Marathon Running Shoe Guide

MARATHON 101

HELPING YOU TO REACH THE STARTING LINE

Here are some of the most talked-about April marathons at the PODO Clinic & Workshop:

06-04-2025: Brighton Marathon, Southampton Marathon, Milan Marathon
12-04-2025: Rotterdam Marathon
13-04-2025: Newport Marathon
15-04-2025: Paris Marathon
20-04-2025: Jinshanling Great Wall Marathon
21-04-2025: Boston Marathon
27-04-2025: Annecy Marathon, TCS London Marathon

With so many marathons approaching, it is still time to:

Ensure your shoes and orthotics are right.
Make the most of your 16–18-week training plan.
Get to the starting line!

Did you know that there are more runners missing the starting line due to injuries than runners who fail to finish the marathon?

Let’s avoid that mistake by prioritizing the foundations that will carry you through 55,000 steps on race day—your feet!

At PODO, when we talk about footwear, we include running shoes, custom orthotics, laces, and socks. Today, we focus on shoes, but you can also learn more about custom orthotics here.

Growing up in a family of marathon runners, I was surrounded by every brand of running shoes. Over the past 20 years, I’ve studied trends, trained nine running stores, coached over 50 Decathlon sales assistants, and worked with patients for 16 years. Yet, today, choosing the right running shoe is harder than ever. The creativity of the Big brands marketing teams are now telling some incredible fairy-tales to boost their sales.

RUNNING SHOES IN 2025

A so-called "good" running shoe in a magazine may not be the right one for you.

The key is to focus on your specific needs rather than trends. Before picking a colour, determine your shoe’s purpose:

Do you need cushioning and joint protection for endurance?
Are you aiming for responsiveness and speed to break your personal best?

Many runners now make the smart choice of having both a training pair and a racing pair of shoes.

Today’s running shoes are categorized by STACK, DROP, and WEIGHT.

What is the STACK ?

Also called the stack heigh.

It describes the amount of material between you and the ground, it is determined by the forefoot measurement of the shoe.

There are 6 different categories: Barefoot, Minimal, Low, Medium, High, and Maximal (from the lowest to the highest stack heigh)

Categories:

Barefoot: 1–8mm
Minimalist: 9–13mm
Low: 14–18mm
Medium: 19–23mm
High: 24–29mm
Maximal: 30mm+

A low stack provides more ground feel, while a high stack offers more cushioning.

Later in this article, we’ll help you determine what’s best for your training and racing shoes.

What is the DROP?

Also known as heel-to-toe drop.

It is the difference in heigh between the heel and the forefoot of the shoes, it indicates how much higher the heel is compared to the toes, and it is given in millimetres.

A higher drop (8–12mm) provides better ankle/heel support and cushioning.
A lower drop (0–6mm) is better suited for mid/forefoot strikers looking for speed and performance.

Knowing your running style, foot mechanics, medical history, and comfort preferences will help you choose between a high drop with a better heel/ankle support and more cushioning or a low drop best for a mid/forefoot striker with no MSK issues looking for speed or to climb on top of the leader-board.

The WEIGHT of the Shoe

The weight of the shoe is often given in grams, for a 42 (8) shoe size for men.

It depends on the amount of cushioning and support added.

Midsole: Can be made lighter using foam-blowing techniques or nitrogen-injected materials.
Upper: Weight can be reduced by thinning the tongue, removing the reinforcements of the heel counter, or using sock-like designs.
Sole: Stability features like a carbon/nylon plate can replace heavier shanks for a lighter, bouncier feel.

Lighter shoes feel great, but durability often takes a hit. Over the past three years, the pursuit of energy return has led to less durable shoes. Traditional foams like EVA, TPE, and TPU are stable and long-lasting but return less energy than premium foams like PEBA / PEBAX or TPEE, which are lighter but wear out faster.

If you want to look at an extreme, the Adizero Adios Pro Evo1 was released in 2023 as a "single-race shoe" at £450.

Not many runners can afford this cost every time they race!

(EVA) Ethylene Vinyl Acetate

(TPE) Thermoplastic Elastomer

(TPU) Thermoplastic PolyUrethane

(PEBA, PEBAX) PolyEther Block Amid

(TPEE) Thermoplastic PolyEster Elastomere

HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT RUNNING SHOE

A shoe that works for a friend or colleague may not work for you. Before buying new running shoes:

Consider your biomechanics, medical history, lifestyle, training goals, and budget
Try 2 to 4 models from different brands to find the best fit
Try your shoes towards the end of the day or after a long walk/run, with your orthotics in and the type of socks you intend to wear with.

Common Running Shoe Myths

Lighter shoes = better for joints → Right the opposite! Lighter materials are softer, your foot sinking into those will misalign ankles, knees and hips creating unnecessary joints impingement / uneven wear and tear, potentially leading to some osteo-arthritis and the end of your running career. If you wish to protect and preserve your joints, support is key.
Trendy models = best choice → Your needs should dictate the shoe, not trends.
Soft shoes = more comfortable → At a foot level, Comfort comes with the right balance of Cushion and Support. This balance is not the same for everyone. Reason why some will love running in “barefoot shoes” , or even enjoy some “oversized models”. Keep in mind that your need evolves over time, alongside your loss of fat pad, the weight you gain or lose, your biology (cycles, medication…), the type of running you do (on-road, off-road, track, barefoot…), just o give a few factors.

CHECKLIST BEFORE RACE DAY

Are your orthotics up to date?
- Get them checked at least 3 weeks before the race to allow for adjustments.
Are your shoes suitable for your weight?
- Running generates force up to 3x your body weight on impact.
Are your shoes built for the race surface?
- Hard city roads require cushioning for shock absorption.
Are you prioritizing speed or endurance?
- Lightweight for speed, supportive for endurance.
Are your shoes race-ready?
- If overused, they may not perform well on race day. Out-of-shape, your trainers mislead your foot, misaligned your joints, unbalance your muscles work, and make of your run an opportunity to damage your body rather than building a stronger one.
- Adding a pair of custom orthotics to lead your foot in a pair of shoes that mislead it, will hardly change your game, if at all.
Timing and mileage. Keep track of everything.

Unless you signed up for a “Ekiden Marathon”, you might have to run those 42.195 km (slightly more than 26.2miles) on your own!

- Make sure you have not overused your racing shoes.

The winner of the race might have the same but his or her lightweight, level of training, great medical team, and a sponsorship ensuring him/her a new pair every month give the winner a little advantage.

- Make sure you have not abused your training shoes.

Do not run two days in a row with the same pair of trainers, their cushion is not as good as your fat pad Artificial cushioning need up to 48 hours to regain a decent shape after you hammered them for miles on a run.

7. How is your fat pad?

The Fat pad is the best fat you’ve got in your entire body! It’s your natural cushioning - the one you want for ever but that can be reduced for various reason.

Manufacturers dream to synthetise a material with its properties, because those little pillows under your heel and ball of the foot have some little chambers that allow them to get their shape back quickly and for almost a lifetime.

If you are feeling your heel or ball of the foot sore before the race. Then Compensate with a minimum stack, avoid thin or hard soles, because you won't enjoy the responsiveness of light / racing shoes 55.000 times on that marathon. Take the starting line with your heavier and more stable training shoes. The weight of your shoes is such a small factor in the attempt of breaking your Personal Best.

If it comes to buy a new pair of running shoes, ask yourself:

Do I need pronation control?
- Stability shoes can help if required. Not everyone can benefit from those. Those can also be dangerous when prescribe to a patient light with arched feet and/or hypermobile and/or bowlegged.
- Looking at you running is not enough to prescribe those but looking at the presence and location of corns and calluses (hard skin), the foot type (arched or flat), the ligament laxity and joint mobility, as much as the alignment of the knees (Knock knees or bowlegged) is essential to decide whether you can benefit from a pronation control.
- A pronation control does not replace a pair of arch support / insoles / custom orthotics. Both can work well together sometimes.
What’s my budget?
- Consider costs for trainers, racing shoes, orthotics, socks, technical laces, and foot care. They will wrap one quarter of your skeleton and your only foundation with direct impacts, from the ground up, on your entire body!
Are my current trainers in good shape?

Check the Outsole: Put your shoe on a flat, even surface at eye level.

Most shoes should sit evenly on a flat surface, without tipping or rocking. Looking at the shoe from behind, the heel should sit perpendicular to the surface.

The sole should not be smooth or worn down excessively in any one area.

“Normal” wear occurs at the outside back of the heel and evenly across the ball of the foot. Most on-road trainers are bevelled on the lateral corner, as much as you’re the heel of your dressy shoes wears out on the outside. Because physiologically, you walk with the feet slightly open, like a duck. This is called the Fick angle and, in an ideal world, should be between 7 and 12 degrees. On that note, do not force yourself to walk feet parallel like in a cartoon, because that will negatively affect your biomechanics - the way your body works – encouraging some unnecessary muscles imbalances, eventually some joints impingement.

Off- road trainers, most HOKA, and ON CLOUDS shoes are evenly bevelled at the back. When running up and downhill offroad your stride is often shorter, and closes your Fick angle.

If you are more a pigeon than a duck, toes in, not a big deal, as much as this is not a biomechanical advantage, it won’t stop you from running, I’d simply recommend you work with MSK experts, or anyone dealing with the biomechanics of runners.

Check the Midsole: Look for visible creases of wrinkles developing (see carousel above)

Check the Interior wear: Look for any holes or unusual wear around your big toe, fifth toe, Achilles tendon which might end up rubbing, hurting, and damaging your feet

Final Thoughts

A shoe that is not properly structured or not structured enough negatively impacts your biomechanics and can lead to injuries.

Lighter shoes can make you faster or slower, stronger or weaker—it all depends on your specific needs for cushioning and support. Take your time, try on different models, towards the end of the day, and always test them with the socks and orthotics you plan to use on race day.

Recommending purchasing lighter shoes, or to loosen the footwear, or to add some “gel inserts” under a painful/overloaded area will simply make the symptoms worse.

The footcare / footwear industry is trying to sale loads of articles to put around your feet or within your shoes in order to “address” every symptom, but none even target the root cause: Your lack of support.

Look at the entire picture - your treatment plan is like a jigsaw puzzle - flip one piece at a time and see a progression. Always question and try to understand what is triggering your wellbeing, gets you injured, and reduces the amount of pleasure you take when you run.

If you struggle to collect and connect the points, consult a professional.

Even after 20 years of studying trends and working with runners, I still find shoe selection a difficult task but without a doubt a big game changer.

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