When should you change your running shoes?

In 2025, endurance athletes have a huge selection of running shoes to choose from. But how do you know which shoe types are best, and when to change them? This guide offers some useful running tips.

These days, running footwear is lighter, faster and more comfortable than ever before. When selecting shoes to help you beat your personal best, there is a range of criteria that will influence your decision: the type, style, shape, weight, stability, material and feel.

In addition, there are external factors such as the weather or type of surface along the race.

So, how often should you change running shoes? Running shoes leave more than one kind of footprint, so there is an extra environmental incentive for squeezing every mile out of them, but eventually they really will reach the end of the road. Wear and tear is a significant determinant in when we start shopping around for new footwear. This is caused by a runner’s weight and gait, temperature changes and the surfaces he or she has covered over the shoe’s lifespan.

Heavier shoes with higher stack heights generally experience greater longevity than lighter, lower stack equivalents, as their midsole foam is more robust. Runners with lighter shoes should consider rotating pairs to enable the midsole to fully decompress prior to next use, and this in turn will extend their life.

When assessing your foot type (overpronation, neutral or underpronation/supination), it is a good idea to get a gait analysis, which will assess your running technique and the way you pound the ground.

For expert marathon running tips and advice on footwear, contact marathon coach Maximum Mileage Coaching today.

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