from Allison Van Dusen, Forbes.com

Photo: Getty Images

If something has inspired you to start a fitness regimen or get back into a sport you once played, do yourself a favor. As you prepare for that first outing, skip the trip to your closet for your two-year-old pair of sneakers.

Not only are they broken down, but they were probably never meant to support the type of motion you're about to subject them to, whether it's a long hike, a game of tennis or marathon training.

In Pictures: Best Sneakers for Your Sport

If you really want to succeed – and stave off runner's knee, shin splints and tendonitis, not to mention the cost of rehabbing these injuries – you need the right shoes, says Gale Bernhardt, a coach for the 2004 Olympics' U.S. mens' and womens' triathalon teams and a columnist for Active.com, an online community for people passionate about sports and recreational activities.

While a pair of sneakers might not exactly make you "better" at your chosen sport, the right pair can help you stay healthy, prevent you from the distractions of performance-crippling frozen, wet and blistered feet and potentially keep you on the court or trail a little bit longer.  READ MORE