The myth of the heavy shoe.

[clutchshooter]

This is actually basically an excerpt of my post from the 'af25 for guards' thread but i thought it warranted an actual discussion. lets keep it ontopic this time.


the weight of a shoe is really just a mental thing/myth. the fact that some people say that a couple extra OUNCES on a shoe will literally cause them to bephysically slower is quite frankly laughable to me. the whole 200 extra pounds through a game thing is crap. are you lifting all 200 pounds at once? no? thenon no one single play should you be slower. as for being more fatigued at the end of a game because of this, dont blame your shoes if you missed that lastsecond shot or got blown by on d, it's a cop out.

the peak of human physical athletic performance has shown to be able to withstand much much more than a heavy shoe. how about the 10 pounds of quarter pounderweight you put on? that would have more effect than a heavy shoe. if you prefer a light feeling shoe as personal preferece, then it's fine but in realitythere is no basketball shoe, and i mean NOT A SINGLE ONE that is heavy enough to truly hinder your game unless you let it.

 

[pull a fredo]

For the most part, I agree with you. I feel the same playing in my Lebron IVs as I do in my Ultraflights or my Flight Lite IIs or whatever.

However, that extra ounce should have some effect. My Mayfly bag reads: "...for every 100g you carry on your feet, you use approximately 1% more energy toperform at the same level." This isn't a straight up lie.

If you're playin' one or two pick-up games, then yeah, weight doesn't mean anything. But if you're playin' longer than that, then theweight of your sneaks should take a toll.

 

[ziostilon]

then why did bron' switch to the soldiers and complain for the IVs, maybe the IVs are an exception

 

[cafinest23]

My AF25's dont affect me game at all those are kinda light to me.

The LBJ4's are kinda heavy but didn't bother me that much

 

[deezyvsop]

While I don't think weight has a huge impact on physical performance, it might make all of the difference mentally.

A lot of people aren't comfortable playing in lows, mids, light shoes, heavy shoes, even in certain brands. Weight can also be a factor, a lot of people(like me) are far more comfortable playing in something they feel is super minimalistic. For instance, if I look at the rotation of shoes I have, I favor thelighter shoes over the heavier ones.

 

[goosebear10]

lebron had pinky toe problems and Im not 100% sure but the foamposite material isnt the most forgiving upper out there.Like I said in the af25 post youreeither fast or you arent..that being said I tend to favor lighter shoes but I dont feel that I drop off in performance when I wear a heavier shoe.Like deezysaid alot of it is mental and comfort level.

 

[acbboyz84]

this thread is stupid. If weight is not an issue, you might as well play in some timb boot.

Weight of a shoes does slow your movements down a bit and they make your shin, calves tire after an hour or more of running especially if you're a guard.

You either don't play ball that hard or just shoot a lot and not running. Btw the AF25 is not even heavy, that probably explain why you think the weight isa myth.

 

[goosebear10]

if youre gonna complain about a 20.7 oz lebron iv versus a 16.4 oz zoom bb or 16.8 oz zoom kobe 2 maybe you might wanna hit the stairs a little more.I canunderstand if the difference was substantial but relatively speaking an extra 4 ounces is nothing.You almost drink that weight hydrating.

 

[clutchshooter]

this thread is stupid. If weight is not an issue, you might as well play in some timb boot.



a timb boot is in no way tailored to be an athletic shoe now is it?

if you think a shoe is making you slower then maybe you need to start taking a look at your own physical flaws and limitations and stop blaming the shoes.

stupid indeed.

 

[jdrone]

the weight of a shoe is really just a mental thing/myth. the fact that some people say that a couple extra OUNCES on a shoe will literally cause them to be physically slower is quite frankly laughable to me.
Wait....how is this a myth?

Heavier basketball shoes typically incorporate a sensory-based regionalized cushioning unit, a shank plate, a complex lacing system, and a multilayered upper.All of this "tech.", "beef" or extra material really can slow down the wearer even if only for a hundredth or tenth of a second. With eachnew footstrike, the foot must judge how to protect itself upon landing and approximate how much force is needed to propel itself into a new step. Air-basedcushioning systems (and most Foam-based systems) incorporate a very soft cushioning interface that upon running or jumping impact creates an inefficientadjustment in the wearer's footstrike. This adjustment creates more "work" for the foot, thus slowing an athlete down by milliseconds on eachparticular movement. In most basketball applications, this doesn't make much of a difference, but generally, "heavier shoes" (or those withsofter or thicker cushioning units) do make an athlete slower--sometimes enough to make a tangible difference.

 

[blackcat23mj]

weight obviously makes a difference over time, but like you guys said, its all mental mostly and partly physical in a long game. However, weight does make adifference, if not then why change to lighter parts in a race car when the car can pack 500+ hp, why should 1 pound make a difference? its physics plain andsimple. However, the weight of the shoes shouldnt be a reason for why your game sucks

 

[255forlife]

i just don't like balling in foamposite based shoes.


to me, it's more the clunkiness than the weight.


i prefer an upper with some give to it.

 

[ldea]

When I wear my 2k4's after wearing my LBJIV's I feel 100x quicker.

 

[deezyvsop]

^ I think that's the general message we've been talking about.

You probably aren't 100x quicker, and everyone knows that. But you feel like you are, and I know exactly what you mean. That feeling can do a lot for yourgame.

 

[mieraviking]

in the end, weight is weight period. so if weight isn't a issue, then why are running shoes so light? its because any weight will cause you to be slower.we were meant to be barefoot, we were made like that. any weight that you put on will cause you to be slower

 

[goosebear10]

this is basketball not running.The range of motion for a basketball shoe is 360 degrees where a running shoe's primary direction is straight ahead.The needfor additional support for lateral movement is minimal.

 

[rfx45]

^^^ That maybe true but I don't think that's the main reason why running shoes are light. just because the support they need is minmal isn't a goodenough reason why a basketball shoe should be heavier. I've played basketball in running shoes before, not much difference with a basketball shoe otherthan the cut.

From experience, weight does play a factor in shoes. I've tried plenty of basketball shoes and when I play in Lebron's (II and IV) compared to myXIV's, my calves and legs feels a bit more tired after a while. It's not really just a mental or psychological effect.

 

[goosebear10]

but not every running shoe is made the same..there are shoes that have more cushioning and others that offer motion control or extra support and obviouslylight weight shoes but relatively speaking all of those shoes feature different weights.again how much harder do you really work with that extra 3-4 ounces ofweight on your feet?I guess we should do an experiment of someone training and playing in some heavy shoes and then switch to a lighter shoe to see if theyreally do get physically faster.I switch shoes weekly for different reviews that all feature different weights.but honestly dont feel like I slow down whenwearing a heavier shoe.Thats strictly speaking from a speed perspective jumping obviously is a different story and there I can accept a heavier shoe hamperingpotential performance.

 

[rfx45]

A heavier shoe doesn't slow me down but I can definitely feel more fatigue when wearing them compared to other shoes. I tried switching up to LBJ IV'sfrom my XIV's and my calves and legs was definitely a lot more tired after 4-5 games of full court basketball. In my XIV's, I don't feel tired inmy calves or legs.

I must admit though, I think your body gets used to the shoes if you use it a lot and as for me, my feet and body got use to wearing some light shoes so when iwear something heavier, maybe my body isn't used to it so it has to work a bit harder to adjust therefore causes more fatigue. Before I went back to theXIV's I wore my LBJ II, I played in it for about 3-4 months and my body got used to it so it wasn't a burden and may have even strenghtened my calvsand legs a bit but once I switched back to the XIV"s, I felt a bit faster and lighter. Again, it might just be the improved traction that's why I feelfaster but it definitely felt lighter. After playing in the XIV's for a month or two, I tried the LBJ II's again and I could tell that it wasdefinitely heavier, i didn't get tired right away but I could feel the little strain it gives in my calves. It also feels real bulky in my feet. That'sjust my experience on the situation.

Maybe your body/feet is so used to testing different shoes and switch up enough that you don't notice any difference because you don't have enough timeto get used to one particular pair of shoe. Having a new shoe every week or every couple of weeks isn't enough time for your feet to adapt to the shoesfeel and a broken in shoe also feels a lot different from a new one. I love new shoes but I hate breaking them in.

 

[ak47celtics]

I disagree. When I play in my Lebron IV's my legs get tired faster, and I can't run fast for as long. At least for me, the weight of the shoe isimportant.

 

[mt3130]

for the lebron 4s, i read that the black/white/red colorway is actually around 29 ounces and nike shaved down the weight on every colorway after those to 21ounces due to consumer complaints about the weight and bulk of the shoe.

 

[mjreborn]

"When I play in my Lebron IV's my legs get tired faster, and I can't run fast for as long. At least for me, theweight of the shoe is important."

I second that. Also, I feel a lot clunkier comparing the Lebron IVs to the XXIIs.

 

[wooballer20]

i think this issue is true...i played a couple tournament games in my af25's then switched to my 2k5s and felt the difference...and after the switch mylegs kinda felt refreshed cause the 25's are kinda heavy

 

[theemcee0]

i think it does make a difference. even if the change is purely mental and you are physically capable of doing the same things with a few extra ounces, the wayyou feel is gonna affect how you move. And you really can feel a difference between a heavy shoe and a lighter shoe. just shake your foot around. in a lightshoe, you can easily change directions, in a heavy shoe it takes more effort to overcome the momentum and change directions. however, i think the changes inweight affect lighter people more than heavier people. i'm pretty heavy set and i can feel the difference off the court, but when i play i don't reallythink about it that much.

 

[goosebear10]

but is it the weight or aspects of the heavy shoe that effect performance.Most heavier basketball shoes place your foot higher because of the emphasis oncushioning rather than a lighter shoe that places your foot lower to the ground.The only heavy/light example I can think of where the heavy shoe keeps yourfoot fairly low to the ground would be the lebron IV's.