Tip #6: Old School Shoe Tracker

Published on 11:59 pm by in Project, Run

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The first time you run a pair of shoes into the ground, making them beyond the point of useful, it’s usually your body that protests. Eventually something will start to bug you enough that you pay attention.

Once you identify and address the issue, you’ll probably feel so silly for letting it get the best of you. But you aren’t alone…countless runners stop thinking about their shoes almost immediately, sometimes with damaging side effects.

Conventional knowledge suggests that an average pair of run shoes, properly fit, will last about 500 miles before needing to be replaced. Instead of signing up for an online service that does the math yet can cost money,  why not find a free system that does the trick right? After all, saved money can go towards more run gear!  :)

My ultimate run tracker system is pictured above. All it takes is a permanent marker, some neat handwriting, and enough sense to check your shoes every now and then. Given I run roughly the same approximate mileage per week, I know that I can go about 4 months on a single pair of shoes…so when my date’s up, it’s time to go shopping!!!

How do you track your shoes? What other gear is critical for you to track?

  • http://www.spokaneal.blogspot.com Spokane Al

    I follow your system but instead track the dates in Microsoft Outlook. I try to always make sure I have a new pair ready and waiting, and rather than worrying about miles, I replace my shoes every four months as well, when the appointment reminder pops up on my calendar.

  • Joe Ruiz

    I am a total nut job when it comes to tracking the mileage of my shoes. Since I download all of my workouts, it is easy for me to sum my mileage. In either WKO or PolarPro trainer, I write a note when I bought my shoes and run a report on run mileage. Easy enough.

    And if I forget when I bought my shoes, I can always run a report in Quicken to see when I bought them!!!

    Yeah, I am a geek.