What’s up guys I am a new member but a long time reader.

Let me give you a little background on me I am an athletic shoe designer; I currently work for New Balance in Massachusetts. I have been a major boxing fan my whole life and I am now trying to bring it into my work area.

I am currently looking into designing a boxing shoe but I am having a hard time finding problem’s to solve within the footwear. I am also having a hard time finding info here on the net. I have searched the forum here and found the topic on the Jordan footwear and it had good info but I am just looking to see if you guys have any more thoughts.

I know the basic things to keep in mind; lightweight, breathable, low to the ground; but is there any other things I should keep in mind when designing this?

- Like why does a boxing boot come so high up the leg?
- Is there any common foot injuries in boxing?
- What other major problems are there in the footwear?

If you guys could state what footwear you currently wear in the ring and why you wear it and give a pro and a con for it would be a major help.

Or if you have any other ideas on what could be improved on would be awesome also.

I really want a boxers opinion to base my design story around. So give me all the input you want.

Thanks.

if new balance makes a boxing shoe made in the usa/non sweatshop, i'll be the first to buy it.

i've been wearing new balance 991 running shoes for boxing recently because they are very light and i can drive off the canvas with them. plus they're comfy. i move around a lot, and every once in awhile i roll my ankle when i make a move, so that's definitely a concern.

i ordered the ringside instigators yesterday. hopefully they'll do the trick.

id say the most common foot injury or pain is shin pains.

id say the most common foot injury or pain is shin pains.
No it'd be rolling your ankle for sure. Try and make the sole have kind of a springto it so you can bounce and launch easier, that;d be a great improvement on type of shoe out now

No it'd be rolling your ankle for sure. Try and make the sole have kind of a springto it so you can bounce and launch easier, that;d be a great improvement on type of shoe out now
ya you got me your right good point but for flat footed people its not that easy:dance:

What’s up guys I am a new member but a long time reader.

Let me give you a little background on me I am an athletic shoe designer; I currently work for New Balance in Massachusetts. I have been a major boxing fan my whole life and I am now trying to bring it into my work area.

I am currently looking into designing a boxing shoe but I am having a hard time finding problem’s to solve within the footwear. I am also having a hard time finding info here on the net. I have searched the forum here and found the topic on the Jordan footwear and it had good info but I am just looking to see if you guys have any more thoughts.

I know the basic things to keep in mind; lightweight, breathable, low to the ground; but is there any other things I should keep in mind when designing this?

- Like why does a boxing boot come so high up the leg?
- Is there any common foot injuries in boxing?
- What other major problems are there in the footwear?

If you guys could state what footwear you currently wear in the ring and why you wear it and give a pro and a con for it would be a major help.

Or if you have any other ideas on what could be improved on would be awesome also.

I really want a boxers opinion to base my design story around. So give me all the input you want.

Thanks.

like other people said most common is rolling ankle and shin splints.

however shin splints are more from running, where i use a running shoe instead of a thin soled boxing shoe.

what i like to find in a boxing shoe first and foremost is lightweight, i want it to be snug around my foot and feel light, everlast has done a really good job with their lowtops, but they arnt durable enough.

so a durable lightweight snug shoe is probably the most important thing i believe.

also if your shoes arnt made over seas and instead in USA, id defenitly buy them.

Wow thanks for the responses guys. Greatly appreciated.

This is great guys very good information coming here. Its nice to here people support NB.

Shin splints I didn't really expect; that surprises me a little.

So a really tight fit makes great since; but what about the negatives of that.

Do you guys find boxing shoes a pain to put on? Like is it really hard to slip into? I feel wrestling shoes are a real challenge sometimes.

Do most people tape up their feet or anything? Is there anything inside the shoe other then your foot and sock? I am just thinking that adding tape or an ankle brace would add extra thickness to the shoe and I would like to minimize that as best I can.

Any other thoughts?

They're difficult to get on sometimes. My laces often come undone... you ever thought of perhaps velcro strapped ones - i was thinking about this today.

the ankle would have to be the most common, i'd reccomend a material that is really durable, my everlast lowtops are suede i think and theyre already showing wear after a month on the outside. the difficulty of getting them on is a factor that could be improved, and i'd reccomend some technology for the pivot.

dfwtx, what do you mean by the pivot? Better traction under the pivot foot? or better stability whiling pivoting?

Hey what do you guys think of wrestling shoes are they comparable? or are they completley different?

"Hey what do you guys think of wrestling shoes are they comparable? or are they completley different?"


Many shoes are marketed as both wrestling and boxing shoes..... the medial drive sole is exactly the same.

If you could take the adidas Tygun and cross it with a good asics wrestling shoe (like the old gables) you would have a perfect boxing shoe imo.

nedcmk1 I like the idea of combining the 2 sports thats kind of what I was already thinking. I have looked at a lot of wrestling shoes as part of my research.

Another thing I have noticed is that I haven't found any sports stores in my area (Boston) that actually sells boxing shoes. I have found lots of online retailers. Do you guys just order your shoes without trying them on? or is there a particular retailer you go to.

TRYNT's, Mat Hogs, Matflex are all shoes sold as both. The medial drive sole is what links them, and if you buy wrestling shoes you can get the split soles which are nice.

Hard to find retailers. Some martial arts stores will have them, if you go to a general sporting goods store they will only have wrestling shoes.

I guess the one question I am still wondering is does anyone know why boxing shoes are so high? Is there a benefit to having it high or low or is it just a personal reason?

I guess the one question I am still wondering is does anyone know why boxing shoes are so high? Is there a benefit to having it high or low or is it just a personal reason?
Im guessing to protect the ankle from rolling or getting hurt. but in my opinion they both have their advantages and disadvantages

What about westling shoes? How do they compare?

Ignore that last question I wasn't thinking. I already asked that. Sorry guys.

Thanks for all the answers.

i don't know much about boxing, or shoes or anything, but it will probably be worth it to talk to local boxing gyms in Boston. there's one in Allston and one another one down by BU on Comm. Ave.

I read someplace that wrestling shoes are built to drive; boxing shoes are made to pivot. It has something to do with the pattern on the sole. Again, just what I've read.

One thing I have noticed about boxing shoes vs. cross-trainers, is that a flat-soled, non-springy shoe like a boxing shoe, wrestling shoe, or a Chuck Taylor allows you to deliver a harder punch.

At the moment of impact, there should be a kinetic line from the ball of your foot all the way up to the end of the glove if you're throwing correctly. Every action having an equal and opposite reaction, there should be as much force going INTO the floor as into your glove if you're driving off your leg properly. So the less you cushion a boxing shoe, the harder you can plant, and the better a punch lands. I hit much better in Chuck T's than I do in trainers.

The same could be said for a boxing shoe's ability to transfer the shock of receiving a heavy punch into the floor. When you take a punch, you relax, and you let the impact drive through you. (Remember when Shavers hit Tex Cobb with a right in the neck so hard it broke his left ankle?) A cushioned sole dampens that transfer, and that force has to go somewhere. . . . physics says, it would dissipate inside your body.

One of the weird cases in which less padding actually is better for the athlete. But then, to quote Million Dollar Baby, "Everything in boxing is backwards."

Agreed, though; if NB made a boxing shoe I'd buy it. In a heartbeat.

Fraidycat great reply and information. That is something that I never would have thought of but makes excellent since.

I feel like all of the focus is on the forefoot and the heel of the foot; what about the midfoot? Is there anything that should be considered for this; like maybe it isn't locked down enough?

Maybe it moves too much from side to side?

Any thoughts?