How do I know what shoes to choose?

Footwear for the Training Athlete

Yes your feet are that important

Why is it important to use proper footwear?

    -The feet are the first and last place force is transferred to the ground by the kinetic chain.

(The Kinetic chain is made of the parts of the body that create movement. An example for a boxer that needs quick hands. If the boxer wants quick hands then he/she needs quick arms, to get quick arms he/she     is going to need quick legs.)

-Improved mechanics of the foot and ankle, will lead to improved performance. The better and more efficiently we can move the faster, stronger, and for longer we will be able to perform.

What is the best footwear? What should we look for in footwear?

-The first thing to take into account is the type of activity the footwear will be used for. There are big differences between shoes and between activities. So figure out what they’re needed for and go from there. 

The one aspect to look for overall:

-Height matters. We want a shoe where the heel is very close to the height of the ball of the foot. This is why the craze of ‘Shox’ has become a problem, and Nike has turned that around with the ‘Frees’.  

When we pull our toes up towards our face this is dorsiflexion the opposite is plantar flexion, we need the correct amount of each for proper and efficient movement if we don’t our performance suffers. We also need a good amount of accessory movement inside our ankle joint; this is the ‘roll’ of the ankle when you walk or run. Then finally we need the correct amount of mobility and stability in our ankles otherwise we won’t be performing for very long if at all because we’ll be injured. Now to avoid this and get good shoes we need to think about heel height, think the opposite of a high heel. (Key for female athletes)

A few things to consider when picking shoes.

-Height of heel

-Weight

-Support

-Comfort and fit

-Firmness of sole

-Responsiveness

-Durability 

    -By the way, this is different than the mileage of the shoes. If you go into a shoe store a         salesperson may tell you a shoe’s durability is up to X amount of miles. This has nothing to do with what we mean by durability here. Mileage is for long distance running.

Activities we’ll be covering and what to look for in your shoes:

-Speed and Agility Training

-Weightlifting

-Running (straight forward, such as in track) (sprinting - jogging)

-Walking/Casual

Speed and Agility Training?

Now, as mentioned above the first thing we need to do is think about the type of activities this type of training will include. We know we will be sprinting and moving in multiple directions so it’s important to realize that what we put on our feet will have to be durable so to take on the high amounts of stress you will be placing on the shoes and on your feet.

Firmness of the sole. The sole has to be somewhat firm. This will aid in keeping your feet healthy and improving push through the feet by keeping your toes from overextending and the firmness will also help with the push for the same reason.

Weight should also be taken into account. You may think using 10 lb. basketball shoes for everything from wearing around to training in is a good idea. Not only do most basketball type shoes miss the mark on making good shoes, they also tend to miss the mark on helping out athletes as well. Most basketball shoes are durable and usually support the ankle fairly well, but they are also very heavy and tend to lack support of the actual foot. This can cause many more problems down the road: dropped arches, plantar fasciitis, ankle mobility and stability issues, etc. The point is to make sure you are making a good choice on the type of shoes you are using. A light weight shoe tends to help athletes move in a more efficient manner, and heavy shoe training just slows us down. We want a shoe that we can move in, that is as simple as it gets.

High tops or Low tops? Personally I will always suggest to my athletes that they train in low top shoes. It’s more of an anti-high top than a pro low top, but we must have reasons so here we go. High tops lower the mobility of our ankles by their design. This affects us as simple as lack of mobility decreases our ability to perform. The high top also aids in the support of the ankle, which sounds great at first thought, but during training we are in a controlled environment so we need to train without the added support so to build and improve our ability to support our own ankle. The low top also tends to hold the heel of the shoe in place and tight to the heel and foot. This helps by letting our foot have more transfer through to the ground. The more transfer through our feet to the ground that we can get the better we can move, and shoes decrease this ability to a certain extent.

Support: a shoe will form to your foot over time, but this will not solve a support issue. This is an area that depends on the feet of the athlete. Everyone has different feet, and all shoes are made differently. Finding a shoe where the foot is comfortable inside is first thing. Does the shoe fit, lengthwise great, but also check the width of the shoe. If the foot moves around inside the shoe while it’s tied this means the shoe doesn’t fit well and it is not the right shoe for you. Also check the heal, sit down on a bench and make sure the heal of the shoe is firm and as close as possible to wiggle free from your heal. Then check it standing up. Actually when trying on shoes, test them while standing and while seated. Checking for arch support is a little trickier.

Responsiveness: this is another way to test fit, and it is as simple as jumping around in the shoes. Do a few side to side and forward and backward jumps. The shoes should feel responsive between your foot and the ground. If they feel sluggish and as if your feet move and then your shoes move, or just that your feet are moving around inside the shoes then you need try on another pair.

What shoes are best for Speed and Agility Training?

Typically the best shoes for speed and agility training are turf/cross training shoes. Make sure not to get cross training and cross country mixed up as you may never hear the end of it from all of your friends and coaches. Certain basketball shoes work well occasionally. Figure out what your nearest college/university’s football team wears while they work out or play on turf and those should work fine.

Lifting weights?

In this area the rule of heel height is crucial. We need to be as close to barefoot as possible, so to keep the level of our heals at the same level as our toes. (Our feet also have many sensory receptors that affect our nervous system which is where we get our strength. The stronger your nervous system is the stronger you are, and our feet can help activate that, therefore making us stronger. )

Again we need to think about the activities we will be performing here so to make a better decision. We will be lifting heavy weights putting a lot of pressure on the lateral or outside portion of the shoe. Just from that we now that we need a very durable shoe, we also will need a shoe with a lot of surface area to the sole (meaning that the bottom of the shoe needs to have a lot of contact with the floor).

Firmness of sole? Depending on the type of lifting being performed I would like a firm sole. During triple extension lifts such as cleans the foot can be put at risk, but not so much to over worry about. We want the sides of our shoes to be tough enough that they do not give at all while pushing out against. If the shoe stretches a ton your foot will slide around inside making it less stable and less able to move big weights.

Weight? Has little place of concern. During lifting the feet rarely leave the ground. On top of that finding a shoe that will really hinder performance due to being too heavy would have to be sought after. Don’t worry about it.

High tops or low tops? This also has little place of concern. For the most part this is going to have little to no effect on performance in the weight room. Now for certain shoes having the high top helps with the fit, and can help keep the heal in place better. I know I'm contradicting myself here but lifting is different than running.

Support? This is another area that doesn’t need concern. For the most part we don’t put much strain on our feet while we are lifting (in the form of dynamic impact), that is why lifting barefoot all the time is not harmful. We put extra weight on our bodies for a short amount of time then we take it off. The feet rarely if ever leave the ground, and times to take concern of strain being put on the feet is during running and plyometric training where there are large impacts.

What shoes are best for lifting weights?

Hands down old school Chuck Taylor's take the cake. The sole is the same height at the toes as it is at the heal, and the canvas outer layer makes it very durable. It is also a fairly narrow shoe so most feet will fit snugly into the shoes. These shoes have very poor support, and the sole is not firm but we aren’t concerned with these qualities of a shoe when lifting. One thing to take into account with these is whether to go high top or low. Due to the incredible lack of support with the low I would advise to go with the high top. Not only does that help with the ankle support but it also helps anchor your heel into the shoe.

Wrestling shoes take second place here. The main difference is that wrestling shoes are not as durable so the sides of the shoe can stretch some while doing heavy squats and things. Otherwise wrestling shoes are great.

Now certain turf/cross trainers can work well here too. When taking these into account, stay away from any air or gel based/supported shoes. Shoes filled with air/gel used for lifting tend to pop the pockets holding the air/gel and ruin the shoes. This also needs to be taken into account for speed and agility training.

Straight ahead running, such as in track?

Well during this type of training we are moving in a straight line so durability is less of a concern compared with lifting and agility training. We are also going to be coming out of a stance, which means that a somewhat firm sole can help us.

Weight is a large factor. If you haven’t seen the movie “Prefontaine” (about Steve Prefontaine, excellent movie), go to the store and rent/buy it. During the movie Pre’s coach (the actual founder of Nike shoes) tells him why he makes all the shoes that his athletes wear. Okay, the reason is weight. Two athletes could run the same distance and take a different amount of strides. Athlete A could take 1,000 strides, while Athlete B takes 940. If both ran the same times and had shoes with same weight, and each had similar physiological abilities, who do you think exerted more energy? Of course Athlete A did. Weight also affects the swing time of our gait (this is the time it takes the propulsion leg to be brought forward when running). Though swing time is pretty minuscule in speed training, it does have an effect, and if you’re running against Marion Jones you want to get everything you can. 

Highs or lows? Lows, if your ankles can’t support themselves on a track then you probably have no business running period. High tops will just add unnecessary weight, and decrease the mobility of the ankle, which is no good for training and no good for competition. 

Support? Increasingly important with increasing distance. This is a little misleading and I apologize. A sprinter needs a good amount of support and firmness through the forefoot (the balls and toes of the feet). This is to improve the foots ability to produce force. For an example, go outside to a football field or some type of even fairly soft surface. Do 30 yards 75% of sprint, 1x barefoot and 1x with shoes. Which one were you able to push your foot through the ground harder with? Probably with shoes on.

Responsiveness: pivotal for sprinters not so much for anything over 800 meters. This is for the same reason as the answer for support.

Walking/Casual wearing

Low heal

Support of the midfoot

Fit? Should cradle foot so they aren’t sliding all over under sole of foot

Firmness is of low concern (unless we have problems with chronic turf toe)

Should be low top (for one: there is no need to be high top, if we have that much trouble with ankle support you need some serious foot and ankle help. We shouldn’t need to support the stability of the ankle it should be able to do that for itself when walking around.)

Durability is up to the buyer. It is of pretty minimal concern.

Weight is up to the buyer: just make sure you can walk and move normal in them.

Nike Free’s are one of best, Puma is doing a pretty good job, Chuck Taylors are not bad unless you are doing a lot of walking, I would say stay away from crocs, they are too soft, too lose, they do not fit to the feet well, they wear down poorly and quickly, etc. Plus they are very 2005.

What about sandals?

Sandals are fine if you get the right ones. Old Navy type sandals are probably not good if you are going to be doing a lot of walking during the day. College students are the most common I see doing this and we will see here in a few years when all of the sudden there will not be enough podiatrists in the world. Something with at least layers underneath your foot is what you are looking for. One level that is somewhat soft that comes in direct contact with your foot, and gives it some supportive molding/contours. The other layer should be more firm to support the top layer, protect the bottom of your foot and to keep the sandal durable. Remember to buy sandals with a low heal also. (For parents if your children are less than 7 years of age STOP letting them where flip flops all the time, check that Stop letting them wear flip flops period. It is actually beneficial to just let them go barefoot instead. So save a few bucks and let them go way way old school.)

Some other good’s for your feet…

Tennis and lacrosse balls

-Take one tennis/lacrosse ball put it on the ground and roll it with your barefoot from your heal to the balls of your feet. 

Towels and marbles

-Marbles: spill a bunch of marbles on the floor and pick them up and put them back in the container only using your toes.

-Towels: place a towel on the floor so it is completely flat and start pulling inch by inch back towards your heal. 

Some types of barefoot training

-Running (use caution and common sense, moderate amounts, and on the right surfaces)

-Proprioception: balancing on one foot without any shoes on is great.

Dancing to the Footloose soundtrack while barefoot 

-This is a little out there. Be careful, depending on the person/people you may want to do this alone and/or in private. Could be a little weird if you are a coach trying to do this with your athletes. (At this point you should check and make sure you are still awake.)

Tips for and during training:

-Always wear your own shoes.

No one has identical feet. Your own Right foot is most likely very different from your Left. So it would only make sense to always wear the shoes that you broke in yourself, and not somebody else’s. 

-All shoes do not fit the same

Always try on the shoes before purchasing them. For instance, a size 12 in a Nike can be different than a size 12 Adidas. This can also be true within a shoe company. You may need one size in a certain model of Nike and another size for a different model. All shoes are made with different purposes in mind. Find the shoe that fits, and don’t forget that comfort is a very useful tool.

In Summary

We want shoes that promote foot and ankle health. This means that we want our feet to have to work as much like we are barefoot as possible in order to keep the musculature strong and the joint mobile while also maintaining stability. Look for shoes with a short/low heal. The height of the toes and heel should be as close to the same height as possible. The qualities to look for in the shoe are determined by the activities that the shoes are needed for. The footwear we use has a dramatic effect on our performance and development as athletes as well as our body’s health. There are also some ways we can promote the health of our feet and ankles without our shoes on.  Speak with an expert before using these types, and always use caution when performing. Be critical of the shoes you buy. They are an investment to your feet and to your performance.  Have fun, choose wisely, and play hard

About the author: 

ADAM REES: BS, NASM, AKC

Adam Rees is a Performance Coach with High Impact for the Southeast Iowa area. Adam specializes in the mental and physical training of athletes for football, wrestling, baseball, and track. Including: speed and agility, strength and conditioning, corrective lifting, Nutrition, and fat loss training. To contact and/or read more articles by Adam Rees go to www.HighImpactTraining.org .