Hey guys, I am a fairly long legged, short torso but not extremely so. My squat stance is slightly wider than Austin or Jordan’s. (perhaps a foot width wider) Otherwise mechanics are essentially the same. Have been squatting in chucks for a long time and want to give proper lifting shoes a try. However when I have done research some powerlifters warn against using a heeled shoe for relatively wide stance, hip dominant lifters, warning of being pushed forward onto your toes. When I tried on the shoes in the store (Nike Romaleo 3’s) and air squatted in my stance it felt great. They had a large mirror and my shin angle didn’t seem to change and certainly didn’t feel pushed onto my toes. Is this going to be radically different under load or is the air squat test an accurate one? Any suggestions? I would normally just try it and see how it goes but its an expensive investment if I’m just going to hate them and go back to flats.
Thanks guys.
Ron, the skinny squatter.
(btw, I’m 5’11" about 192 if thats relevant)
Anybody can do anything, It’s really a matter of preference. Heeled shoes will allow you to squat a little more upright, if that feels more comfortable to you then go for it. I can’t really see a reason why it would send you forward, you just squat more upright to counter balance.
I squat with a fairly wide stance, and just purchased a pair of Reebok Legacy Lifters at the beginning of January. It took a few sessions to adjust, but I really like them now. I have not experienced any issues being pushed forward. I feel like my depth has become more consistent, and I love the way I feel “connected” to the floor. I have taken several heavy singles and feel great.
I was really hesitant to shell out the cash for lifting shoes, but I’m glad I did. I’m pretty sure I would have been fine without them, but I think things have improved with them.
Yah, I’d been pulling with my Adidas Power Perfect 2s and one of the people that worked at the gym chided me for pulling in heels and suggested I go down to socks. I tried it and hated not feeling “zen with the floor” like the squat shoes do for me.
OP seems to have a retailer available where they don’t have to buy the shoes sight unseen, which was my case making it so hard to shell out the $$ that I’m so glad I did.
Thanks for the feedback guys. I pulled the trigger on some shoes the other day. Where I live the only model I could buy after actually trying them on was the Nike Romaleo’s. It feels different but so far so good. Balance feels a bit off. I’m in the middle of an injury related deload so it comes at a good time to get accustomed to them. Has anyone gone the other direction? Used heeled shoes and then gone back to flats?
I was super hesitant about buying lifting shoes, but I am so glad I did. They added so much confidence to my lifts (I was using Converse before that). I think the wide stance powerlifters are talking about is not the same as the wide stance practiced by most people who train for general strength.
It took me a bit to get used to the slight change in mechanics when I got the shoes a couple years ago, but my buddy got some for himself right after this Christmas while finishing his LP and took to them like a duck to water. I was a bit jelly (of that and his #’s)