Which running shoes for kids?
Which running shoes for kids is a topic which came up talking other coaches at junior athletics the other day. We were discussing running shoes and. (My views on running shoes have been blogged in the past.)
Here were the three main types of footwear we saw children (aged 8-15) wearing.
Spikes
Split between good athletes (of all ages) – these kids know what they are doing and those kids who want to look like they know what they are doing. And those who don’t really have a clue (or more likely their parents don’t – spikes aren’t going to help you in circuit training…
Fashion Trainers
These are probably as dangerous as the “I don’t know why but I have spikes” people. They provide no support for the foot and are just designed to look good.
Clunky trainers with heels/soccer trainers.
Again these are likely to be dangerous to the wearer.
I should point out that the indoor track is a very unforgiving surface. Probably a hard concrete base covered with a plasticated track.
The bottom line is that none of these are really suitable for kids to run in. And because no one teaches running as a skill in its own right or “how to run” the risks of getting injured, far outweight the fashion problems of the wrong running shoe.