anymore. E.g. you might find that your current shoes aren't good for marathon pace work. If that happens, go to a running store and test jog a bunch of shoes with a similar amount of cushioning and heel-toe drop as your current model. High-cushion shoes are fine, but don't feel pressured to buy into the hype if you don't like them

Honestly, no one can really answer this for you. Shoes are so subjective. Depends on how your built, how you strike, and what you define as "comfortable." See if you can go to a running-specific shoe shop and hopefully someone experienced can help you try on a few different pairs.

As for sustainable shoes, idk. I don't know anything about that. I recycle all my old shoes at running stores. I think they get donated to people in need.

Find a shoe that feels good on long runs, and good for tempo runs. That will prob work for running the marathon. The trainers or racers you use now might work. I'd have at least a couple weeks of wear on any pair of shoes I can as going to race a marathon in.

Go for one of the main running brands like ASICS saucony Nike adidas mizuno craft newton hoka new balance on altra topo Solomon inov8 Reebok etc. I would recommend saucony but some people don’t like the fit. It’s all prefeance but in general the big 6 are nike adidas hoka saucony ASICS and new Balance

For training, use whatever.

For the race, get a pair of super shoes, next%etc. You will want to do a workout or long run in them before race day to make sure all feels good.

This. I suggest you buy the Nike Vaporfly Next%. When they wear out, donate them to a charity that will send them overseas to Africa. They'll be worn for another 10,000 miles. You'll be replacing a new, but inferior, shoe that another charity that would be buying for them. In the long run, you'll be doing more for the environment. "Sustainable" shoes are mostly hype. Unless you find a place to recycle them that realizes they are recyclable, they're just going to end up in the same trash dump.

If you're choosing your marathon shoes by their "sustainability" (whatever that is), I can't help you.

I would stay away from big marshmallow shoes like Hoka, CMP, etc. It is too big of a change to try those shoes in the middle of training for a marathon. I am also skeptical that these shoes do anything and have concerns that they can cause more harm than good due to adaptations that you may make in response to being higher off the ground.

And I would also just stay with what is working when in the middle of a training cycle for your first marathon. The adjustment your body will need to make to keep up with the increase in mileage is more than enough. You do not need to be throwing different shoes at it.

Unless you are going for a time goal that is close to 3:00 or faster, I would just wear your same training shoes when racing. Just be sure that they are a newer pair. Most people should have a goal of just finishing strong and not going out too fast at their first marathon. Don't worry about super shoes or racing flats the first time out. Just run a smart race at a comfortable pace that will let you finish strong instead of bonking and walk/jogging the last few miles.

Finally, unless you have some special orthopedic issues or have struggled with injuries, the best running shoe is whatever feels good to you. All the stuff about matching foot strike, running style, etc. to running shoe style is pretty much a bunch of marketing BS. A stable shoe that does not bend easily when you try to twist it by holding the toe in one hand and the heel in the other is generally a good shoe for any runner who is just getting into it. As you log more and more miles and get faster, you can start messing with racing shoes and the trainers that have more flex or get you up higher off the ground. But honestly, I have known a bunch of pretty fast guys over the years and almost all of them just find a trainer they like and stay with it.

You say you loved the ON running shoes. I would just get those. For a second pair, try something different.

I'm fairly certain that Adidas use a lot of recycled plastics in their shoes (check out their Prime Blue initiative).

So perhaps try the Adidas Adios Pro 3. Many people claim that it rivals the Vaporfly and Alphafly of Nike, and if you've never worn super-shoes before, you're in for a treat.

Thanks for all the comments so far.

Re: the comments about what is a sustainable running shoe - if you search on the web you will find some articles and brands.

Hylo offer a free recycling service - send the old shoes back FOC and you get a discount voucher of the next pair.

There is a local running shop that has a good range - so I will take the advice and head in to try a few different styles (particularly the ones with more heel cushioning than I am used to).

I plan to buy a second pair of whichever trainer I decide to use - and start to use it for a a few training runs near the end and then for the event. Hopefully that way it will be a familiar trainer but in good but not brand new condition.

If you have something you like, stick with it. The only thing I'd note is to think less about shoe brand, more about the specific model. For example, an Asics Cumulus is more similar to a New Balance 880 than it is to an Asics Kayano, an ON Cloudflow is more similar to a Saucony Kinvara than an ON Cloudace, etc. Shoes within brands will have some commonalities across most/all models (Hoka, ON, and Altra are particularly distinctive), but for the most part, everyone makes fairly equivalent versions of the same core shoe types (performance trainer, max cushion neutral, mid-cushion stability, etc).

If you're a regular novice runner I suggest going minimal. Most people replying are probably very experienced runners who have been running for a long time and are locked into specific shoes for their "foot type" and other habitual behaviors developed over lots of years. People like this know what works for them and won't risk making changes that might make them slower in the short term. You don't have that problem. You can develop good running habits from the beginning. Running slower for a year won't ruin your career, reputation, or self-esteem. I will probably get downvotes from the puffy shoe crowd but I really think minimal is the way to go for beginners starting from scratch and not putting in tons of miles. In the long run you'll be better than if you started out with the pillow puffers.

by minimal I mean zero drop at the very least, and then as little foam as you are comfortable with.

Those are some fringe brands. I'd never even heard of Hylo before. Being a noob, you should probably stick to the mainstream brands before going for the obscure stuff.

Don’t take advice from anyone who uses the word Noob

Stupid advise.