New Kicks

New Kicks
Originally uploaded by zackojones

Donna and I were fitted today for running shoes at TrySports in Mt Pleasant South Carolina. She bought a pair of saucony Progrid Triumph 7 shoes and I bought a pair of Mizuno Wave Alchemy 9 shoes. We also bought inserts that automagically molded to our feet and joined their triple points club so we'll earn triple discount points for every purchase we make. Although we spent a lot of money for our shoes, insoles and membership it was worth every penny of it, in my opinion.

Before getting fitted for shoes I had asked around and was told that TrySports was a good place to get fitted. They actually record you running on a treadmill so your gait can be analyzed and you can be fitted for the proper shoe.



When Donna and I arrived we were greeted by Stephen who did the fitting for us. He started out by asking what our goals were for running, any previous injuries, etc. After answering those questions he had us stand on a board that allows your foot to leave an impression on it. My feet looked pretty average but we noticed right away that Donna had high arches.




After measuring our feet Stephen put us both in a pair of neutral running shoes and took us over to the treadmill where we ran for 15 seconds while our gait was being recorded. Afterwards he replayed the recording, took some measurements and point out issues he observed in our gait. I'm a heel striker and tend to pronate and Donna clearly runs on her toes.




With the gait analysis complete Stephen brought us out a couple of different pairs of shoes to try on. He explained that either shoe would meet our needs and it was really now a matter of choice as to which one felt better to us. In my case the Mizuno's felt much more comfortable than the other pair of shoes I tried. I know it took me several minutes to decide between the two pairs and I think it took Donna a while too. Stephen explained that this decision should be a hard one to make since either pair of shoes would suit our needs



Once we settled on the shoes we wanted we were then fitted for the custom insoles. I don't know exactly how these things work but basically he cut them to size for our shoes, heated them, and then we walked around for several minutes while the insert cooled and formed to the contours of our feet.



Overall we were thoroughly impressed with the fitting service provided by Stephen. In fact while we were there at least 4 other folks came in to get fitted for shoes. These guys really know their stuff. If you need some running shoes I'd highly recommend these guys.



Donna and I will be trying out our new kicks later today after it warms up some. It's in the low 30's right now but is supposed to get into the 40's this afternoon. I'll post an update after we've had a chance to run in our new kicks.