It’s not a good idea to play bowling wearing soccer cleats, to run wearing flip flops or to jump rope in high heels. Having inappropriate shoes can limit our performance and increase our chances of multiple injuries. So what are the best workout shoes?
Before answering that, we need to ask ourselves: what type of workout are we talking about? Lifting weights, running, a mix of both? The ideal shoes will depend first and foremost on the type of exercise.
We can classify athletic shoes in four main categories: Barefoot, Running, Lifters and Trainers.
Barefoot shoes
Extremely light and malleable, but provide no arch support. Their sole is a thin piece of rubber and they usually have large toe boxes. Like the name suggests, you’re basically barefoot. These types of shoes can really strengthen our feet. Our intrinsic foot muscles are small but really important for balance and stability. If we can’t properly control our feet, the joints above (knees, hips, spine) usually pay an expensive price.
I’m a big fan of those, but only for certain workouts or exercises. I don’t recommend those for high impact activities (running, jumping rope, cleans and snatches) or for long duration activities. For workouts that don’t involve the above mentioned, they are great.
Running Shoes
This is straightforward: those are great for running, especially long distances. They have soft soles that absorb a lot of the running impact, potentially allowing us to run faster for longer.
Unfortunately, the soft sole makes them unstable for gym exercises, like squats and lunges. Can you still lift weights with them? Absolutely. Is it the best option for it? Absolutely not! The squishiness makes us lose some balance and power when lifting weights.
Lifter Shoes:
Those are robust and heavy. Their sole is usually made of wood and is higher in the heel. They’re definitely not great for running or jumping rope, but they’re excellent to lift weights.
The hard sole keeps us more balanced, stable and connected to the floor. They are a game changer for olympic lifts (Snatch and Clean & Jerk), but can also be great for squats, step ups and lunges.
The higher heel allows our ankles to bend more, which is key for good squats (specially front squats). If you have tight ankles, lifters can be a game changer, allowing you to squat deeper and more uptight, giving you more power and sparing your knees.
Training shoes
Those are the more versatile of them all. If you want to have only one pair of training shoes, I’d recommend those. They are light and provide good support.
Although not ideal for long runs, they are great to walk or run smaller distances (200m, 400m, 800m) which is what we mostly do in our gym. At the same time, their sole is not squishy, providing a stable base for strength training.
Additionally, if you want to climb the rope, those are the only ones that are designed for that. Other shoes can easily tear when we climb down.
Nike Metcons and Reebok Nanos are the most traditional ones.
So to choose the ideal shoes, consider all these factors: the type and duration of the workout, the exercises you’ll be doing and your level of mobility. Oh and a final tip: there’s another shoe that can be great to lift weights, and you may have them in your closet already: Converse Chuck Taylors: they are light and have a firm sole, providing the stability we need when we lift weights.
Hope this helps!
Will
Great advice, thanks!