Shoe woes **update** (Read 856 times)

So my current pair of brooks beasts are nearing the end of their life expectancy. So far about 150 miles is all I have gotten out of a pair of shoes(I am a big guy and I tend to drag my feet a bit). I went to my local running store called "Running Center". So far the beasts have kept me relatively injury free... how ever they are not particularly comfortable. I wanted to sample some other shoes. First thing I discovered is that brooks has a new model of the beasts out. They have decided that ~$100 isn't good enough for a new model, gotta jack that up to $130. $100 is about my upper limit to how much I would consider paying for shoes. I don't think paying $1 for every mile I run is a very good option. So I wanted to look at other shoes.... They had only two for me to try on. One of them doesn't come wide enough and the other didn't fit particularly well. If I wasn't a size 13 or if I didn't have wide feet or if I didn't need motion control shoes I would have plenty of options. So here I am stuck. In my area there are some generic sporting good stores, but I think I am a point that I still need to be fitted for shoes. The store I was at says they are the largest of their type in the area. Would have no idea on how to go about finding another store. Any advice and/or sympathy would be greatly appreciated **UPDATE** So I went back to the running store... this time there where a few more shoes to try on. I picked up a pair of Asisc Gel Foundation shoes. They felt great in the store. I wore them around the house for half a day and tonight I tried them on a run. They felt HORRIBLE. I only made a couple blocks from home and turned around and went back. I put less than a mile on them. My forefoot felt very unstable, it would sort of float and it would seem like my foot would pivot around on the ball of my foot. I like that they give some arch support, the beasts that I have been using offer almost none. I wish I could just find an affordable shoe that would just give me a bit of support and a bit of cushioning with out me feeling like I am fighting the shoe. I think I run different after I warm up than before. I don't think I ever show my true running gate at the store. When I am cold I am mostly a heel striker, after warming up I am a mostly midfoot/very light heel striker. Shoe wear pattern on my beasts shoe heavy wear inside/under my big toe and light wear on the outside of my heel. I have been wearing motion control shoes however I have heard that if you arn't a heavy heel striker they may not be necessary. Also my beasts seem to cause pain on the outside of my feet near wear my pinky toe connects with the ball of my foot. I would appreciate any shoe suggestions. Also I would like to know what is consider standard protocol on returning shoes. Should I expect a store to take back a pair of shoes with a mile on them? or do I just write it of as lesson learned?

If it's the right shoe for you, I think even a big guy should probably be able to get more than 150 miles out of a pair of shoes if it's a cushioning issue. I had a nice expensive pair of Mizuno that I gave up on at about 200 or 250 miles, they just didn't seem to provide any cushion and I was feeling it in my shins. I had to do a long run in the rain a while later, and didn't feel like trashing a good pair so I pulled the Mizuno pair out and felt fine afterwards. After scratching my head for a bit, I figured the midsoles had rested and rebounded from the compression caused by frequent use. I replaced the inserts and only used them once a week for runs of about 10 miles or less. I was pretty happy about getting another 200 comfortable miles out of them. I now rotate at least two pairs of trainers (currently NB 1061), and I have another pair in the box. If you find a shoe that works for you, keep an eye on websites for clearance prices. Your chances improve when the next model is released. You can use comparison sites (froogle.com, shopzilla.com etc) with the model number, it might point you to Kelly's Running Warehouse or Zappos or Dick's or whatever the cheapo site of the day might be. A lot of times, they don't have the "average" sized shoes but do have really big or really small sizes. If the sole is wearing out that quickly because you're dragging your feet you might be out of luck, but maybe somebody here has a repair or prevention suggestion. Best of luck to you Chris, blowing through pricy shoes really sucks.

The shoe store should take them back. I have had no trouble returning shoes after I have done a run in them. Have you tried any New Balance stability shoes?