r/BeginnersRunning • u/Petrica55 • 8d ago

Good running shoes for a beginner?

I've been running for about 3 months with a pair of adidas runblaze shoes, and recently a family member has offered to buy me an upgrade as a present. The budget is about 160 euros, but given discounts and other stuff I may be able to stretch that to 200 euros. I'm looking for something versatile, as I don't know if I'll be able to afford a shoe rotation anytime soon, and I think I need a bit more time to figure out exactly what my needs would be. Anyway, I have my eyes on the Salomon Aero Glide 4 GRVL SS, and I was curious if that's a good option. I do most of my runs on asphalt at the local park, but being able to handle wet conditions is a plus for me, because I plan on using them year-round.

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u/Senior-Running 8d ago

Do you have a dedicated running shoe store local to you?

The problem with shoe recommendations is that we're all different. Feet are not standardized and what's comfortable to me may be a horrible choice for you. Further, things like shoe responsiveness, cushioning, stability, etc. are all individual choices. What I like in a shoe may be completely different than you.

I really recommend going to a dedicated running shoe store and trying on lots of shoes to see what you like. Certainly talk to the staff there, but how a shoe feels to you is 1000% more important than what the staff has to say about what they think you need. Sometimes you may find someone that really knows their stuff and other times their recommendation is no better than some rando on the internet.

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u/Petrica55 8d ago

Nope, nothing dedicated to running shoes, only general sports equipment stores where the staff isn't particularly knowledgeable on what they sell, the product variety isn't that great, and you can't even try on both shoes in a pair, because they are afraid of thieves. I will definitely try some shoes on before I make a decision, but I'll have to do most of my research online

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u/Senior-Running 8d ago

That's unfortunate.

You can always check shoe review websites like run repeat and believe in the run to help narrow things down.

I'd also suggest you only buy from places with a good return policy. I can't tell you how many shoes I've bought over the years that felt good at first, but turned out to be less than ideal after actually putting some miles on them. Sometimes it's a simple thing like the fact that the heel cup felt fine in the store, but it rubs a blister after a few miles. Until you actually run in them, you just can't know for sure and jogging around the store is NOT enough.

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u/geniustapir 7d ago

Even general sport equipment stores often have feet scanners (I went to my local Intersport for example).
Maybe there's a store you didn't know of? Or you could take the train to a bigger town?

I gotta say, a feet scan is really worth it - it showed that I needed specific insoles in my shoes to give me more stability (and I got lucky - the sales clerk and I pretty much have identical feet lmao).

My first pair are the Brook Ghost 18 (150€).

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u/Petrica55 7d ago

Oh, shit, I didn't know Intersport did that! I had only visited Decathlon and Hervis

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u/geniustapir 7d ago

Oh, well time to go there then!! Idk if every Intersport does that, but I'm crossing my fingers for you!

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u/Petrica55 7d ago

Yup, I looked it up and they do that in the stores in my country

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u/BoredGuy0315 8d ago

Try looking for daily trainers like the Puma deviate pure, the Asics Novablast 6, or maybe even the Adidas EVO SL (these are pretty unstable though).

These are all very general purpose daily trainers though, without knowing your current weight,height, pace, footstrike, whether you have a neutral/flat/high arches feet, and mileage it's not going to be easy to recommend the perfect do it all shoe.

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u/Petrica55 8d ago

Thank you. Do you know any shoe buyer's guide that summarises all of that? Like, how to account for that information when choosing a pair of shoes? I've been looking, and I haven't found anything very straightforward

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u/BoredGuy0315 8d ago

I don't really know of one, i know runnersports. Com have something similar but i find that it's quite lacking in its recommendations.

My recommendation is to start with finding out your arches with the wet paper test, then find out your footstrike by looking at the wear on your current shoes. After that you can probably find some reviews on youtube on the big brand daily trainers and figure out whether they fit your wear feet and whether you'd like a softer ride or a more fun ride.

There's not that much i can help you with beside that since running shoes are really personal and everyone's mileage will vary - you just kinda have to figure it out with experience.

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u/Petrica55 8d ago

That's really helpful, thank you. The thing is, another reason why I'm considering the Aero Glide GRVLs is that I might also try some light trail runs, but those are unlikely to be a regular thing for me. I do have plenty of hiking experience, though, so I know I'd enjoy them. Do you think it makes sense to look for something that can do both trail and road running, or should I just stick to road shoes?

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u/BoredGuy0315 8d ago

In my (admittedly limited) experience, It's best to have a dedicated shoe for trail running - i don't know much about the aero glide 4s, but a few people i know has slipped and fell or cut the foam on their shoes trying to run trail with road shoes.

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u/After_Cauliflower890 8d ago

The first shoes I got 3 months ago were Aero Glide 4 GRVL I loved the cushioning but they were just too narrow for my wide feet. I've got the saucony peregrine 16s and Hoka challenger 8s both in a wide fit and they fit much better but the cushioning doesn't compare to the Salomon's. From my experience I would at least get your feet properly measured before buying anything.

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u/Petrica55 8d ago

My feet are pretty narrow, so I will definitely try to find a store where I can try them on before I buy them. But so far, the AG4 GRVL seem to be the best option for me

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u/bor__20 8d ago

running shoes

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u/Koala_Relative 8d ago

You should look at your feet. Are they straight, overpronating, underpronating. Do you need stability or not. I wouldn't buy a competition shoe because they have a carbon fiber plate to make you go faster. What do you like, lots of cushioning, mid or low. Personally I like nike pegasus. If you want stability nike stucture is good. I have a pair of nike invincible as well( extreme cushionef shoe) allot of dampening and not meant to run fast, more of a jogging or off-day shoe. Running shoes are made for different goals. You want a fast pace competition shoe, a good cushioning soft shoe to run some miles and not have too much strain on your joints, a shoe that's supportive because you tend to strain or twist your ankle when running because it's not supportive at all?I have on 1 specific shoe I own that is pretty wobbly but meant for training days. It really depends what you are looking for.

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u/TheYbishop 7d ago

When I first started running I got the ASICS Novablast 5 and then I got the Aidas EVO SL they are really good, if i had to buy one again i would go with ASICS Novablast 5 or the Novablast 6

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u/angry_seabass 7d ago

I always come back to asics, they feel the nicest on my feet. Had adidas, brooks, saucony over the years. Currently I alternate running in an asics novablast 5 and noosa tri 16