they can take up to 1,000 years to degrade

But for someone running 20 miles a week,a pair of running shoes will start wearing out after roughly 6 months.Since the shoes are made of so many different materials,they e almost impossible to break down into recyclable components.20% of these shoes are incinerated, while the rest are tossed into landfills where they can take up to 1,000 years to degrade.