Choosing sports shoes is often a struggle between comfort, fashion and price but you don't have to give up any of these in order to get a good functional shoe. Everyone wants to wear shoes that look good, but your main focus should be on the health of your feet and protecting them from injury. Many shoes are made in a specific manner in order to protect your feet from the stresses and strains of a particular type of sport. That's why you really should have different shoes for your different athletic activities. A running shoe will not be as good for your feet when you are walking is a walking shoe will be and vice versa.

Here are a few basic things to consider when shopping for sports shoes:

1. Quality. We all like to save a buck here and there, but when it comes to shoes for sports you might be better off putting more money into a better quality shoe. Good-quality shoes will last longer which may even save you money in the long run if you don't have to replace them too often. Also, they will be made from their materials which will better help protect your feet from abuse and a lot of the more expensive shoes are expensive because they have good technology behind them.

2. Fit. It's imperative that your sports shoes that you properly, otherwise you could risk injuring your feet and ankles. Make sure you try on the shoes while wearing the same thickness of sock that you will normally be wearing with the shoe. Walk around in the shoe for several minutes in the store. Make sure that your heel does not slip up out of the shoe. Make sure that your toes can move freely and that there is 1/2" of space at the end of your big toe.

3. Support. Many sports shoes are made to support different areas of your feet such as the balls of your feet are your ankles depending on the movements you sport calls for. Therefore, you want to make sure that the shoe you choose supports your foot appropriately for your particular sport. If you don't pay attention to this, you will risk in injury to your foot that could leave you laid up for quite some time.

4. Comfort. While you are protecting your foot, you want make sure that you're comfortable. If you shoes uncomfortable, you have your mind and your aching feet instead of your game so comfort is key when it comes to sports shoes.

Sports shoes are an important piece of equipment for any game and should be considered as such. Take as much care in choosing and purchasing your shoes as you would in any other piece of equipment and you're sure to be a winner!