Hiking and running trails is another way to mix up your workouts while maintaining running fitness. While street running shoes can handle a few miles off pavement, if you plan to hit the trails on a regular basis, it's important to have the right footwear. Both trail runners and hiking shoes are designed for dirt, but they aren't built the same. Choose a shoe that matches your trail activity.
Weight
While hiking boots become lighter with new technologies, they are still heavier than trail runners. The added weight on hiking boots comes from the extra materials used for a higher ankle support, waterproofing and overall durability. Hiking boots are designed to sustain days on the trail in poor weather conditions. Trail runners need to protect feet without slowing down a runner. In order to lighten the shoe and boost running performance, trail runners lose some of the durability and support that you find in hiking shoes.
Ankle Support
Trail runners have an ankle support design similar to street running shoes. The low cut keeps a free range of motion in the ankle and prevents irritation from rubbing on the ankle joint. Hiking shoes come with different ankle support designs to best match the type of hiking. For example, high-cut hiking shoes work best for hiking with a heavy pack and provide extra ankle stability over rough terrain. Low-cut hiking shoes reduce the weight of the boot to let day hikers move more quickly on the trail.
Waterproofing
Most hiking boots come with a built-in waterproofing material, such as Gore-Tex, to keep feet dry on wet trails. Trail runners typically do not come with this water-resistant layer but some manufacturers, such as Patagonia, sell a waterproof trail runner for athletes who run in all weather or on trails that require water crossings.
Ventilation
Trail runners often choose ventilation over waterproofing. Because trail runners are often out for a short period but push at a high intensity, sweaty feet are more common than wet feet from river crossing or rain. It's not uncommon to see trail runners made with a thinner, mesh material for higher air flow. Hiking boots lose ventilation when they are made from durable and waterproofing materials such as leather and Gore-Tex.
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