In my growing up years, l remember our school shoes were always slightly bigger due to the fact that we would always outgrow our shoes within a year.
What about sportswear like shoes or spikes?
Unfortunately we shouldn't adopt the same approach for sports shoes or spikes.
Here are the reasons:
1. Protection
Recently, a student informed me during the afternoon school training that he was unable to train as he had sustained a bad blister on one of his feet during the morning PE class.
It happened because he took off his shoes to practise shuttle run because he didn't have proper shoes.
Shoes are primarily made to protect our feet during our normal use when we are outside our house.
But having a good pair of sports shoes is even more crucial because of the impact on our feet when performing high intensity or mileage workout on the track or roads.
The cushion of the shoes helps to absorb and lessen the impact on our feet, hence protecting us from injuries.
That said, it is also advisable to have an extra pair of shoes to swap around in order to lengthen the lifespan of the shoes.
For athletes, it is common to change to a new pair of shoes every four to six months. To illustrate this, a distant runner can cover between 600 to 800 km during that length of time. As a result of the high mileage, they would thus, have to change their shoes quite regularly.
Although sprinters may not cover as much mileage as a distant runner, there is another factor to consider; that is to be sure the shoes or spikes shouldn't be oversized.
As the landing impact on the feet is on the balls of the feet, an oversized pair of shoes will cause the athlete to land mostly on the front or the toes which can eventually lead to the fracturing of the metatarsal or a shin splint.
2. Peace of mind - Composure
As an athlete goes into a competition with a set goal in mind, having their regular and familiar sports equipment at hand will help put them in the right frame of mind towards the competition. Not having them will certainly cause a huge blow to their confidence.
I encountered instances where an athlete forgets to bring his spike shoes for competition. The stressed look on his face tells it all and you probably can guess the outcome of his run.
Or our beloved Olympian Joseph Schooling who wore the unapproved cap and goggles in the 2012 Olympics. That certainly has shaken his confidence and composure. Hence his performance was greatly affected.
Besides protecting you from injuries, having a proper pair or shoes will also help an athlete to go into a competition with a composed mindset.
3. Performance enhancement
The advancement of technology has certainly helped to break records in recent years.
For the first time, a Kenyan by the name of Eliud Kipchoge, went under 2 hrs in a marathon exhibition run. It is not an official record but it says a lot of what a pair of customized shoes produced by Nike can do for an athlete.
I am not advocating any particular brand but I do believe having proper footwear does make a difference.
My feet are slightly flatfooted. Therefore I will need a pair of shoes with good arch support. Otherwise, I can immediately feel the stress on both my knees.
Certain sports shops do give advice to the type of shoes that are suitable for your feet. If you have a condition like mine, do check out shoes with good arch support and it will certainly make running more pleasurable for you.
A good pair of shoes will not only protect you from injuries, they can give you peace of mind during competitions and last but not least, they will also help enhance your performance.
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