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Question:

My daughter, an active gymnast, now wants to enter the spring track program at her junior high (7th grade).  I’d appreciate suggestions on the best way to select running shoes for her.  I’m looking for reasonable price, comfort, and proper support.  I don’t know if this is a sport she will stay with (I’ve been running for two decades, with several marathons), but I hope she will. Your thoughts will be appreciated. Jules

Asics Gel-125s are nice shoes with a lot of support for a very reasonable price.  I suggest visiting www.asicstiger.com for other shoe information.  I definitely recommend taking your daughter to a specialized running store, where they’ll examine her running form and try to fix her up with the best shoes for what she wants to do. Asics may not work for her, they don’t work for everyone.  There are lots of other brands to try, but I like Asics the best. -Andrew

Response:

My daughter, an active gymnast, now wants to enter the spring track program at her junior high (7th grade).  I’d appreciate suggestions on the best way to select running shoes for her.  I’m looking for reasonable price, comfort, and proper support. Jules

Hello Jules For a beginner the best kind of shoe would be a neutral cushion shoe. Then as the mileage picks up watch her gate and see if there are any mechanical problems. In general young runners do not exhibit any of the wear and tear type problems an older runner has problems with. For her the best thing is to let her try on some shoes and let her pick the most comfortable pair. Some suggestions for you on neutral shoes are: 1) If her foot is on the narrow side try:         a)Nike Air Max Triax    $85 retail.         b)Nike Air Pegasus      $75 retail.         c)Nike Air Windrunner   $65 retail. 2) If her foot is on the wider side try:         a)Saucony Grid Azura    $80 retail.         b)Saucony Grid Jazz     $80 retail. I hope this helps you out, you can see the shoes on our site.   Regards, Jerry http://www.telarun.com

Response:

My daughter, an active gymnast, now wants to enter the spring track program at her junior high (7th grade).  I’d appreciate suggestions on the best way to select running shoes for her.  I’m looking for reasonable price, comfort, and proper support.  I don’t know if this is a sport she will stay with (I’ve been running for two decades, with several marathons), but I hope she will. Your thoughts will be appreciated. Jules

Response:

My daughter, an active gymnast, now wants to enter the spring track program at her junior high (7th grade).  I’d appreciate suggestions on the best way to select running shoes for her.  I’m looking for reasonable price, comfort, and proper support.  I don’t know if this is a sport she will stay with (I’ve been running for two decades, with several marathons), but I hope she will. Your thoughts will be appreciated. Jules

Jules, I’d go for shoes in which she feels comfortable.  There are enough discount stores around at which you can get reasonably priced running shoes which have been discontinued, or over produced, or slight irregulars-usually a blemish affecting the look but not the functionality. The main thing will be that she is having fun and with friends with whom she likes to hang.  What better way to have fun with people you like and see the progress as they increase their aerobic capacity and capabilities during a season. — In health and on the run, Ozzie Gontang Maintainer-rec.running FAQ Director, San Diego Marathon Clinic,  est. 1975

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