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Thread: Orthotics in weightlifting shoe?

  1. #1
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    Mar 2010
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    Default Orthotics in weightlifting shoe?

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    Hey Rip-

    I want your advice on using my orthotics in weightlifting shoes. I'm planning on buying the 2011 Rogue Fitness shoe and I know the advantage in these shoes is their durability and low heel. However, I have custom made orthotics by a family friend podiatrist who is very adamant about me wearing them due to my heavy pronation.

    My question is this: What's your take on using orthotics in weightlifting shoes that will obviously raise the heel? Won't wearing these limit my ability to lift? Any info you can provide would be helpful. Thanks!

  2. #2
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    Raising the heel will affect the ankle angle and thus the shin angle. I'm all for arch support and corrective shoeing, but the heel height of the shoe may have to be adjusted to compensate for the orthotic.

  3. #3
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    I'd recommend rips shoes, they have a smaller heel and they are actually comfortable enough to walk in, don't need to take em' off when i'm out of the gym, can manage my way home with them...

    Only downsize is the looks, but looks are an issue for females any grown men shouldn't think of how stylish a shoe is when purchasing training shoes

  4. #4
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    How thick are they at the heel? I wear orthotics in my rogue shoes for the same reason. I replace the sole in there to start with which mitigates the increase, but it still raises my heel a few mm. It seems to be fine, but I don't have a comparison point of a reduced heel to judge

  5. #5
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    I squat wearing rogues with orthotics inside. One thing that helps is to strip away the leather that covers the actual orthotic when it comes from the lab. FWIW, I switch to chucks with orthotics for the deadlift.

  6. #6
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    I respectfully disagree with Rip. I am not an authority just someone who has done enough running and worn enough specialty shoes and orthotics to know that in the long term they do not solve the problem which is that your feet and arches are weak. Personally I think they are just another way to make you spend a couple hundred dollars when you could wear a pair of neutral flexible shoes and back off on your intensity for a while. This could be anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. I am specifically talking about running but I think the same is true if you wear them in walking shoes or boots ( I have a little experience with boots). I think it is unwise to wear them with your weightlifting shoes because they will undermind the stability of the hard flat sole of the weightlifting shoe. Rip and others might disagree on that point which case I would concede but I still do not think it would hurt your feet to go without orthotics during your weight training.

    I am NOT saying you should lift, run or walk barefoot or wear those odd looking glove shoes. I am just offering an alternative viewpoint on orthotics. I am simply saying that if you would like to strengthen your body, why not include your feet in the process. Casting off your orthotics every once in a while and stressing the muscles and tissues in your feet can help to do so. I put this idea into practice after doing some research and went from having low arches to having high arches over the course of about 9 months. It sounds subjective I know but I no longer have foot or lower leg pain of any kind when I walk, run, or lift. If it worked for me it should work for most of us. I do not believe I respond to training any differently than anyone else. If you would like to know exactly what I did I would be happy to share.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by EvanJones View Post
    I put this idea into practice after doing some research and went from having low arches to having high arches over the course of about 9 months.
    Please elaborate.
    Last edited by Mark Rippetoe; 06-13-2011 at 07:58 PM.

  8. #8
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    OK, the background is that I was doing a moderate amount of running in 2008 (3 days per week 3 to 5 miles at a time). The pain I had was from shin splints and plantar faciitis. The pain was severe enough to keep me from running for about a week at a time but not to the point of stress fractures. I was wearing shoes that had a lot of cushion, arch support, and motion control for over pronation. This was all from the diagnosis of the guy at the running store near where I live who also told me I had low arches.

    At this point I started doing crossfit. Don't roll your eyes yet, I'm not going there. First, I started wearing a racing flat and stopped running anything further than a mile. Most of the running I was doing was in the cf workouts (quarter mile and half mile intervals). I was also squating and deadlifting on a regular basis (regular for cf). The workouts also included box jumps and cleans. I either wore my racing flats or went barefoot while lifting. I later went to Marine Corps OCS where we did quite a bit of running in shoes and boots plus some rucking. I still ran a sub 20 min. 3 miler. I had no problems with my feet or legs and was told by the trainer there that I had high arches.

    Like I said this all happend over the course of about 9 months. I believe that the combination of interval running in the racing flat and the lifting (squats, deadlifts, cleans) is what made my feet and arches stronger. Since I have continued to lift but cut back on running a lot. Last September I participated in a 200 mile relay race with some friends. I ran a total of 18 miles in racing flats and again no problems. Prior to the relay I ran maybe once a week.

    Thats what I did and I think it helped. I think that if you do Rips program but let your arches support your feet and not the orthotics and give your feet time to get stronger you will be better for it.

    I do wear lifting shoes now with whatever insole is sold with them and I use a belt on my squats. I am not particularly strong but as you can see definitely not against gear.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by David_G View Post
    ...but looks are an issue for females any grown men shouldn't think of how stylish a shoe is when purchasing training shoes
    I don't think I like you.

    You should probably work on that. Life is better for people when I like them.

  10. #10
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    starting strength coach development program
    Quote Originally Posted by EvanJones View Post
    This was all from the diagnosis of the guy at the running store near where I live who also told me I had low arches.
    So, not an actual doctor or person qualified to do anything other then sell you shoes then?

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