Saving Money on Running Shoes

I’m not a runner, but I do wear expensive tennis shoes to help out my knees. I got fitted for walking at a store that analyzes your stride and lists the types of shoes that would be best. Apparently, I needed shoes that would compensate for “too much pronation”, which basically meant that my foot was turning and not bearing the weight in the correct place. The shoes that would work for my feet were in the $80-$100 range, which is significantly more than the $7 plain white tennies I used to wear. I ended up buying an $87 pair of Reeboks, consoling myself by getting a 15% discount. When it came time to replace them though, I had a harder time forking over another $87.

I thought maybe I could find a better deal online, so I typed my shoe’s make & model into Froogle. Surprisingly, I found several in the $80 range, and then I found Sports Basement, which was closing them out at 2 pairs for $50. I now have 2 pairs for less than the price of one. I alternate wearing them to give them time to air out and (hopefully) make them both last longer.

Stores like Ross are good to check as well! If they happen to have your size, you can get an even better deal there. They had one pair of the shoes I wear in there for $14.99 yesterday — too bad they were a half size too small. All of these closeouts are because my shoes were “last year’s model” and are only available on the Reebok site in limited sizes. I have no problem owning several of last year’s models at a great discount, and the original pair are now my “old shoes” for yard work.