What Makes a Good Training Shoe?

Remember the daily walking challenge we started in January?

Nancy, an almost nine-year member of GAIN, won the shoes for getting in a 20 minute walk every day.

Nancy has been a long time runner, and typically used running shoes in the gym. It’s what has worked or her in the past, and this was a great chance for her to get something more gym-specific.

If you haven’t seen my video, “Stop Wear Your Running Shoes to the Gym,” be sure to check it out.

Because Nancy is a runner, she is more tuned in with her footwear than the average shoe wearer. She knew she didn’t want anything that was zero drop, and that she prefers something around a 6-8mm heel drop. While that’s little high for me personally, something in that heel drop range is effective in the gym for keep your foot balanced.

The other characteristic Nancy was looking for was a wider toe box to let her feet spread out a bit. Another trait she was looking for based off her running shoe choices. Often times you’ll see shoe companies refer to this a foot shaped toe box. (Seriously, shouldn’t shoes always be foot shaped?)

My final piece of input for her was to find something that has a stiff sole. Cushioning and support are championed in our society as beneficial shoe characteristics, but when lifting weights, too much squishiness will throw you off balance and disrupt efficiency.

After checking out the list I came up with based off those distinctions Nancy selected the Reebok Nano X3. The Nano is a great shoe. Reebok has been making this strength and conditioning shoe for over 10 years. Nancy felt strong and stable when deadlifting this week in her new shoes.

Congrats to Nancy, and thanks to everyone who played along, especially the 11 that went 30/30 days!

Justin Miner

@justinminergain