Re-Run: Shoe features & new shoe recommendations with Matt Klein (Feb, 2022)

·58 min·3 clips

Klein says lower-drop shoes shift load toward the calves, while higher-drop shoes shift work toward the knee and hip.

Brodie and Matt Klein revisit shoes as tools. The conversation covers his recommendations for buying new shoes, when a pair is too old and needs replacing, and how to think about the features that shape comfort and performance. Fit comes first. They spend time on the upper, because how the shoe holds the foot down matters as much as what sits under it. A tight or awkward upper can create pressure, friction, or pain on the top of the foot. That part matters. Matt points out that lacing can change the way a shoe behaves, and Brodie keeps coming back to the same point: runners should not be afraid to tweak the shoe so it matches the foot instead of forcing the foot to adapt to the shoe. There is room to adjust. Different lacing patterns can open space, tighten a loose area, or move load away from a sensitive spot. The episode also treats shoe shape as something flexible rather than fixed. Shoes are often built around one or a few foot shapes, so the discussion makes a case for changing fit when a runner needs more width, less width, or a different pressure pattern. It does not stop at comfort. The conversation links fit with nerve compression and other top-of-foot complaints, which keeps the advice tied to real symptoms rather than taste alone. Drop enters the picture next. From there, the episode widens into the bigger question of which shoe features should matter when you are picking a model for training or injury management. It stays grounded. Matt's return from episode 58 gives the rerun a sense of continuity, since the earlier discussion on using shoes as tools for injury recovery sets up the same practical frame. That continuity helps. The show keeps coming back to simple takeaways: know what the shoe is doing, notice how your foot responds, and change the variables you can before assuming the whole category is wrong. Nothing gets overcomplicated. It is a steady, evidence-based guide for runners who want their shoes to solve problems rather than create new ones.

As heard by us

A practical shoe guide for runners who want fit advice, not hype.

This rerun treats shoes as tools rather than style points, and it stays on the practical questions that matter: when to replace them, and how the upper, drop, flexibility, weight, and foam shape the choice.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

Need a clearer way to pick running shoes that fit your feet and the job?

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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