Why are my gym shoes not vegan?
From my limited research, and as you probably already know, most shoes aside from the obvious materials are made with glue containing animals. No idea why, we have other alternatives which are easily available. Don’t go throwing out your gym shoes just yet though, they might be accidentally vegan. Drop the brand a message and check or use them until they need changing – zero waste n all.
When I composed this list, I’m considering the materials used in the production of each product, not the code of ethics in the manufacturing of each product, which is another blog for another time, let’s get back to vegan gym shoes.
Reebok X1 Nano vegan gym shoes
Reebok have been making an elite gym training shoe without much competition with the Crossfit Nano for years now. These have long been one of my favourite gym shoes, even pre-vegan, and even though I am not a crossfitter by any means, the Reebok Nano proves most effective for the majority of training.
The Reebok Crossfit Nano vegan gym shoe is best suited for a mix of heavy weight lifting and small amounts of cardio. The vegan gym shoe offers an array of features making it suitable for the Olympic lifts, squats, and some light cardio such as short runs and skipping, which it is most definitely designed for.
The Nano vegan gym shoe has a wide toe allowing proper spread of the foot for maximum stability, I don’t know about you, but my balance is something I lack even without a few beers in the mix, so having a planted foot for my weight training gives me much needed confidence, and one less thing to worry about.
How many of you suffer with poor ankle mobility, or didn’t know that was a thing until just now? Yeah, mine’s shit too, and it completely restricts my squat depth. The Reebok Nano vegan gym shoe offers a 7mm heel to toe drop, allowing some compensation for my shitty ankles which means I can impress all the boys at the gym with my ass to somewhat near grass squat.
In summary the Reebok Nano vegan gym shoe is great for lifting with it’s solid heel and it’s not so bad at the other stuff too, with the front end of the shoe remaining wide and flexible. The vegan gym shoe range has 3 colours and are priced at £120, slightly more than the “normal” range, you know, vegan tax.
Inov-8 vegan gym shoes
Inov8 (pronounced Innovate, clever yeah) advise on their website that if their shoes do not contain suede or leather, they are vegan, whoopie! Simple then really, pick which-ever vegan gym shoes you like and away you go, but while we’re here, let’s take a glance at some shall we?
Inov-8 have a range of gym appropriate shoes which you won’t find in your local JD sports, so you’ll have to pop over to their website to browse and buy. The range consists of “versatility”, “cardio”, “weightlifting” & “HIIT”. The most relevant to this article is the versatility range which consists of weight training appropriate shoes.
F-LITE 260 V2
Catchy name right? Designed by Crossfits very own Scott Panchik they boast the ability to withstand gruelling workouts and rope climbs….like every gym has a rope. Anyhow, similar to the Nano, the 260 V2 comes with a stable heel and flexible mid-foot allowing uses for both weightlifting and some cardio. Albeit, these seem to be better equipped for the latter with a very breathable toe, so if you fancy a jog after your bench press, these are probably better suited for you, as long as you don’t mind how they look, each to their own.
F-LITE 270
A slightly better visually designed 260 with comfort in mind, the 270 is set up for more rope climbs with it’s rope-tec 360 degree rope guard technology – who comes up with this shit? It’s basically a rubber sole which extends to the outer to stop it wearing away so much. Again, a flexible toe for cardio and sturdy heel for your weightlifting needs, the Inov-8 270 vegan gym shoe also has more heel support making it more suitable for your squatting and lifting needs.
Fastlift 360
Elite powerlifter or squatting enthusiast the Fastlift 360 vegan gym shoe is suited for the pro’s or super serious as the reasonably priced Olympic weightlifting shoe. As you’d expect, the Fastlift 360 vegan gym shoe has a wide toe for stability and an 16.5mm heel to toe drop for increased depth to catch that heavy ass weight. This is the best vegan gym shoe for weightlifting as it offers the most heel toe drop and is completely vegan unlike most weightlifting shoes.
Inov-8 offer a range of vegan gym shoes suitable for all sorts of training, the three above are some of my favourites but take a look at their gym range which appears to be all vegan friendly!