Why Wear Deadlift Slippers?
Deadlift slippers have been around for years but never really changed, but why do we use them? Deadlift slippers are used all over Europe, from France to Italy and in the UK. The reason I prefer a slipper to other “shoes” is they ensure you get as close to the floor as possible. Powerlifting is all about margins and if you can get the support from a shoe that also doesn’t raise you off the floor then this is a no brainer! A7 deadlift slippers for example have a 3mm sole meaning getting close to the floor is ticked off the list. The other dimension of a good deadlift shoe is stability.
Stability is the level of challenge you have to create balance. Therefore the more stability you have in a shoe, the more balance you’ll achieve at lift off and when finishing the movement. However you deadlift, you’ll realise just how important this is. To create this stability your shoe is most likely going to need an adjustable strap. The adjustable strap shouldn’t just be there to create tightness in the foot but to also support the arch of your foot. Remember your foot has 26 bones, 33 joints and hundreds of other muscles, ligaments and tendons and by activating and actively using these by “rooting” the floor can’t go unnoticed. By using an adjustable strap that helps create this arch and help keep your hip, ankle and knee joints inline with each other. By doing this force output is going one way. Meaning complete efficiency. Without this stability you may see internal rotation of the tibia (lower leg bone) and you’ll see that this becomes a position of weakness. If you hear the term “leaking strength” this is what that means.
WHY Deadlift Slippers?
A7 Soul Go slippers feature tick off all these and more:
- Quick-dry stretchable polyester upper
- Grippy rubber outsole
- Adjustable strap
- Removable insole
The Sumo Slipper
We have worked on perfecting this design over the last 2+ years and are proud to finally release it for all your lifts. This Patent Pending design incorporates a diagonal strap that meets at the top of your foot to help keep you grounded with one simple adjustment of the strap. As you tighten the one strap it will pull directly along the side wall and top of your foot evenly and help contain your foot to the shoe with the outward pressure for Sumo style deadlifts and other outward pressure lifts. There really is no other strap system like this on the market and the direct line to the out wall of your foot will help to stop the sliding experienced in most shoes.
What about barefoot deadlifts?
It may definitely be worth training barefoot every once and a while to get even more feedback from your contact with the floor but unfortunately this is not something that we can do in a powerlifting competition, or even some gyms. The Soul Go A7 Slippers can be used in all powerlifting competitions all the way up to international competitions such as IPF world championships. If you are serious about deadlifting and want to try and get more out of your lifts. Deadlift slippers may be for you.
