We at MTN RDY believe that the work you do inside the gym should benefit your training in the mountains. Having a weekly training routine that asks you to be both inside and outside at times requires different types of shoes. This is a little more obvious when you recognize that the lugs or rigidness of a trail shoe is uncomfortable inside the gym, but what about road shoes? I oftentimes see athletes wearing road shoes during weight training sessions. While I wouldn’t say this is outright wrong, I will say it is not ideal for maximum benefit, performance or comfort for these reasons among others:

Using road shoes while lifting weights will break down the cushion insole much faster than they were designed for. You may be good at tracking your mileage in a pair of road shoes and then replacing them after so many miles but if you also wear them inside of the gym, you may be running in them long after you should, thus increasing your risk of injury.

Ground feel. If you are a runner that fits into the preference category of “more cushion” when it comes to a running shoe, you may not be getting enough responsiveness out of your shoe inside the gym.

Drop. The drop of a shoe measures the difference between the height of the heel and the drop of the forefoot. Most training shoes are around a 4mm drop while most high support running shoes are 6-8%. A higher drop is not ideal for movements like Oly lifts or squats where you are asked to sit back into your heels.

Tailwinds,
Coach K