A few weeks ago I went to City Sports in Midtown to go check out their running shoes. Since I have been running a few 5ks and my current sneakers were gifts from Fitness Magazine’s Meet and Tweet, I figured it was time I start looking for a new pair.
I was greeted by TJ and he was SUPER nice. He asked me some basic exploratory questions including if I had any athletic goals, how many miles did I plan on running, what’s my currently activity pattern and etc. By the time he was done I felt super comfortable that he would be able to pick the right shoe for me.
He performed a Gait analysis on me and determined that I have moderate over pronation. This meant that I would need a thicker medial posting that protects the ankle as I am running. City Sports had plenty of sneakers for me to choose from. TJ even gave me my own Fit Card so that I wouldn’t forget my analysis in case I needed another pair of sneakers down the line.

5 Tips To Pick The Perfect Running Shoe
1) Go Into A Running Specific Shop: I know online is easy but it’s better to try on the running sneakers before you purchase. Get fitted and keep in mind that 6-8 months is the shelf life of pretty much any sneaker.
2) Know Your Activity Pattern: It is critical that you make sure you have the proper protection for the activity you are doing (aka don’t take running shoes to bootcamp).
3) Feel Out Multiple Surfaces: See if you can try different surfaces when trying on the shoe. How many times have we bought heels because they felt great on the store rug–then we hit the mean concrete and get a quick wake up call?! Running shoes are the same City Sports has both rung AND concrete (40 yards!) in the store that you can test. Best part? You can try them on the treadmill in your gym and return them if they don’t feel good (in resell-able condition of course).
4) Count Your Miles: Keep in mind that 400-600 miles is the maximum you should be running in any pair of sneakers. Don’t forget to include all mileage running outside in errands (grocery store, mall, post office etc)
5) Figure out what you like: One of the most important decisions is whether or not you like a light or a heavy sneaker. Some folks think that less is better when it comes to running and some people love to feel a complete comfort of a heavy sneaker. make sure you consider the weight of the sneaker when you try them on.
I asked TJ what his personal favorites are and he let me know that Brooks and Mizuno are his personal favorites because they are light and cushiony. Sounds good to me!
City Sports is the premiere destination for urban athletes and active lifestyle enthusiasts. Currently, there are 23 City Sports stores on the East Coast, located in the following metropolitan markets: Boston, Providence, Burlington, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington. They currently sell more than 200,000 pair of running shoes, and its run clubs log a combined 27,000 miles annually. City Sports extends its unique specialty shopping experience via its virtual store at www.citysports.com
***I was not compensated in any way for mentioning City Sports.***