I love my fastwitch 5’s. They absolutely rock! I was looking for a trainer that might be similar. Would the saucony mirage be the best bet? Definately amazed by the quality of my runs by getting a proper pair of shoes.
unfotunately for you - mirage is totally different shoe - its much more cushy although the fit is the same … for that very reason i cant run in fastwitch 5 - its way too hard and stiff for me
Why not just train in the fasttwitch 5?
I have a constant knee issue, which is a lack of cartiledge, so training full time in a racing shoe without cushion aggrivates it. I did try earlier this year and it led to needing a week off to recover.
not sure if they still make them, but when I had them, the Tangents were really similar to the fastwitch (3’s at the time). Of course this all could have changed by now.
You might also look at Mizuno shoes. I have funky feet that don’t fit well in most shoes (long and narrow) and I’ve found Mizuno light weight trainers to fit really similarly to Saucony
Change out the insoles?
i just bought a pair of NB 1400 today. gonna do 10 miles in them in a few minutes. they’re light and i hope to be nice. i was going to get a pair of mizuno wave precision 12s too but they didn’t have a 10.5. they’re light and have some cushion.
mirage is a nice shoe. i have a pair. i like it for up to an hour.
still love the kinvara. light, cushioned. race in them.
I train in the Mirage, and I find them to be pretty damn similar to the Fastwitch 5s. Yes, they are softer, they’re trainers. I vote go for it. Mizuno shoes are also a good suggestion- I’d try the Wave Elixir.
I have the Fastwitch 5, Mirage & Kinvara all in my closet. They are different but similar if that makes sense. I say try the Mirage for training, I doubt you will have any issues if you like the Fastwitch.
90 minute plus runs ok in mirage’s?
no problems on 90+min runs for for me.
yes they are for me as well.
if u looking for cushion mirage will be great…its full fledged training shoe
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yes for mirage and kinvara.
i did 11 miles(1:15) today in the NB 1400. felt great.
Hey, we ran Saucony for a very long time and we are struggling with the same issue now. That shoe ‘in between’ is missing. For us the closest we came sticking to Saucony was the Kinvara.
Here is our thoughts on that shoe: http://tridudes.wordpress.com/2010/07/12/saucony-kinvara-the-final-review/
It is a great shoe but definitely not a replacement for the Fastwitch!
Did you find anything else in the meanwhile?
New shoe, Cortona. unbelievable. I’ve got 2 pairs of kinvaras, 1 type A and love the fastwitch too.
the Cortona absolutely is the nicest shoe Saucony has ever made. i’ve worn nothing but Saucony for 25 years.
May attempt those at my next purchase. Right now I’m looking at newtons for training, I need to redesign my footstrike. I’m slightly midfoot but my heel still contacts, costing valuable time and energy.
Your heel should contact the ground, just not necessarily first.
Newtons won’t do any more to revamp your stride than will any other shoe. They reward you for good form, but its not like they force you to run properly. If you really want to learn, get on some nice firm grass and do some real barefoot training.
Thanks for the advice as always. I’ll definately add that to my routine.
Just dont do too much too fast. Start with 5 minutes as your warmup before the rest of the run, you get a feel for a good midfoot strike and then carry it into the rest of your run.