What are the best running shoes for a 4 year old? She has soccer and likes to RUN. This week, she has gotten shin splints and I think a better shoe would help prevent this. Any suggestions on a brand of shoe best for running for a 4 year old?
**Her soccer is indoor turf (no cleats) and skills not actual play at this point.
She is a size 10.
I actually found her some Saucony running shoes for her size. Thanks for your suggestions!
For soccer I would stick with soccer shoes. The grass tends to be wet and improper shoes can be dangerous. Different sports have special shoes for a reason.
Running I would think any running shoe that properly fits would work. JcPenny's and Striderite can both measure your daughter's foot if you are unsure about her size.
It is very likely different for a 4 year old than an adult and I am no expert, but when I started running I was getting shin splits. The best change I made was not my shoes but adding a stretching excercise. I was told to put my toes on a step and hang my heals off and bounce a little. This helped tremendously. The idea behind it is all that running strengthens one set of muscles but not another or something like that. The shin splints are because those muscles need some work and this stretch helps. I'm sure you could google it and get more accurate info, but but bottom line is the stretch works. Good luck!!
They makes nike, adidas, new balance, etc in smaller sizes.
For soccer (even if it's just skills and drills) she should be wearing cleats.
I see you found shoes to fit her needs for indoor soccer and they do make indoor soccer shoes...FYI, as far as her shin splints, make sure she is taking a multi-vitamin every day & add extra vitamin C this will help her soreness. Good luck & enjoy many soccer games! = 0 )
I just bought my daughter a pair of New Balance for soccer this summer. She is 3, going on 4, and I didn't want to spend the money on cleats, and wanted something she could wear elsewhere. We went to Shoe Carnival (not sure if you have those) and were looking at Nike and NB. She chose the NB mostly, okay ALL, because of color, which was fine by me. I personally like Nike the best, they fit me the best, but I wanted a good shoe for her. I think they were like $20-30. A lot of shoes at Shoe Carnival are cheaper, some are not, you just have to look.
You may want to discuss her shin splints with her pediatrician. I don't think a 4 year olds legs should hurt. There could be an underlying cause such as her muscles might not be flexible enough or too flexible, or she could have flat feet etc. Buy her better shoes and if things do not improve, make an appointment to have her seen.
