Dr. Cat Fitzgerald PT, DPT, CSCS
In the running world, shoes are it. There’s not a lot of “equipment” for the sport of running, so the focus zooms in on shoes. Want to run faster? Get the right shoes. Want to solve an injury? Get the right shoes. (For the record neither of these answers are fully right or wrong.)
When trying on running shoes, it’s helpful to have some understanding of what exactly is in the shoe. You don’t need to be an expert or shoe geek that has every tech spec of every brand’s model memorized, but a basic understanding will help you narrow down what you’re looking for.
The first step is knowing what the different parts of a shoe are called – that’s what this blog is for! Beyond that you can get into subtle differences and unique qualities from shoe to shoe. Before we get into shoe anatomy, it’s important to remember that comfort is the number one factor when selecting a shoe. It’s easy to get caught up in the specs and features of everything that’s available, but at the end of the day it’s really simple: if it’s comfortable, odds are very high that it will work well for you.
Ok, on to shoe anatomy!
The shoe can be divided into two sections: the upper and the sole. The sole is the bottom of a shoe and the upper is everything that is not in the sole!
The upper
- Toe box: the front part of a shoe that encompasses your shoes. The width of a toe box is probably the most important characteristic to consider. Too narrow or too wide will each cause their own set of issues for a runner.
- Tongue: most of us know this one, but to clarify it’s the part that you lift to put your foot in.
- Collar and collar lining: the top edge that surrounds your heel. This is another area where the fit is particularly important to prevent blisters.
The sole
The parts of the sole of the running shoe is where our focus is because it’s where most of the performance pieces and special features are located. The sole is divided into 3 parts:
- Inner sole: the part in contact with your foot. This is what you take out of the shoe if you’re putting an orthotic in.
- Midsole: Where all the hype is! The layer between the insole and outsole. This is where components for stability shoes are located, as well as cushion and performance components.
- Various types of foam for cushion and performance are here – I could write a whole blog on just this. There are so many different types of foam and then each brand had different kinds they use depending on the model of the shoe and the purpose of that shoe.
- Plates: carbon, nylon – for performance! The plate is the component providing the energy return and improved running economy that you’ll hear a lot about when diving into the world of performance running shoes.
- Inserts: pieces like gel pockets and air bags for cushion.
- Outer sole: the part in contact with the ground. This is where you’ll see more unique features for trail shoes, such as lugs and rock plates.
Additional components of the sole include:
- Heel counter/heel wedge: around the back part of your heel for the purpose of support and stability.
These are your basic parts of the shoe! Like I said above, a lot of the variety of running shoes is in the midsole, so the natural progression from here is to dive more into the differences of midsole components. However!! Always remember: comfort is the number one factor to go by when picking a running shoe! If an injury pops up and you are suspicious that your shoes are a factor, get it checked out… every injured runner’s dream is an easy fix like a shoe change.