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Merrell shoes that will take you through to the mud challenge

Entering into a Tough Mudder? Runners taking part in this beast of an OCR event are going to want to get all the gear right-- especially the shoes!

Merrell Tough Mudder

Merrell shoe

The Olympics is winding down now bringing us closer to the fall racing season. Remember when the Tough Mudder you signed up for seemed so far away? It’s getting closer now.

When we enter into race reason, one of the questions top on our mind is: how can we best outfit ourselves so that we can get the most out of our training? The last thing a runner needs in training or racing is to be held back by the gear. Your shoes and apparel should enhance your performance– not take from it.

Entering into a mud obstacle course event like a Tough Mudder and many runners are probably thinking about the slippery mud, uneven terrain and all the obstacles and wondering “What the heck am I supposed to wear on my feet?” If you’ve been following along on our Tough Mudder series, you’ll know that we’re doing it too! For this beast of a running event, we’ve got a couple of recommendations that will provide the support and traction to take you through the mud.

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For race day

Try the All Our Crush (pictured above) to crush your race. This pair is exactly what you need when running through mixed terrain and having to climb obstacles. For an event like this, you need a strong upper and The All Out Crush has that. But strong should not translate to cumbersome or bulky. That’s especially a key factor since realistically, the shoes will be wet and muddy for the most part of your run. You don’t need a wet and uncomfortable shoe bogging down your stride. The shoes are actually fairly light considering how supportive they are. Most importantly though is the bottoms of this pair. The soles of these have sizeable lugs with even bigger ones lining the outside to grip in slippery conditions. On the forefoot the four width-wise indentations provide something extra when trying to climb those walls.

M_ConnectFor the road running and indoor gym training

The Bare Access Arc 4 Road Run is a nice lightweight shoe perfect for a medium length run, tempo work or for hitting the gym. It’s essential that runners alternate their shoes that they wear when training to avoid injury. Fans of lighter running shoes will really like this pair– they won’t be bulky or awkward and allow fast feet to just fly! Every runner needs that go-to lightweight trainer. As the hosts of Tough Mudder, Merrell provides runners with the right footwear to get the job done. These ones are comfy and soft with a breathable upper  to keep things well-ventilated on hot summer runs. Overall, these are a smart pick and will be ones on the shoe rack that runners will reach for automatically.

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