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I've been running for a couple of years but only recently decided to start trail running. Usually when I buy a new pair of road running shoes I'll wear them to work for a week or two before I start running in them. I just bought my first pair of trail shoes.

Is there any advantage to wearing shoes to work/casually in order to break them in a bit or am I better off just hitting the trail with them?

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    Posting this as a comment, because I'm not sure it qualifies as an answer, but in the army, we were advised to do a bit of a trail walk with wet shoes if they were new. It's a bit uncomfortable, but well worth it in the long run. Making them wet would allow the fabric to shape itself to our feet better. But I have no idea if this is the case for running shoes. Ours were boots.
    – Alec
    Commented Apr 20, 2018 at 6:46
  • @Alec - Boots, especially if they have leather uppers, that is a typical practice. If they are the nylon/non leather versions, this is not really needed.
    – JohnP ♦
    Commented Apr 20, 2018 at 16:41

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With modern running shoes, especially if you buy the same brand/model, there really is no need to break them in any more. It is only if you change models and/or brands that your first runs in them should be shorter, but that is in case your feet rub different in the shoes than in the ones you are used to. So it isn't so much your shoes but your feet that need the adjustment period.

Walking in them won't really do much (At least IMHO, as I have never seen studies on it), since walking in a shoe and running in a shoe will have different stress/rub points.

I would just hit the trail with them, but make them shorter runs to start until you know how your feet feel in the shoes.

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