I generally replace my shoes after running 400-500 miles in them, but that can vary widely depending upon how much care I took of the shoes, what type of running I did in them, and mostly upon the brand and model of the shoes.

I wouldn’t keep your shoes more than three or four years at the most no matter how little you run. My shoes that I use tend to last about a year right now, but I rotate between (currently) 5 pairs of shoes. I am about ready to retire 3 pairs of my running shoes that were bought late last summer/early autumn.

When I only rotated between 2 pairs in college, I was going through 5 or 6 pairs of shoes during the school year. I was also running 85 to 95 miles per week most weeks, though, and I was basically waiting too long to get rid of them since I couldn’t afford new shoes as often as I really needed them.

Run to Win’s Blaine Moore continues this months article series on technology in fitness with a look at that all-important piece of equipment for running – the running shoe. A good explanation of why not just any old shoe will……