Light shoes for faster footwork?

[Lula]

Searched but did not find a thread. I am a somewhat big guy, 186 cm tall and weight 88 kilograms. Trying to get a bit lighter, more muscles in legs and do some more footworks drills to be able to move faster. Have been thinking about how much shoes affect this?
Have pretty well build shoes now that offers good support but are also pretty heavy. Are some mizuno shoes made for another shoes.

What are you experiences? Will it make a difference? What are you using? Lighter shoes much tougher for knees and hips?

Thanks

 

[Tyce]

I have been using very light barefoot shoes from Xero (HFS iirc) but some feet issues from overloading and extra body weight have caused me to get a more supportive shoe. Knees and hips have never been the problem. If anything, the supportive shoes are harder on the knees because their position is more planted, less flexible. So any twisting motion has to be done by the knees.

I would love to switch back but it's not in the cards right now. I would need to be pain free on day to day basis using barefoot shoes for at least a couple of weeks. Right now I can do two days of normal life activities in minimal shoes. Anything excessive still induces pain

 

[MOJOJOJO-74]

I don't have any experience with Mizuno, but it looks like Butterfly has charts for shoes specifically for what you want. Getting lighter shoes can definitely help with your speed since you won't have as much weight on your feet as usual, and you can always wear insoles to help with support if you need to.
If you want to lose weight, gain leg muscle, have healthy lower body, and be faster, then

1. You need to be in a calorie deficit, where you burn more calories than you're consuming, so the fat in your body starts decreasing. They have calculators online that you can put your age, weight and height in to give you estimated calories based on how much weight you want to lose. Make sure you're getting lots of protein since this will help with tissue repair and muscle increase as well as having carbohydrates (helps with energy to get you through workouts) and some sort of fruits&vegetables (they have powders that you can drink the daily recommendations if that's easier for you)
2. Find a lower body program that you can progressively overload so you can start getting more muscle in your legs and increase the tolerance in your knees and hips
3. Do dynamic stretching before you start your practice sessions so your lower body has increased blood flow so you're warmed up to feel better during practice and it reduces increasing, following up with static stretching to increasing flexibility and cycle out some of the lactic acid and hydrogen ion buildup from your body adjusting to your regimen
4. Get an agility ladder to do footwork drills to increase your fast-twitch fibers in your lower body, which helps with explosiveness and speed

 

[Ultravisitor]

Searched but did not find a thread. I am a somewhat big guy, 186 cm tall and weight 88 kilograms. Trying to get a bit lighter, more muscles in legs and do some more footworks drills to be able to move faster. Have been thinking about how much shoes affect this?
Have pretty well build shoes now that offers good support but are also pretty heavy. Are some mizuno shoes made for another shoes.

What are you experiences? Will it make a difference? What are you using? Lighter shoes much tougher for knees and hips?

Thanks

I use barefoot shoes (leguano) and they are much lighter. I feel much more nimble in these than in Mizunos I tried, when I came back to tabletennis. But I use the same shoes outside of the hall too.
To me the bigger factor is strength and endurance of core and leg muscles.

 

[Lula]

Thanks for the answers and advice.
I will try to look at different shoes.
I work as a physiotherapist in the field of obesity so I know this pretty okey, the problem for me and everyone else is to be able to make a change that remain. Have started some antidepressants last six months which also make me much more hungry and is probably a reason why I gone up in weight.

Will try to eat less carbs, and try to get to the gym more often. Also think I need to always try to have some footwork in everything. Even just the warm up strokes I basicalkyleqen myself to stand still.
Could also probably be more on the front of the feet.

I agree that strength training it’s important, really hard to be able to be low in the legs and still move fast.

 

[chinacurious]

I have been using very light barefoot shoes from Xero (HFS iirc) but some feet issues from overloading and extra body weight have caused me to get a more supportive shoe. Knees and hips have never been the problem. If anything, the supportive shoes are harder on the knees because their position is more planted, less flexible. So any twisting motion has to be done by the knees.

I would love to switch back but it's not in the cards right now. I would need to be pain free on day to day basis using barefoot shoes for at least a couple of weeks. Right now I can do two days of normal life activities in minimal shoes. Anything excessive still induces pain

I'm also using Xero HFS but with a bit thicker Freet Ortholite insole.

 

[Tyce]

I'm also using Xero HFS but with a bit thicker Freet Ortholite insole.

Yeah I swapped insoles but it was too little too late at that point. I use Xero shoes outside too and I've been running regularly in similar shoes in the past.
@Lula let your doctor know about the weight issues in combination with antidepressants. It's a common side effect for a lot of them but perhaps something can be done to mitigate things.

 

[Lula]

Appreciate the interest and help regarding my overall health
Yeah i know, especially for this one. Do not want to change, maybe stop them in close future instead. Do not find my weight a problem but have been very evident that i can not play with short pimple forehand as i did 5-10 years ago. I am way to slow. But i have lost some weight, trying to lower the carbs, thinking more about footwork and trying to go to the gym so i think it will get better
Also trying to twiddle a bit with penhold grip. Do not know if this is realistic long term? really enjoy playing short pimple forehand still but need to be much faster and practice a lot more compared to backside. With backside you can basically move pretty bad i feel and still get the ball with somewhat good quality.

I googled the shoes. You guys do not get pain in knees and hips? There is like no sole and cushioning at all? But they do seem fast! Maybe you guys are really light on the feet?

 

[JHB]

I am heavier than you and I play in Mizuno Wave Drive 9s which are the lightest shoes of any kind I have ever owned. But I do play on a proper suspended floor most of the time, not solid concrete with a vinyl or wood covering.

 

[Lula]

I am heavier than you and I play in Mizuno Wave Drive 9s which are the lightest shoes of any kind I have ever owned. But I do play on a proper suspended floor most of the time, not solid concrete with a vinyl or wood covering.

Thanks for your advice. Are you faster in them? small sizes?

 

[Tyce]

I definitely feel faster. Then again, that might just be a feeling.
The most important thing to be fast is just to remember to keep moving and stay light on the feet.

 

[Lula]

I use these https://www.efloorball.net/p/47324/...uNCIM1YHHjDEdVnFR_hTq9tMhs0H16n5n#description
Maybe not as heavy as i think?

 

[Tyce]

I use these https://www.efloorball.net/p/47324/...uNCIM1YHHjDEdVnFR_hTq9tMhs0H16n5n#description
Maybe not as heavy as i think?

I have the same iirc, those are my "heavy" shoes. But they're definitely good enough.
You could always think of it as weighted training, wearing heavier shoes

Jokes aside, I think they're heavy from a barefoot perspective. But for a sturdy, highly supportive shoe they're quite normal weight.

 

[Lula]

I have the same iirc, those are my "heavy" shoes. But they're definitely good enough.
You could always think of it as weighted training, wearing heavier shoes

Jokes aside, I think they're heavy from a barefoot perspective. But for a sturdy, highly supportive shoe they're quite normal weight.

Okey, maybe need to work out more and do more footwork. That is interesting about obesity which you often do not think about. They are generally much stronger in the legs that the common man since they are always doing strenght training with legs since the upper body is so heavy.

 

[thisisit]

lighter shoes or no shoes definitely make you faster. also wide toe box or five fingers give you more stability. but if you aren't already a barefoot tree hugging dirty hippie, you'll mess up your knees if you make an all in switch.

i play in vibram five fingers mostly(with socks because if you don't, you'll have to wash them after every session), sometimes other wide toe box barefoot shoes and sometimes barefoot. but that's what my footwear cabinet was looking like for ~10 years before starting table tennis.

whenever i try table tennis in my winter shoes(average light-ish sports shoes), i'm depressingly slow and stumble a lot.

 

[Tyce]

lighter shoes or no shoes definitely make you faster. also wide toe box or five fingers give you more stability. but if you aren't already a barefoot tree hugging dirty hippie, you'll mess up your knees if you make an all in switch.

That's one way to put it

i play in vibram five fingers mostly(with socks because if you don't, you'll have to wash them after every session), sometimes other wide toe box barefoot shoes and sometimes barefoot. but that's what my footwear cabinet was looking like for ~10 years before starting table tennis.

whenever i try table tennis in my winter shoes(average light-ish sports shoes), i'm depressingly slow and stumble a lot.

For me it took years and years of (passive) transitioning.

As a teen/tween I used to walk in army boots and had very weak ankles. I used pretty average indoor shoes for TT and I remember my knees were always flaring after a long or intensive session. Also I rolled my ankle probably 2-3 times per year.
I started running in my late twenties in "neutral" running shoes. This was really, really hard on knees and ankles but probably mostly on pure grit I developed some resistance over the years. I remember well how my ankles were completely shot after running on the Zandvoort circuit. That same year I sprained my ankle hard again, this time enough to have to use crutches for a couple of weeks.

My breakthrough started when I got low-drop shoes at 32. I clearly remember the transition was grueling but at the same time I built up ankle strength like (literally) never before. I think it took me a full year to become comfortable running in those shoes. After that year, I don't think I have ever rolled or sprained my ankle again. My knees were not an issue, if anything they had it easier with the low-drop shoes than they had it using 10-11mm drop Asics. Most of that was due to not landing hard on my heels anymore, that's just not workable in shoes with little cushioning.

A couple years in I also started using zero drop and/or minimalist footwear outside of sports. I also dabbled in Five Fingers and Merrell Vapor Gloves, even made my own sandals. But in the end I think the sweet spot for me is light cushioning like what I get in the Xeros, at least for daily use, and maybe a little bit more for sports.

 

[thisisit]

That's one way to put it

For me it took years and years of (passive) transitioning.

As a teen/tween I used to walk in army boots and had very weak ankles. I used pretty average indoor shoes for TT and I remember my knees were always flaring after a long or intensive session. Also I rolled my ankle probably 2-3 times per year.
I started running in my late twenties in "neutral" running shoes. This was really, really hard on knees and ankles but probably mostly on pure grit I developed some resistance over the years. I remember well how my ankles were completely shot after running on the Zandvoort circuit. That same year I sprained my ankle hard again, this time enough to have to use crutches for a couple of weeks.

My breakthrough started when I got low-drop shoes at 32. I clearly remember the transition was grueling but at the same time I built up ankle strength like (literally) never before. I think it took me a full year to become comfortable running in those shoes. After that year, I don't think I have ever rolled or sprained my ankle again. My knees were not an issue, if anything they had it easier with the low-drop shoes than they had it using 10-11mm drop Asics. Most of that was due to not landing hard on my heels anymore, that's just not workable in shoes with little cushioning.

A couple years in I also started using zero drop and/or minimalist footwear outside of sports. I also dabbled in Five Fingers and Merrell Vapor Gloves, even made my own sandals. But in the end I think the sweet spot for me is light cushioning like what I get in the Xeros, at least for daily use, and maybe a little bit more for sports.

oh yeah, i totally forgot about rolled/sprained ankles. it's just not a thing if you are a barefoot/minimal footwear person.