I <3 New Shoes.

But not just any shoes.  Running Shoes!  Buying new shoes for any other occasion makes me miserable but picking out new running shoes, now that’s my kind of shoe shopping!!  I have never been nor will I ever be a person who has a closet full of shoes (unless they are old running shoes that I have not yet gotten rid of…) and I will re-wear the same few pairs of shoes to work way past the point of them being acceptable because I really HATE it that much!  Too bad I cannot just wear socks to work, I am really happiest with no shoes on at all!  I also quite enjoy my TOMS but unfortunately, I can really only pull off wearing those to work on Fridays ONEMOREDAY!

Why this shoe speak you ask?  Well, yesterday when I got home from work, I was very excited to find two pairs of new running/workout shoes waiting for me on the front porch, courtesy of Zappos.com!

Disclaimer: I am not a professional shoe salesperson or shoe shopper, please consult your own salesperson/shopper before making a shoe purchase that is right for you.  I am just someone telling you what I think of the kinds I use!

Here’s what I got!

First up, I needed new shoes for weight lifting class.  I have been wearing the same old worn out and ripped pair of lightweight Nike’s since I joined the gym almost two years ago… I bought these shoes even longer ago than that and I think for a Kickboxing class I used to take at another gym I belonged to back in 2003/4 maybe?  Yikes!  So either way, I actually NEEDED these shoes!  I decided on a pair of Minimus shoes from New Balance.  I’ve never been the world’s largest New Balance fan (mainly because I always found them very heavy) but when I saw they had developed a new line that included soles from Vibrams,  I was sold!  I have worn my Five Fingers to the gym a few times but they always draw way too much attention there and if you knew me, you’d know I am not really interested in explaining “yes, they are comfortable” for the bazillionth time after work on a week day… during vacation or the weekend, my patience level is slightly higher but by 5pm on a Tuesday or Thursday, I pretty much would be happiest not discussing this topic again, thankyouverymuch!  So that is why I picked these out of the lineup at Zappos:

I can give more of a review of these in the future but so far, I have only worn them once but really, really liked them!  I wore them last night to do Insanity and they felt very comfortable but still allowed me to grip the floor better, which seems to be better for you when you are doing cross-training activities (or so I’ve heard!).  But I do really notice a difference and feel a lot more stable wearing ground gripping shoes versus larger tennis shoes/fitness shoes.

My second pair of shoes waiting for me on the porch yesterday was a new pair of my current favorite running shoes, the Saucony Kinvara 2!  I don’t know why I love these shoes so much, but I really do!  I swear they make me run faster and I have yet to get a pair that causes any kind of blisters!  I bought my first pair a little too small and ended up hurting a toenail when I swelled up at Summerfest because of dehydration but since buying a half size larger, I have never had anything happen with them!

This time I went for the white/black/purple combo and let me tell you, they look even better in person!! I am excited to wear these for Saturday’s long run provided we don’t have super sloppy roads… if so, I might stick with the old pair another week as to not ruin the newbies!

Since I have had these shoes for awhile (in other colors), I can list what I have found to be the pros and cons of these shoes.  I’ll start with the cons because that list is pretty short  and it’s always good to hear the bad news first, right?

CONS: 1) They rip easily on the top, in the toe region.  This has yet to actually affect my wearability of them but I still find it weird that this happens so quickly and I am not sure why it does?  The mesh covering over the shoes tears and you can see the bottom layer peaking through.  2) They don’t keep my feet dry at all!  But really, what shoes do a good job at this besides rain boots?  But it does seem my feet get a lot wetter and colder wearing this kind of shoe than past shoes I have worn but that might have something to do with the minimalistic modeling? 3) I have not found they last very long.  I seem to burn through them pretty quickly to the point I start getting shin splints (my cue to buy new shoes!).  I guess I have made it 4 months on my current pair (but pushed it a little to get closer to Spring) and maybe that is actually a decent amount of time but it seems I used to get 6 months out of shoes.  Although to be honest, I probably do run more now?  So maybe this really is not a con after all…

PROS: 1) These shoes encourage you to strike with your forefoot instead of your heel.  I really wish that I would have learned about proper form 5+ years ago when I first started running because let me tell you, muscle memory lasts a REALLY long time and when fatigued, I still revert back to heel striking which never fails to leave me sore the next day and cause damage to my body… these shoes really do help your foot to naturally land a bit safer so I try to keep practicing that to clear out the bad memories 2) They are super lightweight.  When I switched from my professional running store running shoe to these shoes, it seriously felt like I was not even wearing anything, they are that comfortable!  It’s amazing how much less fatigued my feet/ankles/legs get when they are not picking up heavy shoes! I also really think this lightweightedness (yes, that is a word) makes you run faster in them… 3) They are reasonable priced.  I have normally paid between $70-$100 for a pair and to me, that is a pretty decent price for good shoes.  It seems a lot of the better running shoes are above $100 and my limit is $100 or below but these shoes make that cut!

So that is probably enough rambling on about shoes but I was just so excited for them, I had to share!  If you are in need of new shoes, definitely hop over to Zappos.com!  Free shipping BOTH ways and you have a 365 days to return them if you have not worn them.  Plus, they shipped really quickly (although stinky Sister got hers a day before mine when she ordered a day after!).  I got both of these pairs on sale so with the free shipping, they only came to about $70 a pair!  That to me is well worth it!

Happy Shoe Shopping!

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