Sole Searching
If you have been following along, you will know we have been running in the ASICS Gel Nimbus since it debuted in 1999! In all honesty, we hesitated in the early days because the shoe was a bit "boring" looking compared to others on the market. We bounced around but ultimately realized this was the best fit and feel for our feet. And over the years, ASICS has come out with so many different colors and variations to choose from, vastly improved from the plain basics back in the beginning.
A whole lot goes into running injury-free and the right shoe for you is a big part of that. This brand and shoe carried us through so many training cycles, runs, races, distances with tremendous success in terms of performance and recovery. It has been a good shoe and the decision to switch has been daunting, to say the least. Everyone is different, we cannot possibly emphasize that enough. The shoe that is right for us may not be the best fit for you. A local running store can help and even as a coach we often turn to their expertise, too.
For us, we like a firmer more responsive shoe. It's important to draw the distinction here that this is not necessarily about lightweight and speed. Depending on your running goals, these elements may also be important to you, but the firmer, responsive fit for us is really about how it feels.
For 25 years, the ASICS Gel Nimbus was that shoe for us. So much so that we had the shoe on auto re-order every 500 miles. So, imagine our surprise when several months ago our beloved shoe arrives, we open the box and we see something almost unrecognizable. The updated cushion in the sole of the ASICS Gel Nimbus 25s (and 26s) is so drastic we could tell before even putting the shoes on our feet. Shoe technology has come a long way and if you are replacing your current running shoes with the same shoe the time to break them in is next to nothing. When we put these redesigns on and ran, we noticed the differences immediately. That was a tough run and an even tougher recovery. We felt tightness and soreness like we never experience. Over time, just like when you get a brand new type of shoe, we adapted and adjusted and the runs went back to “normal” for us. But even then, we knew, this was no longer the shoe for us. We are in the business of running and coaching not shoe marketing and manufacturing but it does leave us wondering why ASICS would change a tried and true classic instead of simply creating a new line, but that’s not for us to know or decide.
So, the “sole” searching began and not really knowing where to start after 25 years in the same shoe, we turned to the experts at The Running Store in Gainesville. Tremendous credit to them for hearing and understanding our concerns with the ASICS redesign, listening and learning about our running style and preferences and recommending two options to choose from: The Brooks Ghost or the New Balance 880s.
We did some of our own research as well and went into the store this week set on the Ghost. As always, the kind, welcoming and knowledgeable team at The Running Store ran us through the options, let us try on both, along with a few others, and then helped us make a confident and informed decision when we realized we actually really liked both choices. They were so nice as to even bring out a box of every single color they had in stock so we could pick our favorite. We ended up liking the NB 880s way more than expected, but as planned ultimately purchased the Brooks Ghost.
For over a decade, the Brooks Ghost has been on the recommended list from Runner’s World, who call this shoe “a tried-and-true daily trainer.” We hope so!
We ventured out in the new shoe for the first time this week and we are cautiously optimistic! Since this is an entirely new shoe for us, the adjustment process will take a little longer and look a little different than it has in the pace 25 years running in ASICS.
We will start with light runs at shorter distances while we get used to the new shoe. Breaking in a shoe is less about the shoe settling in and more about our bodies and feet adapting to the shoe. We will alternate between this shoe and the ASICS for a few weeks, gradually running in the Brooks more and more over faster, longer distances. Important to note, if you are going with an entirely new shoe, it is important to buy this while your current, older shoe is still in good enough condition that you can transition from one to the other over time.
We are excited to explore a new brand and the possibilities that come with it. We are hopeful the Brooks Ghost will be as good to us for the next 25 years as the ASCIS Gel Nimbus was for the past 25 years. Happy running!