Wardrobe malfunction

As far as exercising in the traditional sense goes, there generally isn’t much equipment involved.  Generally all you need is a shirt, some athletic shorts or pants, socks, and sneakers.  Now, as far as your outfit goes, if you want to look cute while you get your sweat on, feel free.  Go out and get some sweet Lulu’s or matching Nike gear and do your thing, but the only thing that’s really making a difference is your footwear. 

Different sneakers are good for different things. 

RUNNING SHOES: If you’re a runner, why aren’t you running right now?  Get sneakers specific for running.  Go to a store, such as City Sports, or Marathon Sports, with sales associates who know what they’re talking about, and get properly fitted for some running sneakers that are best for you.  A good running sneaker isn’t going to be cheap, it’ll probably cost you between $80 and $120; so be prepared.  There is a big push on barefoot running right now, and on the five-toed shoes like these on the right. Check them out.  They are designed to minimize the impact of your heel strike and allow you to run the way nature intended. 

SHOES FOR LIFTING:  Now running sneakers shouldn’t be your sneaker of choice while you're trying to make big heavy lifts.  For heavy lifting you want a shoe that is as flat as possible.  Olympic lifters use a very flat shoe with a wooden bottom. This helps because as they push through their heels to try to lift something heavy, there is no give in the footwear. It pushes right back to assist with the lift.  If you aren’t trying to qualify for the USA Olympic weightlifting team, Converse All-Star’s are a very good alternative. They have very flat bottoms and work well for this purpose.  Yes, I am talking about Converse All-Star’s, exactly what you picture when I say that is what I’m referring to. You can find them for about $30 at target. 

CROSS-TRAINERS:  For those of you that might move from running to lifting, to jumping, to core work, to juggling hippopotamuses, you're going to want more of a cross training sneaker.  Something fairly light weight, with some stability, and maximum comfort.  For this types of shoe, make sure it has some side-to-side stability as well as comfort in the arch of your foot. You want to be able to do just about anything in them and stay comfortable.  A good cross trainer will be similar in price to a running sneaker, the $80-$120 range. 

So make sure your equipment is appropriate, lace up those kicks, stop reading about working out on the computer, and go work out!!!