What shoes are you wearing?

[tommytx]

First post here - thanks for your time, patience and consideration.

Lately I have been struggling with footwear.

Do you practice inside, outside or both?
Do you have dedicated shoes?
Do you go barefoot?
If you wear shoes, what have you had the most success with?

I practice Chinese Martial Arts with a mix of hard style and tai chi in my practice. I do lots of low stance work (well, that's my goal anyway), some flying kicks, with lots of lateral forces on the shoes, twisting... etc. My rubbery shoes tangle me up sometimes, and some of my thick soled athletic shoes feel awkward. Many shoes in the past have worn out busting out the side before the soles wore out.

Thanks for any input you have. If you have found the "magic shoe" that works for you, let me know what you have found works best.

Many thanks for your time and input, and for fielding the new guy's question.
I apologize if this has already been discussed to death.

 

[jobo]

First post here - thanks for your time, patience and consideration.

Lately I have been struggling with footwear.

Do you practice inside, outside or both?
Do you have dedicated shoes?
Do you go barefoot?
If you wear shoes, what have you had the most success with?

I practice Chinese Martial Arts with a mix of hard style and tai chi in my practice. I do lots of low stance work (well, that's my goal anyway), some flying kicks, with lots of lateral forces on the shoes, twisting... etc. My rubbery shoes tangle me up sometimes, and some of my thick soled athletic shoes feel awkward. Many shoes in the past have worn out busting out the side before the soles wore out.

Thanks for any input you have. If you have found the "magic shoe" that works for you, let me know what you have found works best.

Many thanks for your time and input, and for fielding the new guy's question.
I apologize if this has already been discussed to death.

a pair of niki skate board boots work just fine

 

[JR 137]

We train barefoot on hardwood floor (karate). I’ve got pretty flat feet and I’m always getting plantar fasciitis. When it gets bad, I wear wrestling sneakers. I’ve got a pair from when I coached wrestling and they do quite well on the dojo floor. A little different than bare feet but not much adjusting needed.

I always make the same recommendation - ASICS Matflex. Good and cheap. If you need a more substantial sole, ASICS Aggressor. Expensive, but everyone I know who’ve worn them loved them. I should probably try a pair because my feet have been pretty bad lately, but my Matflexes are still going strong.

Matflex:
ASICS Men's Matflex 5 Wrestling Shoes | DICK'S Sporting GoodsProposition 65 warning iconProposition 65 warning icon

Aggressor:
ASICS Men's Aggressor 4 Wrestling Shoes | DICK'S Sporting GoodsProposition 65 warning iconProposition 65 warning icon

 

[Christopher Adamchek]

Often barefoot or with merrell barefoot shoes

 

[Deleted member 39746]

I do it outside if at home and just in trainers, inside is barefoot unless otherwise done. ie if the style does it barefoot i do it barefoot if not just in trainers. And its just what ever trainers i have.

(not helping the image im not a chav)

 

[dvcochran]

We train barefoot on hardwood floor (karate). I’ve got pretty flat feet and I’m always getting plantar fasciitis. When it gets bad, I wear wrestling sneakers. I’ve got a pair from when I coached wrestling and they do quite well on the dojo floor. A little different than bare feet but not much adjusting needed.

I always make the same recommendation - ASICS Matflex. Good and cheap. If you need a more substantial sole, ASICS Aggressor. Expensive, but everyone I know who’ve worn them loved them. I should probably try a pair because my feet have been pretty bad lately, but my Matflexes are still going strong.

Matflex:
ASICS Men's Matflex 5 Wrestling Shoes | DICK'S Sporting GoodsProposition 65 warning iconProposition 65 warning icon

Aggressor:
ASICS Men's Aggressor 4 Wrestling Shoes | DICK'S Sporting GoodsProposition 65 warning iconProposition 65 warning icon

Beat me to advising wrestling shoes.

 

[Punchy]

I've been wearing Skechers the past few years. They are super light.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

I always train barefoot (when on mats), but I've been watching the higher ranks in the yudansha class at the Karate school where I teach. I've seen some wrestling shoes, some of those TKD shoes you can get from the MA suppliers. They seem to like both. I've talked to folks who used minimalist shoes (Merrell's barefoot series, New Balance Minimus are two of them) and like those, as well.

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Oh, and welcome to Martial Talk. If you haven't, drop by the Beginner's Corner and introduce yourself!

 

[tommytx]

Oh, and welcome to Martial Talk. If you haven't, drop by the Beginner's Corner and introduce yourself!

I will do that thanks!

And thanks for all who have responded. I have been considering the Matflex for inside stuff. I really appreciate the input and recommendations from all.

 

[JR 137]

I will do that thanks!

And thanks for all who have responded. I have been considering the Matflex for inside stuff. I really appreciate the input and recommendations from all.

If you’re going to order the Matflex without trying them on in a store, order a full size larger than your current size. They run quite small. I’m not sure about other wrestling shoes as I haven’t worn other models in quite a while (I stick to what works for me). Other ones either fell apart faster or were multiple times more expensive without giving me anything the Matflexes didn’t give me, except looking different.

I wear the Matflex at the dojo when necessary. They don’t see any other use, so they keep the dojo dojo floor clean. I’ve got a punching bag in the basement. I wear a pair of regular sneakers that I use to work out. My workout sneakers are just a pair of sneakers that I don’t wear on a daily basis anymore. Always either Nike Air Max or Zoom All Out. I can’t wear anything else without foot issues. Those wouldn’t work well on the dojo floor. Too much grip.

 

[SgtBarnes]

I'm going to buy a pair of kung fu slippers. Well 2 pairs actually. One pair to actually wear at home. Anyone recommend a pair?

 

[Dirty Dog]

I'm going to buy a pair of kung fu slippers. Well 2 pairs actually. One pair to actually wear at home. Anyone recommend a pair?

 

[Flying Crane]

I'm going to buy a pair of kung fu slippers. Well 2 pairs actually. One pair to actually wear at home. Anyone recommend a pair?

I don’t recommend them for training. They fit poorly, don’t stay on, have slippery plastic soles, and are not durable.

A cross-trainer is durable and gives lateral stability. Ive been using New Balance for years. I train mostly outside on concrete, and we use a lot of pivoting repeatedly, over and over. The soles wear away eventually, so my shoes are dedicated for training. Replace when the sole is sufficiently gone.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

Nike Air Monarch IV is my favor. I have used new balance all my life until I found it.

Nike Air Monarch IV - Shoe Show

Men's Nike Air Monarch IV Shoe sets you up for comfortable training with durable leather on top for support. A lightweight foam midsole with a full-length encapsulated Air-Sole unit cushions every stride.leather upper features overlays for support and perforations for airflowfull-length...

www.shoeshowmega.com

 

[SgtBarnes]

View attachment 28143

Perfect for the tiger claw style. Think the monks use it

 

[Flying Crane]

Nike Air Monarch IV is my favor. I have used new balance all my life until I found it.

Nike Air Monarch IV - Shoe Show

Men's Nike Air Monarch IV Shoe sets you up for comfortable training with durable leather on top for support. A lightweight foam midsole with a full-length encapsulated Air-Sole unit cushions every stride.leather upper features overlays for support and perforations for airflowfull-length...

www.shoeshowmega.com

I bought a pair today. First Nikes that fit in decades, I’ve been wearing New Balance for a long time. They feel good.

 

[Holmejr]

First post here - thanks for your time, patience and consideration.

Lately I have been struggling with footwear.

Do you practice inside, outside or both?
Do you have dedicated shoes?
Do you go barefoot?
If you wear shoes, what have you had the most success with?

I practice Chinese Martial Arts with a mix of hard style and tai chi in my practice. I do lots of low stance work (well, that's my goal anyway), some flying kicks, with lots of lateral forces on the shoes, twisting... etc. My rubbery shoes tangle me up sometimes, and some of my thick soled athletic shoes feel awkward. Many shoes in the past have worn out busting out the side before the soles wore out.

Thanks for any input you have. If you have found the "magic shoe" that works for you, let me know what you have found works best.

Many thanks for your time and input, and for fielding the new guy's question.
I apologize if this has already been discussed to death.

Tennis court shoes. I play tennis. Tennis has more intricate and off balance movement than most sports. Tennis courts shoes are design specifically for this type of movement. We practice on cement mostly, but also fake turf and park grass.

 

[Damien]

Agree that kung fu slippers are not great for training! Feiyues are pretty much perfect for training I find, however, they are quite narrow in the toe box.

These days I wear barefoot shoes (Vibrams, VivoBarefoot, Vapourgloves etc.), much healthier for your feet. But it means Feiyues don't fit me anymore

Best shoes is a personal choice, but I do highly recommend the move over to barefoot shoes. I made a video summarising some of the barefoot training shoe options a while back:

 

[Gerry Seymour]

Agree that kung fu slippers are not great for training! Feiyues are pretty much perfect for training I find, however, they are quite narrow in the toe box.

These days I wear barefoot shoes (Vibrams, VivoBarefoot, Vapourgloves etc.), much healthier for your feet. But it means Feiyues don't fit me anymore

Best shoes is a personal choice, but I do highly recommend the move over to barefoot shoes. I made a video summarising some of the barefoot training shoe options a while back:

I like the New Balance Minimus trail running shoe. I don't even know if they are still the same as they were when I bought mine. They're not great for trail running (the tread pattern doesn't do well in anything soft or wet), but for training when I'm not actually barefoot, they are great.