£15 The supermarket trainers giving big brands a run for their money
S o you’ve finally decided now is the time to get moving. But if the prospect of finding time every day to exercise is testing your willpower, the eye-watering cost of proper running shoes can be enough to put anyone off exercise completely.
Trainers have come a long way since the days of the plimsoll — and you can easily pay more than £200 for a branded pair.
There’s no doubt we need decent shoes. The delicate muscles and bones of your foot will strike the ground more than 1,500 times over the course of a mile-long run, with a force two and half times your body weight reverberating up your legs.
But a good pair of shoes will reduce the impact. The most advanced trainers incorporate gels and resins that, it’s claimed, will also actively give the runner a lift.
Some shoes might be designed for stability, with rigid panels in the sides and around the heel to support and restrict movement of the foot and lower leg.
And increasingly, specialists are investigating the importance of comfort. The theory is we all have individual patterns of gait and finding a shoe ‘comfortable’ (even though this is a highly subjective measure) could be a good indicator that it fits your preferred movement pattern.
So do you need to spend a fortune? or can a cheap pair of trainers from a High Street store or supermarket do as good a job for the amateur, whether for a brisk walk, a game of tennis or a jog around the park?
We asked Dr Ben Langley, a specialist in sport and exercise biomechanics at edge Hill university in Lancashire, to assess six pairs of High Street trainers — all under £15 — to see if they would cope with the demands of basic forms of exercise.
He works at the cutting edge of research, analysing athletes’ movement to find footwear that offers maximum performance with minimum risk of injury.
He put our High Street trainers through the same laboratory assessments used by top brands.
To
TeST for stability (how much the foot and lower leg moved in the trainer) he used so- called three dimensional motional capture technology to track foot and leg movement. ‘Increased movement may increase injury risk, ’ Dr Langley explains.
To measure cushioning, which is also linked to injury risk, testers were asked to jump on a ‘force plate’ which measures the force their body applies to the ground, and how much the shoes cushion this force.
To measure comfort, Dr Langley devised a scale with ‘ most comfortable shoe ever’ at one end and ‘most uncomfortable shoe ever’ at the other.
Dr Langley admits he was surprised by how good some of the shoes were.
‘Low-cost shoes like this clearly don’t enjoy the benefits of cuttingedge research, or incorporate technologically advanced energyboost materials, but they do offer a viable alternative as a basic starter shoe,’ he says.
‘They are all fit for purpose, and it is important for people to realise there are cheaper alternatives to the big-name brands, which can make exercise accessible for all.’
Here, he gives his verdict; we then scored the shoes. JD Sports Fila Electrovolt 2 trainers, £15 DR LANGLEY SAYS: This shoe ranked highest for stability and second highest for comfort in our tests, but lowest for cushioning.
It has a rigid heel counter (the part of the shoe that cups the heel) and a rigid sole, as well as obvious arch support inside the shoe and reinforced areas of supportive panelling on the sides. This makes it a good choice for any activity where you are likely to be changing direction frequently, such as tennis or aerobics. 8/10 Best for sport/aerobics Shoezone Tick men’s mesh lightweight shoes, £12.99 DR LANGLEY SAYS: This shoe scored lowest on stability because it is so lightweight and flexible — it has mesh sides with no obvious support or additional stability features (such as panelling).
However, the shoe performed acceptably well in the cushioning and comfort tests, making it suitable for light activity. 5/10
George at Asda athletic works mesh trainers, £12
DR LANGLEY SAYS: This shoe scored second best for cushioning as it has a more supportive sole. Howe ve r, it didn’t score well on stability because it is extremely flexible, with no arch support and only a semi-rigid heel counter. Most of the testers found this the least comfortable shoe. 8/10 Tesco Woodworm men’s running shoes, £14.99 DR LANGLEY SAYS: This is the best shoe in terms of cushioning — the material that goes under the foot is relatively soft and yielding. This might make it a good choice for walking, jogging, jumping and high-impact aerobics.
The shoe also offers good support, indicated by the fact it will ‘resist torsion’ (it is difficult to twist it in your hands, rotating the toe in one direction and the heel in the other), and has a rigid heel counter to support the foot. But it did not rate well for comfort. 8/10 Best for walking/running Lidl men’s running shoes, £14.99 (until March 23) DR LANGLEY SAYS: This shoe was rated the most comfortable, with most of our testers saying it was the best in this regard. This could be significant if you are concerned about avoiding injury because studies are beginning to show that a higher comfort rating for a shoe is linked to lower rates of injury. The shoe also scored high on stability because it has a rigid heel counter and resists torsion (it is difficult to twist).
It lost out on cushioning scores though because, although it did boast an additional shock absorbing element at the rear of the heel, this would offer more of a shockabsorption effect if it was placed more centrally in the heel. 7/10 Most comfortable and best for general exercise
Tu at Sainsbury’s active lace-up trainers, £14
DR LANGLEY SAYS: This shoe ranked just below average in all our tests, coming in fourth overall for stability (it only has a semi-rigid heel counter, is very flexible and has no additional arch support), cushioning and comfort. 4/10