New Balance Men's MW926 Walking Shoe

Customer Reviews

A Superior Walking Shoe

I have been wearing New Balance for over twenty years and these are the finest walking shoes, ever! I recommend them very highly as I have always had bad feet and these have the SL-2 last and are perfect for my feet!

The Frankenshoe That Lasts

Buying shoes has always been a nightmare for me. In addition to having an incredibly wide size requirement at the toebox, I am on the heavy side and power-walk my way to health and basic fitness, even if I may never ultimately win the battle of the bulge.

When you are heavy, everything can start causing problems when you are on a dedicated walking program. Shoes break down early, and not always in visible ways. Also, any tendency to supinate or pronate excessively guarantees shin splints, muscle and lower back pain, and a frustrating experience with blisters and other maladies.

For heavier folks, having a motion control walking shoe is actually a better idea than the lighter weight running shoes. A lot of us are pushed towards running shoes because of poorly designed walking shoes which are as basic as can be, and don't offer the support and features that more advanced shoe can provide. But running shoes tend to breakdown far sooner.

I have probably been through 15 different models of shoes trying to find what works. Usually a manufacturer discontinues or "updates" a shoe that turns out to no longer work for me. Sometimes walking patterns, and especially orthotics, can create a different shoe requirement altogether.

The 926 was recommended by a local shoe store that specializes in recommending quality footware for the appropriate function. Most shoe stores these days are staffed by folks who know less about shoes than I do. For someone who is in pain in their shoes, steer well clear of malls and outlet centers and find a local shoe store that can assist you in finding a shoe that will work for you right out of the box. Sometimes it's a better idea to pay extra in a store that can fit you correctly, and then use online stores to purchase additional quantities.

The 926 has some good and bad features you need to consider:

Good

- Extremely strong motion control shoe - it's big, bulky and well reinforced.

- The shoe can stand up to both the tendency to pronate (roll to the inside) or supinate (roll to the outside).

- It will last considerably longer than lighter, lesser made shoes.

- The shoe easily accomodates orthotic inserts to bolster comfort or posting your foot to the proper neutral position.

- It is available in unusual sizes and widths all the way up to 6E, which is what I require.

Bad

- I call this my "Frankenshoe." It's big... no, it's HUGE, heavy, and not at all a "designer" shoe.

- It's not well cushioned. This is a motion control shoe to keep your foot in the proper position. It's not going to provide a soft and padded wear unless to add cushioning or some sort of orthotic to it.

- It's not forgiving on uneven surfaces. The biggest problem I have with this shoe, and my orthotic, is that it is extremely difficult to recover from an unforseen rollout (you step on an uneven surface and unexpectedly lose your balance). I usually end up falling to the ground because I cannot exert enough correctional force against the roll in this shoe to maintain a standing position. I have few problems on paved surfaces, but I have to be careful on uneven lawns and off road use.

I realize the negatives may sound awful, but if you use this shoe for a walking program, nobody will care what it looks like, and if you are aware of its limitations on uneven surfaces, you'll be fine.

The 926 wear pattern is usually a bit more difficult to identify than many other shoes. The bottom soles usually remain looking unworn, even after the shoe has lost its critical stability/motion control features. If you have a problem with pronation or supination, the telltale sign that it's time to retire a pair is when you notice the side padded rubber Absorb soles begins to seriously compress. You'll start by seeing small folds in the side of the shoe, and over time, you'll notice that the shoes lean to one side when you set them on a level surface. For supinators like me, a worn pair of 926's will look like they are leaning to the outside of the shoe, almost as if they are tipped slightly. Overpronators' shoes will look like they are leaning in towards each other.

Physically, a worn pair will also begin telling you with blisters and pain. For me, the 926 typical end of life breakdown will allow my small toe to get pinched between the insole and wall of the shoe, giving me a nasty blister underneath that toe. I'll also begin to occasionally roll uncontrollably, where my shoe can literally roll sideways out from under me. If this happens, I throw them out immediately. The bottom soles will not appear terribly worn, however. So do not rely on the bottoms of your shoes to determine when it's time to get a new pair.

For a hard walker on a daily walking program of three miles or more, expect 3-4 months of life from these if you are heavy, longer if you are not, before it's probably time to replace them. I usually get 30-45 days more use out of the 926s than other shoes (especially lighter running shoes), because the 926s are better built.

Finally, you can get an extra 2-4 weeks of life if you purchase two pair of 926s and alternate wearing them every other day. That allows the sole a day of recovery time, and can extend their life.

Hot support

The MW926 is a tough,well made shoe with excellent support for my difficult, very wide diabetic feet. In fact, my podiatrist recommended NB shoes instead of the Medicare covered shoes he carries (I'm over 65). I can imagine that there would be a large market of heavy walkers, like postal employees, who would love this shoe.
So what's not to like? Well, in Texas heat the shoes are very HOT; ventilation is poor in these shoes and the inserts tend to stick to one's socks. Consequently I only wear them when working out at air conditioned facilities. If you don't mind hot feet, these are great shoes.

nice shoes

New Balance has consistent sizes, so I don't worry about buying online. These are nice shoes; I walked to work the day after they arrived with no discomfort at all.

Good everyday walking shoe

I have begun to shop for shoes at amazon since my local stores seem to always sell out of common sizes and I can only find size 7 or size 14 of anything I'd want to buy.

These shoes are at the top end of what I would normally pay for shoes but they are among the most comfortable new balances I have owned. I have been buying new balance for a while because they fit well. Different manufacturers always seem to fit a little different from each other but my experience with NB is they are consistent from one shoe to the next.

I've been using these shoes for about a month. There wasn't hardly any break in period and they've held up quite well and still look almost new.

The arch support is excellent and I get good traction even on wet industrial surfaces which is sometimes a problem with similar shoes.

I don't believe too much in the marketing hype and "features". The shoe has words like "Abzorber" and "rollbar" and the like. Meh: It's a pair of shoes! They look like the picture. They're comfortable.