Best Shoes to Work Out In?

I might be dating myself, but can you remember buying a pair of sneakers (the old-school nickname for athletic shoes) for $20-$25? 

They probably weren’t name-brand, and they certainly didn’t have an athlete’s name attached. 

If you go to purchase workout shoes now, there is a host of shoes to pick from: some with athlete designers, some with athlete endorsements (well, if it’s endorsed by Michael Jordan it’s got to be a superior basketball shoe, amiright?), some with flat beds, some for overpronation, some for stability…. the list is ENDLESS. 

How can you possibly know what workout shoes are right for you?

Which Workout Shoes Are Right For You?

If you are serious about getting back into working out, sooner or later you’re going to need a new shoe—and if you do high-impact cardio, you’re going to be needing new shoes more often.

So, let’s give this the old anti-Frank Lloyd Wright treatment: function over form. 

The bells and whistles and cute colors are cool, but really you want a shoe that supports your foot. Be sure to get a precise measurement of your foot (street shoe and athletic shoe sizes may differ); be aware of any problem areas with your feet before you go shopping (flat feet, high arches,  wide feet, prior injuries); and go to an athletic shoe store to get properly fitted.

If you’re in the San Jose and Campbell, CA area, we like and recommend Running Revolution and Fleet Feet. And no, we aren’t being paid to say this!

You might even consider going to a podiatrist and seeing if you’re a candidate for an orthotic insert (arch support); if helps to shoe shop with the insert.

Best Workout Shoes for Beginners

If you’re just a beginner (and we mean REALLY a beginner), a cross trainer is a nice starter shoe—and while it’s not the BEST shoe, it does a little bit of everything well.  It can handle forward and side-to-side motion and has the safety of running shoes.

When you start to focus on one type of exercise or sport, you should think about getting a more specialized shoe.

Best Workout Shoes for runners

Runners can have a lot of nagging injuries because running is a high-impact exercise.

Runners also experience swelling feet as they run so the rule of thumb is to buy a half to one size larger to accommodate this swelling.

Dedicated running shoes are made for forward movement and shock absorption, as well as other accommodations such as pronation correction (you’ll see this in the wear of the heel of your sole).

If you are mainly a runner, you should seek out running shoes to protect your feet and legs from potential injury.

You might think that you can walk or exercise wearing running shoes, but not so fast, my friend; your foot moves differently when you walk than when you run. You tend to roll your foot from toes to heel when walking so the sole of your shoe should be slightly rounded. If you are walking strenuously though (think speed walking) you can wear a running shoe.

Best Workout Shoes for weightlifting

Who knew there was such a thing as a weightlifting shoe? 

There is! 

Weightlifting shoes help you generate more power by giving you an extremely stable base, and unlike running shoes, they have very little padding which allows you more grip.

They are reinforced to prevent slipping and have an elevated heel which allows for a better squat position. If you purchase these shoes, bear in mind they should be dedicated to lifting as they are terrible for sports and running.

You can go onto the internet and find all kinds of articles about the best shoes for everything, but remember that function and fit should be the main determinants of the shoes.

Have a question we didn’t answer? You can reach out to us anytime at admin@leftcoastfitness.com.

Until next time!