Kayanos – Road or Trail Shoe?

Its the eternal question we face isn’t it? As runners we want to do as many km’s or miles as we can, yet we want to avoid the hard and often unforgiving pounding that comes from running on the road and sidewalk. Because of this many of us opt for trail or track running (often known as ‘off’ road running). But are our shoes we use for our more conventional road running and racing suited to off road, trail running?

Lets discuss and see what we can come up with…

The Womens Asics Gel Kayano’s are a fantastic trainer and race shoe. With design focus on cushioning and impact support, Asics have clearly designed these shoes for women who are running on hard unforgiving surfaces like the road. Even as you run in Kayanos you can feel that there were put together with the thought of shock absorption the first and foremost goal.  If you are going to be doing a lot of your running off road then probably the Asics Kayanos are not the ideal shoe for you. But if you are like most of us who regularly pound the pavement and don’t have time to get out (unfortunately) in nature and run off the beaten path, then the Asics Kayanos are probably a safe bet for you. The heel support and cushioning is a great feature and will go a long way to minimising the jarring that can be felt running on hard surfaces. Kayanos typically sell anywhere between $140 – $190 depending on where you get them so for a trail / racing shoe for most running enthusiasts they are a great, reliable and long lasting shoe.

If you find the majority of your running is done off road then you would probably be more suited to something like the Womens Asics GT-2150 Trail Shoe. The main benefit of the GT-2150 is the focus on stability, designed to keep  your foot in a neutral position even while running on uneven rocky or gravel surfaces. The sole is designed with grip in mind, the patterning of it helping to ‘stick’ to the surface more so than a traditional trainer. At under $100 they represent great value, and if you click on the link over on the right they are even less at just $89.99.

So which do you prefer, road or trail running? Perhaps most importantly which one do you do most of the time?

Love to hear your thoughts and feedback!

Create a great day

Bree