, stand on the lower band with your right foot and pull the upper band up behind your head so your elbows are bent at 90 degrees. Your elbows should be near your ears. Maintaining tension on the band, press your arms overhead by extending at the elbows

Lake CX210, £79.99A fibreglass-injected nylon sole and reinforced heel area make this a rigid shoe designed to transfer all the energy from your legs to moving forward. A breathable mesh upper features leather overlays that secure your foot and help

Need to save a sole in distress? Massaging your legs may soothe a sore plantar fascia - the band of tissue that runs along the sole of your foot. "The plantar shares an attachment site with your calf muscles in the calcaneus [heel] bone," explains

Davos which it replaces. It’s certainly light enough to appeal to even the sternest traditionalists, and its wafer-thin midsole means that it’s sure-footed and highly responsive. The fit is promising, too – the three broad Adidas stripes loop

Weight 340gEvaluation The Gel Escape is a gem of a trail shoe. It hits the spot by feeling light yet protective, cushioned yet responsive, stable yet unrestrictive. It’s the sort of shoe your foot sits in, not on. You are cocooned in a snug upper

, enhanced EVA, which partly explains the Glycerin’s weight increase over the Hyperion, which it replaces. The Substance 257 helps make the Glycerin a natural shoe for long training runs, as it absorbs shock and supports the foot well. It may also be a shoe

with an internal one-piece tongue/sock to really hold the foot snugly. Too snugly, for broad-footed runners, as the sock is not very stretchy and the whole upper has a fairly narrow fit. Still, if you have narrow feet, you’ll possibly find that the Incognito Plus

or severe overpronator, the Wasatch II’s curved shape rules the shoe out for you. However, because Montrail neutralises the shoe’s instability with a half-length medial post, it should be a good, sure-footed option for most other runners. There are more

, unrestrictive and responsive, and it has great grip for all surfaces but the thickest mud. The key is its thin midsole, which positions the foot close to the ground (in fact it’s so low in the heel that you may need to ease into using it, especially if you

Weight 338gEvaluation Good news! Trail shoes in general are starting to get really good. Like the quick, responsive New Balance 904, the GRID Harrier has an emphasis on traction and speed. It too places the foot low to the ground for a positive feel