Weightlifting Shoes - The Best Investment You Can Make In Workout Equipment

Given my decade and a half of experience as a recreational weight lifter, I can safely stress the importance of proper shoes when performing your routine. Free weights make this need even more pressing, so shoes are extremely important. From squats to deadlifts, jerks to power cleans, and even leg presses, you always have to use your feet to lift.

You certainly would not attempt to perform a record bench press while wearing a batting glove. Yet you see trainees lifting weights while wearing running shoes, sneakers, and all other types of incorrect footwear. The transfer of power requires a sturdy base in order to be performed correctly, and soft-soled shoes just will not provide that kind of poewr. The shoes you normally wear out will make your feet shift back and forth as you move; this wouldn't happen with real weightlifting shoes, supplying you with unprecedented lift results.

What does one look for in a top weightlifting shoe?

That is a good question. In the past, serious trainees have worn almost everything on their feet that you can imagine, including thick soled combat boots. Recently, weight training specific shoes are actually beginning to gain acceptance among serious gym members. Quality weightlifting shoes give you a firm base from which to commence the various lifts. This is accomplished because of the rubber based composition of the soles of the shoes which provides solidity to the lifter. In addition, the snug fit around the feet via the use of straps generates a firmness around the entire area. Make sure you get the most high quality shoes possible, with no inexpensive materials used in its construction. You can find great reviews at Best Weightlifting Shoes

Which weightlifting shoes are tops in the field?

Essentially these shoes can be classified into two types: You can find both hard soled flat shoes, and raised heel lifted shoes. Depending on which muscles you want to work and the types of lifts you're doing, different shoes work for different sets of weight lifters. For example, the shoe with the elevated heel will assist in squat performance because it encourages the lifter to move in the correct groove for this exercise. With the help of the shoes, your squats will be performed with perfect form, also giving you better shaped thighs as your quadriceps are worked more effectively.

Keep in mind, however, that that quad emphasis won't work quite as well with leg presses and other exercises of that sort. You might want to invest in flatter soles in this instance. Great lift shoes include wrestling shoes or Chuck Taylors, but you might still hate to change out your shoes every time you switch exercises during your workout.

Obviously, a trainee would require two different types of soles in his training if he performs both olympic lifts and conventional muscle building exercises, unless there was a way to combine them in one shoe. The hybrid changes all that. These are built with a small elevation in the heel and are suitable for any type of weight lifting.