I made the difficult decision to not participate in the Two Oceans Half Marathon this year, but I am fully committed to doing next year’s one. In preparation for that, I needed to get myself into a good pair of long distance running shoes that I can clock some good mileage in.
I have done a few 21km races before and they have all (except one) been done in my Nike Pegasus. There are a few hurdles (‘scuse the pun) that I need to get pass to just be able to hit the road. Firstly, I have weak ankles, so I pronate and wear orthotics to compensate for my collapsing ankles. Secondly, I suffer from shin splints.
I found that Nike does provide the best support for my feet. So naturally I was rather happy when Nike sent me a pair of their Nike Zoom Vomero 10. These are best for long distance running and built for clocking up daily mileage.
While these are neutrals, I was instructed by my podiatrist to only wear neutrals so that I can insert my custom orthotics.
These were my findings with the shoe:
Fit – The fit was comfortable, taking into account, I need a roomy shoe to fit in the orthotics and still have room to move. The shoe gives a supportive fit, providing the right amount of cushioning for my feet.
Aesthetic – As a woman, while we care about the functionality of the shoe, we also still want to look good in it. This shoe, while pleasing to the eye, due to its trendy colours (mine was powder blue, purple and touches of pink), did make my feet look big, but that’s probably because I was wearing a size UK6. It made my foot look wide, however this is not evident in photos though.
Functionality – I was very impressed with how quickly my feet got used to the shoe. After a few 5-10km runs on the road and some faster runs on the treadmill, my foot had adapted to the new shoe within a week. With my previous pair of Pegasus it took a few weeks for my feet to adapt. I also liked how I could double the shoe up as a ‘cross trainer’ in the gym with my functional training too, and it performed well. While not necessarily geared towards this, it was comfortable.
Price – Good quality does not come cheap, however I do think one should not cut corners when picking out a running shoe. Having that said, the shoe retails for R1799.99.
Who should buy this – If you’re not a serious runner and looking to do the occasional run, this may be a bit of an over investment, you could probably get away with something lighter. However if like me, you’re looking to clock up serious k’s and have your sights set on events like the Soweto Marathon, Two Oceans or even Comrades – this would be the shoe you should be considering.
Wardah
Happy Healthy Fabulous
