What Powerlifing Shoes?

Hi guys,

What kind of shoes do you use during training? I’m looking for a new pair of Oly shoes. Been using a pair of Adidas Oly shoes, not sure about their name. They were around $80.

Do you guys recommend a specific pair? Romaleo’s look great, but are they worth their price? What about Adipowers?

I use Pendlay Do-wins for squatting and benching and Crossfit Lt TR (the Mark Bell shoe) for deads.

I wear Adidas Powerlift 2s for Squat and Bench, and A7 Slippers for Deadlift. Vans Authentic or Converse Fresh for warmup/other stuff.

I got the lifting shoes because I did Oly a few years back and these shoes held up well ever since. To be honest, I woulda just stuck with flats if I never got these. But I really like them for bench

Position USA for squats. Used to wear Adidas Powerlift, but needed a higher heel.
Adidas Havoc (Wrestling shoes) for deadlifts. Can definitely recommend, especially for sumo lifters.

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I use Sabo Goodlifts.

I needed something flat soled, since Oly shoes gave me chronic knee pain while when I started squatting in them. And I wanted something with a very thin sole for deadlifting as well. I prefer to not have too many shoes.

Initially I used Oly shoes for benching but now I just use the Sabos for everything.

I doubt I’ll get another pair of heeled lifters (unless I get back into Oly), but if I do, I’m thinkin of getting a pair of Position, Reebok Legacy, or Old Romaleos.

I might even use my deadlift slippers for everything.

What’s wrong with your Adidas?

I think Romaleos and Adipowers are more or less equal, I heard that Adipowers are a bit narrow and I have wide feet so I went with the Romaleos. Whether or not they are worth their price in questionable, but basically everything is overpriced these days anyway. Most heeled weightlifting shoes made by established brands are going to be pretty similar, if you are concerned about price then shop around and try to find a deal. Sabo makes some lower priced heeled shoes, from what I hear their shoes aren’t the most durable but they will last a couple years and it’s not like you’re going to be walking around in them. My Romaleos are about 4 years old and still in good shape.

Nothing. They’ve held up really well. I don’t think I’ll need to get rid of them anytime within the next 2-3 years, and I got them 3 summers ago.

These are the powerlift 2s however, and the heel isnt that stiff nor is it very high. I usually justify it by thinking it’s the same exact shoes as Layne Norton wore when he got his record.

Oops, just realized you were tlaking to OP, but at the price point I think we have the same shoes.

I have Position USA on order and can’t wait to try them. I’ve used Romaleos and found they work well. Talking about squats; on DL, I still prefer the flat sole of Chuck Taylors.

Romaleos and other high end shoes are better than their mid/low range counterparts but are they worth 100-200 dollars more for that step up? Not really but then again when are a pair of 2 to 3 hundred dollars shoes worth the price?

You got these currently? Or something close?

So pretty much what I said above still applies. Romaleos or Adipowers will be better in every way: a heel with no give at all, better arch support and durability that will have them lasting years or even decades. If you like treating yourself and having the good stuff then you won’t regret upgrading but if you are looking for something truly next level that makes a big difference you’ll be disappointed.

I can personally vouch for the Romaleos 2 (IMO better than the 3s) but any high end shoe will be of similar quality. It’ll come down to sizing, price/delivery options, availability and personal preference which you’ll buy.

Yep, we have the same shoes

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They’re kinda old and I’m bored of them, if you know what I mean. Romaleos might me better for me since I have a (very) wide foot

Sabo Powerlifts for squats and bench. Sabo Deadlift for deadlift(of course)

Carl in Dover