I’m ready for a new pair of running shoes and that fact fills me with both excitement and dread. I love having an excuse to treat myself to a new pair of shoes (it’s been six months), but always struggle to find a shoe that fits perfectly and feels great even after I get out of the store and into the gym. I did well with my last purchase–a pair of Brooks Radius R7s. I could stick with the same, but how fun is that?

So I decided to try the Running Shoe Finder from Runner’s World. It’s really cool! You input your gender, shoe size, preferred price range, favorite brands and shoe type and it produces a list of suggestions from the Runner’s World Shoe Lab. And if you don’t know what shoe type is best for you (i.e. cushioned, stability, etc.) there’s a separate tool for that too. Once you get your list, you can do a side-by-side comparison of up to four styles and print it to take along when you go shopping. While I still need to take them for a test run at the store, at least I’ve narrowed down the selection and have an opinion to consider other than the (not always so qualified) shoe salesman’s opinion.