Why do they say you have to replace your running shoes every 500miles(800km)?

I'm with you. I get about 250 miles on mine, and I retire them to yardwork duty (or I start wearing them to work).

I'm 50 and easily get OVER 1000 miles on my shoes with NO problems. If you get the right shoe for you then it's not a problem. Obviously if you have problems after 500 miles and get a new shoe and the problems go away then that's a different story. It's an individual thing. It's a wise runner who rules the shoes. It's fool who's ruled by them.

An older reference, but food for thought nonetheless.....

A Kinetic Evaluation of the Effects of In Vivo Loading on Running Shoes

Joseph Hamill, Barry T. Bates

The purpose of the study was to assess the effects of repeated in vivo loading on shock attenuation and mediolateral stability of running shoes using ground reaction force data. Six healthy subjects were each given a new pair of running shoes and asked to run 140 km between each of four experimental sessions. Ground reaction force data were collected for 10 successful trials/session using an A.M.T.I. force platform system. The mean values for selected ground reaction force parameters were evaluated using a single subject repeated measures design based on a 95% confidence interval. Mean parameter group data were also evaluated. The results support previous findings that material properties of the systems evaluated deteriorated resulting in a loss of shock absorbing capabilities (7.3%) but the magnitudes of the losses were far less than previously reported results (23-40%). The reason for this discrepancy is presumed to be the result of the different loading and evaluation methods used in the present study. The results also suggest that these changes are not totally deleterious since foot control seems to improve as cushioning is lost and foot control accounts for at least half of running shoe related injuries. A further implication of these results is that the initial "feel" or performance characteristics of a shoe may be misleading since reasonable functional changes appear to occur during the initial 300-400 km of wear.

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 1988;10(2):47-53.

I've got over 800 miles on my nike frees (original 3.0s) and they're still going strong.

xlev2 wrote:

any comments here on what shelf life of shoes is, if they are properly stored?

I had a pair of Nike trainers from the early 90s that went into the closet after only 50 miles. About 10 years later I pulled them out for a canoe trip. I think I walked in the water twice before they literally fell to pieces - total glue failure.

ukathleticscoach wrote:

This has always really bugged me

At 50 miles per week that means they will wear out in just 10 weeks. Do all you regular runners out there really buy new shoes every 2 1/2 months?

when training for marathons (100-110/week), i would bust out a new pair after about a month. i was doing a lot of running on concrete, though, so i really felt a difference after a month or so. as someone said earlier, your legs start to feel it once the shoes begin to wear. i'm fairly light (140), but still like the spring in my legs that results from spring in my shoes.

I'm another one who would love to get 500 miles out my shoes, I get 350 max, and usually the last 50-75 of that is short runs. I weigh right around 180 though and tend to gallop a bit much as I only took up running the last couple of years. Hopefully my wear will improve.

Running in shoes with collapsed foam greatly increases the risk of stress facture, which will pretty much put an end to your running. I wouldn't attempt to be a rebel on this one if I were you.

Saw a graph back in the 90s that showed the compression in midsole foam over time. About 75% of the compression occured during the first 100 miles then leveled off after 300 miles. It gets to the point where there is no longer any more compression.

They say to switch every 300-500 miles to get you back in the store. In my late 20s I would put in 100 miles a week on a pair of shoes for 2-3 months or more...and these were flats. No injuries. Your feet are actually better when they can actually respond to the ground instead of riding around on a cloud.

Alan

wellnow wrote:

Almost all trainers are made with EVA foam in the midsole.

As you know, this foam collapses with use.

In all of my shoes, the collapse under the point where I push off is considerable, whilst the rest of the shoe has very little collapse. This is the main problem, and the reason why we have to replace them.

That eva foam crap is the primary reason shoes wear out, and also the uppers are made badly. There is no reason for the upper to be made from anything but lightweight and long lasting nylonn. I ran 1600 miles in a pair of shoes in the 1970's and the soles were still in great shape, other than I had patched the outside edge of the heels a few times. They finally gave out where they nylon uppers were sown to the makeshift leather toebox. That would not have happened had the uppers been constructed from all nylon material.

I also had a pair of the original tiger jayhawks that lasted well over 1000 miles. I removed the leather from the uppers and glued down the edges were the nylon went under the soles. They had gum rubber outsoles, so I had to patch the heels a few times but that was it. They were very good shoes, 8 1/2 ounces and 7 after removing the leather.

I now get $11 shoes from Walmart.

They are the best training shoes that I've found, and the least expensive.

Those of you still getting over 1000 miles, what kind of shoes do you get?

What does "sown" mean?

It would have meant I sowed seeds.

I meant to say the nylon was sewn to the leather.

Are you really running in the cheap shoes from Wal Mart? I had actually wondered whether any serious runners actually use them, and I had assumed that the answer was no.

Yes, I've been using them for quite a long time.

I've also got a few other pair of streamlined running shoes,

that I got on sale for usually $10, and one pair that was $20.

Do you have a link or two as to what kind of shoes you get from walmart?

Also, anyone use hyperspeed II's to train in? Opinions?

And is it possible that there could be a recovery period for a shoe? Say you run/train in a mizuno training shoe during cross country (getting 400 miles in). Then put it in the closet till summer, and begin training in it all over again? Is it possible to be able to squeeze more out of them by having them "recover"?

I use Nike Waffle Racers. I do a lot of my running on trails and I think the turning, planting, etc. causes the uppers to eventually rip away from the soles. Sort of curious as to the kind of mileage I could get with more road running. I do enough that the shock would not bother me and it might eliminate the tearing.

I've got about 1600 on my Nimbus trainers. The upper is gone.The cushioning is gone too. However I've got 3 weeks of track left and I'll be damned if I'm gonna get a new pair now.

Maybe it's the OCD talking but I don't like buying trainers late in the season.

500 miles is a rough average, but it depending on your weight, stride, foot strike, pronation, etc.

I prefer lightweight trainers, but that also means I'm lucky to get 350-400 miles out of them.

Take your shoes, pull out the insoles, and if there's a big indentation underneath then they're toast.

You'll get the best of luck both with the shoes and with your body if you rotate through 3-4 pairs of shoes. That doesn't mean buying shoes more often. I get a new pair of shoes, I run a few short runs in them to make sure something didn't change that hoses my feet (once Saucony changed the cut of the toebox on the same style of shoe that caused by blood blisters on the little toes). Then those are my long run shoes. My old long run shoes become my medium run shoes and the other are for the other runs. Oldest shoes on the shortest runs. I never wear the same pair shoes two days in a row so they can completely dry before I run in them again. With 3-4 pairs of shoes you can run every day with 2-3 doubles a week and give each pair 48 hours "rest".

This will also help your biomechanics, since each pair will have a slightly different footstrike.

If you're a lighter runner doing 2000 miles a year that's four pairs of shoes, but one pair may last you a year or more if you're rotating.

Cushioning highly overated in shoes, ever since I made the switch to training in flats a year ago I haven't had any injuries. In fact right now i'm training in the Adizero p.r's (3.9 oz) and those are holding up nicely.