Finding Footwear to Fit the Sport

Americans spent $5 billion on athletic shoes last year, according to the National Sporting Goods Assn. But finding the best fit for your sport, your wallet and your foot is no small feat.

A dozen major manufacturers tout row upon row of styles with such features as air pumps, lighter-than-marshmallow soles and super shock absorbers. Picking the right shoe can be as grueling as improving your hook shot or shaving seconds off your 10-K time.

Here’s advice from shoe experts:

Whatever your exercise routine, look first for flexibility in a shoe, suggested John Robinson, an anatomy expert for the Nike Sport Research Lab in Beaverton, Ore.

Your shoe’s most flexible point should match up with your foot’s most flexible point. To make a match: “Place the shoe between both hands. Press up on the tip of the toe and on the heel. Note where the shoe bends,” Robinson said. Then try on the shoe and flex your toes. The shoe should bend where your foot does, around the ball of the foot.

Runners should also look for shoes with superb cushioning, according to Robinson and other shoe experts. With every stride, runners hit the ground with a force two to three times their body weight. Allow a finger-width space between the big toe and the end of the shoe for best fit, Robinson advised.

Walkers need well-cushioned shoes. If you’re walking more than 45 minutes at a stretch, some experts recommend shoes designed specifically for the activity. Others say the best walking shoe is a good running shoe.

Aerobic dancers should look for shoes with substantial cushioning and stability at the ball of the foot, said Todd Gilmer, spokesman for Avia Athletic Footwear in Portland, Ore. “These features are important because aerobic dancers spend most of their time on the balls of their feet.”

“Checking a shoe for good stability is hard to do in a store,” Robinson said. “Basically, what stability systems are trying to do is prevent feet from rolling over.”

Basketball players need shoes with stability and a snug ankle fit to accommodate the side-to-side motion of the sport, Robinson said. “To test stability in basketball high-tops, stand normally and try to roll the foot over. If there is no resistance, the shoe is not supportive enough.”

A shoe’s durability depends on a number of factors, including the duration and intensity of your exercise program and your body weight, said Tom Anderson, an exercise physiologist and director of health testing for Centinela Hospital’s Fitness Institute.

“Any shoe should be discarded after about a year,” Anderson said. But heavy exercise demands more frequent replacement. “A 25-mile-a-week runner, for instance, should probably change shoes every four to six months. And ‘megarunners,’ those who put in 50 miles or more a week, will probably find that their shoes last only three months.”

Brand loyalty can be a good idea, Anderson added. “If you find a shoe that works for you, stick with it.”