I wrote this post because someone told me about their 5 pairs of shoes that they bought in 2012. Also during the January Sales I had people asking me advice on shoes! I am certainly not an expert but I have learned that if:
A) You are clueless about what shoes you should be getting.
B) You are purchasing a pair of shoes because someone else said they were good.
C) You are believing the marketing spiel and that's why you are purchasing the shoes

......that money would be better spent on learning a running technique. My feelings are, that shoes will not make you run better, nor will they reduce injury - a running technique will!

As previously stated before in an earlier post, I learned about Pose technique because this taught me biomechanically what my body and legs should be doing and why. I used to be in the ABC categories and used to injure regularly. From those courses with Dr Mark Hainsworth and Dr Nicholas Romanov, I no longer injure easily! I have been fully empowered to choose my own shoes and pretty much run in what I feel comfortable in.  For Fetchie JHuff - here are my shoes.

I ran my first marathon in a pair of Nikes. I had shin splints by the end of it and during training runs my knee used to hurt. I have since thrown them away because I began to "hate" them and their chunky heeled cushioned bits!

Dec 2006: Purchased a pair of Mizunos (£50) as they were recommended to me. These were comfortable but I still got injured in them until I learned about running techniques at the end of 2009.

As I have bunions, I have a habit of putting side holes in my shoes! As you can see the underside of the shoes are both worn at the back (used to heel strike) and at the front. This pair of shoes still works in the garden and on building sites.

2008: my mother gave me a pair of Reeboks (£15) that she picked up from the sales. My first reaction was you got it cheap, it can't be any good and plus they did not have any recommendations so they were relegated to walking shoes. Since learning pose running, these have been a great pair of shoes for me. Currently they alert me (squeek) when I push off and have too large a stride when I walk.

I still use them to run in despite the holes at the side. After all compared to my Mizunos, the soles are pretty good.

Mid 2009: Bought a pair of Karrimor sandals (£7) to walk about in. After learning Pose running, I took them for their first marathon run in June 2010. My feet loved the air around them. They felt they were on a motorbike instead of a stuffy car!

The A circle shows the amount of wear they have received from post-pose running. The B circle shoes the amount of wear from walking pre-pose running. I think I will need to resole this pair of sandals because they are sooo comfortable and the soles are lifting off them from running in the rain and puddles.

Feb 2012: decided to embark on a pair of "natural running shoes" so purchased this pair of Merrells Barefoot with a Vibram sole for a bargain $30 USD. They are really light; one shoe weighing @ 133.3 gm.

Max distance I have run in them has been 20 miles BUT no tyre pulling marathons in them yet as most of the events I have entered have been muddy. I want to keep this pair looking clean at the moment.

I have respectfully not walked too much in them!

End of Nov 2012: purchased this pair to run in. Thought they were comfortable but after the Singapore marathon, realised that partly due to my bunion and partly due to the sandal design, these are not appropriate for my feet. Found that the top of the sandal design actually caused my forefoot to strike the ground differently compared to when I ran barefoot. This is due to a pull on the bunion side and so a slight forefoot pronation was occurring and thus a niggle became apparent as I ran the Singapore marathon and had to conciously remember to keep an even forefoot strike.

I am considering taking the soles off this pair and merging them with my Karrimors.

.....AND that ends the tales of my current running shoes. :-)

I hate and like being cold. I hate heating because it dries my skin, I love a cold bedroom so that I can snuggle into my duvet.  When I run in the cold, I like wearing t-shirt and shorts. Unfortunately, like many women, I suffer from cold hands and feet.  This happens when my core temperature is only a little cool and is very annoying as it has a habit of affecting my hands with raynaud's phenomena.

This Sunday, looks like I need to be prepared and I need a breathable jacket that will keep me warm enough, but cool enough (I also hate being hot). Am going to be testing the FurTech Claw Jacket.  On the website it says:

"Temperature Adaptability is extended to year round use by Dry Vents. These large vents are positioned under the arm and allow air to circulate through the jacket to your base layer, bypassing the integral insulation for rapid cooling. The Dry Vents can be used when walking in heavy, vertical rain as the stiffness of the zip forms a cowl around the vent.

The Dry Vents are large enough for you to easily remove your arm from the sleeve for rapid cooling in dry conditions. This is especially useful in reducing the faff factor when wearing a sack, body coils and harness."

Click here for full product review.

This sounds perfect for the potential Sunday weather for the marathon. Well this jacket is about to take a beating....