Trying to understand something about running shoe "cushioning", wear & tear, etc.

In my experience, the "a" shoe is more likely to cause injury and soreness. My guess is that when cushioning gets worn down it affects your gait and you are unable to run properly. Shoe "b" may feel similar in terms of lack of cushioning but will not alter your running form and therefore is the better shoe.

An old shoe can actively hurt you while a new shoe with less cushioning may make you sore but your body will have a chance to recover and adapt.

my two cents

Thanks for your input... just going to bump this up once in case anyone else has got any thoughts or knowledge about this stuff.

I personally like my shoes worn. I don't know why. I just prefer something that has right around 250 or so miles on them.

I got a pair of Asics GT2000s that are around 3 years old, and have well over 2000 miles on them. I keep fixing the worn spots with ShoeGoo. However the shoes themselves I think only have a few more hundred miles.

I also have a pair of NB Adrenaline GTS 18 that probably have about ~750 miles on them. They are holding up much better than the Asics.

Like I said, I prefer my shoes worn... however if it gets to the point where they turn into a hazard (like blowing apart), I ditch them.

Wish I could run my tires on my truck like I retread my shoes... LOL