I wore the latest £450 running shoes and couldn’t wait to take them off

Running gives me valuable time for myself. I work in a desk-based programme management job, and am quite a structured person. So I really look forward to my runs, which I time-table in religiously. If you want something to become a habit, you have to make time for it and put it in the diary like you would any other commitment.

On a typical week, I’ll run into work twice – a distance of around 10 kilometres from my home in Barnes, south-west London, to Victoria – as well as a 90-minute run on Saturday mornings. I’ll either listen to a podcast, complete a guided Peloton Outdoor running class with my favourite instructor Susie Chan or listen to the soundtrack to a musical and pretend I’m the star.

I’ve always been active – musicals and dancing are my hobbies – and I enjoy the gym. But in January 2022, I signed up for a triathlon to raise money to help my friend Shonagh, who was diagnosed with bowel cancer at the age of 37, the same age as me. While training for this event, I realised I adored running. Since then, I have completed a half marathon, two more triathlons, a duathlon, and an ultra-marathon… yet I still wouldn’t consider myself a “runner”. 

Running keeps me sane: it used to be all about what I look like, but it’s now about how it makes me feel. Morning exercise makes me energised and ready for the day. On the days when I don’t exercise first thing, I find it harder to concentrate and motivate myself. Everyone talks about a “runner’s high”, but only because it’s real. Recently, I was in a foul mood, ready to murder my husband after a broken night’s sleep caused by him coming in very late, very drunk, very loud, leaving the front door wide open, snoring all night – you get the picture. A 10k run into work changed my mood completely and I even sent him a nice text! 

I don’t wear particularly fancy gear for my runs. I always wear shorts as I feel trapped in leggings. A good sports bra is really important. Otherwise, I wear a vest top, a zip-up running jacket if it’s cold, a pink baseball cap – and my trusty Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 38 trainers in baby pink, though they’re starting to show the dirt a bit now.

When I bought them last year my Nikes cost £35 on the website Vinted. You can buy them new these days for £28. I wear my trainers all the time: for my runs, but also for commuting and walks.

But from time to time, I do wonder whether I could go faster.

In September, I read about the Ethiopian marathon runner Tigst Assefa, who at the Berlin marathon shattered the women’s record by more than two minutes. Assefa was wearing a pair of new Adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 1s. 

After the race, Assefa credited her performance to “hard work over the past year”. In another interview, however, she described her Adizero Adios Pro Evos as “the lightest racing shoe I have ever worn. The feeling of running in them is an incredible experience – like nothing I’ve felt before”.

The Adizero Adios Pro Evo retails at £450. You can no longer buy these trainers as they only made just over 1,000 pairs, though you can snap them up on eBay for prices up to £2,000. 

So when the opportunity arose for me to try the world-record-breaking marathon trainer I was intrigued. Would a regular runner feel the benefit of an elite shoe? 

These elite trainers are referred to as a “single use shoe” which means they are optimised for one marathon race, created with elite athletes in mind, to smash world records. I decided I would sign up for a race, and see whether I could bump myself up closer to “elite runner” status.

At 105 grams, the trainers were incredibly comfortable and so light. It felt like I wasn’t wearing anything on my feet at all. On the other hand, the thick sole took a bit of getting used to, and I was worried I would go over on my ankle.

But when I started to run I had never gone so fast in life. I did eight 500-metre sprints, and my time went down from 4 minutes 5 seconds per km to 3 minutes and 25 seconds. Yes, I took on the tips for running more efficiently: lifting my knees up more, and angling my bodyweight forward, but I’m sure the bouncy soles had a lot to do with my speed. When I put my normal trainers back on to cool down, it felt like I was strapping lead weights to my feet.

I initially planned to run a half marathon around Richmond Park with my Pro Evos, but it transpires they are only designed for road-running and not for muddy trails, so I entered for a 10k race in Battersea Park. To prepare, I did a 6k road run at an even pace, shaving 15 seconds off my usual per km time. The trainers still felt good, if a little unsteady around my ankles.

Race day dawned. I decided I was going to smash my previous 10k Battersea Park race time of 49 minutes and 20 seconds from July (although this was after a boozy night out with my brother the night before). On the starting line, I clocked a runner who looked professional, and decided I was going to keep up with her. She sped off and I later stalked her on the Runthrough Instagram account. She finished as the first female so I had no chance. I picked another strong looking woman and kept her close to me throughout. 

I started well, I felt fine. I kept my pace steady as I didn’t want to burn out too quickly, but I was certainly faster than usual. But then, around half way through, I started to be aware of a blister emerging on my big toe. I wasn’t in agony exactly, but it was annoying and painful.

And although I finished the race with a time of 44 minutes and 24 seconds – by some distance a personal best – I didn’t really enjoy the second half of the race. When I slipped on my old trainers at the end, it felt like putting on comfy slippers, such was the relief.

I wondered about the reason for my blister. Was it somehow my fault: had I worn the wrong socks, for example? However, by the time I had finished the race, I had run 12 miles in the Pro Evos. Given they are meant for elite marathon races, it can’t have been durability issues this early on.

So, the question arises: are these £450 trainers worth the money? For me, running is about comfort as well as speed: relaxation as well as competitiveness. I can see someone might want to splash out if they have a special race in mind and a friend they would like to beat (and they can afford them, of course).

I have come to realise my £35 old favourites are no longer good enough. So I’ll be upgrading to something a few rungs up from my Nike pair, and a couple down from the Pro Evos, perhaps the Adidas Adizero Boston range. Running is wonderful precisely because it’s free, but with the correct kit, you really can feel like you’re flying.

As told to Miranda Levy