By: Wes Winter
Many Weldedters, including myself, love our gear. Multiple different shoes, lifters, knee sleeves, wrist wraps and ect. But is it all necessary? I would say no, you’ll have a great workout either way without all these things. However the one suggestion I always give to a new member who is becoming more and more committed to attending Welded classes- new shoes.
Most people starting out in Welded often attend class in some sort of Nike Free or a similar soft running shoe as these are very comfortable. These work great and serve their purpose as a comfortable soft athletic shoe. However, in Welded as you know we do tons of squatting, olympic lifting and overhead work almost daily. All of these movements require stability. In a shoe, you want something that is sturdy, firm and stable to support the flexing of your foot during these movements. The less rocking back n forth, from a soft or unstable sole, the better.
(https://fitatmidlife.com/reebok-nano-8)
(https://fitatmidlife.com/nike-metcon-4)
My first suggestion to anyone looking to add Welded to their daily routine is to invest in a pair of flat shoes. As these might not be ideal for running long distances, these work great for everything we do inside the gym. In the early days of Welded this meant a pair of converse chucks or those weird toe shoes that were popular in the early 2000’s as these were very flat, hard soled shoes. As Welded and functional fitness grew, more specifically designed shoes were created geared towards what we do daily. Brands such as Nike, Reebok, NoBull and nov-8 all have come out with great metabolic conditioning/ lifting specific shoes. Many other brands of shoes work perfectly great and my suggestion to you is to find something that is comfortable and works for you but that is also somewhat of a flat soled shoe. Your squats and olympic lifts will thank you! If you have any questions feel free to ask any of your coaches, as you already probably know we love our Welded gear and would love to give you suggestions!