What Can Happen to Your Feet If You Wear the Same Shoes for Running and Lifting

Maybe you’re a runner who strength trains to stay injury-free, a lifter who dabbles in sprinting for power, or someone who’s aiming to incorporate both cardio and resistance into your general routine—a.k.a. the original “hybrid athlete.”

Regardless of your goals, if your routine involves both cardio and strength, you might wonder: Do I really need different sneakers for each activity, or can I wear the same shoes for running and lifting?

Apologies to your wallet, but generally speaking, it’s a good idea to have separate shoes for these inherently pretty different activities, John Mercer, PhD, professor in the department of kinesiology and nutrition sciences at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, tells SELF. “If we’re doing some type of work, we’ve got to know: Do we need a hammer? Do we need a screwdriver? What’s the tool that we need?” says Mercer, who researches the biomechanics and physiology of endurance sports. “Picking the right shoe is about picking the right tool.”

But some of the specifics depend on how long and intense your workouts are, as well as what type of weight training you’re doing. For instance, if you’re powerlifting or doing other complex movements with free weights, your shoes matter more than if you’re using weight machines, he says.

Here’s more about when—and why—to consider shoes that are specific to each segment or session, as well as the situations and sneaks that may be better geared to double duty.

Shoes made for a specific activity have features designed to reduce injuries and improve performance.

A quick visit to your local running store can easily leave you feeling overwhelmed by all the options and lingo. But while there are many different categories and models, running shoes are pretty much all generally designed for the same overall goal: to propel your foot forward, Leo Arguelles, PT, DPT, a clinical assistant professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago and spokesperson for the American Physical Therapy Association, tells SELF.

Many models these days have significant cushioning—a thick, but light and bouncy, layer of foam in the midsole. This foam, which creates that platform appearance some brands like Hokas are known for, absorbs the shock from each footstrike and also offers a little springiness to power your next step forward, a quality called energy return, Anh Bui, DPT, CSCS. a physical therapist, running coach, and strength coach at Run Resiliently in Oakland, California, tells SELF.

All that can improve your performance and may even mitigate injury risk, perhaps by spreading out the force of the impact, Robert Conenello, DPM, a sports podiatrist and founder of Orangetown Podiatry in Orangeburg, New York, tells SELF.

In addition, running-shoe bottoms are often shaped like rockers, which guide your foot through each stride. You can see this even before you put them on: If you push on the toe when they’re sitting on the ground, they’ll give a nice little rock back and forth, Dr. Arguelles says.

Shoes made for weightlifting, meanwhile, tend to be flatter and have rigid, firm midsoles and dense, rubbery outsoles (the part that touches the ground). The toebox is wide, so your feet can splay out and reinforcements like straps around your foot provide lateral support. All this makes them heavier and more stable, so you can safely push against the ground or a machine in many different directions, Mercer says.

Some also have elevated heels, which improve the range of motion during activities like back squats. And that leverage can maximize your gains in those exercises: “Weightlifting shoes can actually help you improve how much weight you can push,” Dr. Bui says.

For people like Dr. Bui herself, who primarily lift to support their other activities and overall health versus powerlifting for PRs, weightlifting shoes aren’t strictly necessary. You can also lift barefoot, or in flat, stable sneakers like Vans or the Converse Chuck Taylor All Star that allow you solid contact with the ground.

Some of those special features become bugs when you use them for a purpose other than intended.

Of course, it’s physically possible to wear the same shoes for many types of workouts. When Dr. Bui started running in high school, she wore a pair of Vans, which are known for their low profile and flat bottoms. But even then, there were downsides: She wound up with shin splints and tendon-related problems. Running in non-supportive shoes could also contribute to injuries like stress fractures, Dr. Conenello says.

“If you’re running just a couple blocks down the street, or a mile or so, it’s probably fine,” Dr. Bui says. “But as you start to increase your running mileage, you probably want a little bit more support and cushioning.” Stable sneakers or weightlifting shoes also tend to be heavier and less breathable, which can make for some slower, soggier strides.

On the flip side, the cushy, rocker-bottom shoe that makes your miles feel oh-so-smooth can leave you wobbly and unstable in the weight room. Running shoes with narrow toe boxes that limit the range of motion in your toes can make movements like squats less safe and effective, because you can’t engage your big toe to push off the floor, Dr. Conenello says. And without lateral support, you might be more prone to roll an ankle, especially when you’re doing power or plyometric moves (think skater lunges or box jumps).

This doesn’t matter as much if your strength workout consists primarily of weightlifting machines, or you’re doing upper-body movements that are seated or lying down (think bench press), Dr. Conenello says. But free-weight exercises like squats, deadlifts, bent-over rows, and standing overhead presses require more stability and balance. If you’re wobbly or unsteady during these moves—particularly if you’re moving a lot of weight—you probably won’t be able to go as heavy, you’re at risk of falling, and you also might put undue stress on other parts of your body, such as your back or knees, to stabilize you, he says.

Especially when you’re doing heavy squats or more dynamic movements, like snatches, “you don’t want the shoe to be absorbing shock, and you don’t want it to be soft even, because then the platform that you’re working on is shifting around,” Mercer says. “If you’re trying to push on the ground as hard as you can, not having a material that absorbs that pushing makes sense.”

But what if I don’t have the cash (or desire) to buy different shoes for each workout?

First, consider this: Because of the specificity of the design, wear and tear on your shoes might increase if you use them for a different activity, Dr. Arguelles says. In other words, you might burn through a pricey pair of running kicks sooner if you’re keeping them on to lift, and vice versa.

But if you’re committed to making your shoes multitask, some models will likely fare better than others. Say you’re a runner who’s more concerned with faster times than deadlift PRs, or a devotee of combined workouts like Orangetheory. You might choose lower-profile, less-cushioned running shoes—think Nike Pegasus rather than Hoka Clifton—and use them for all your workouts, Dr. Bui says.

If you’re not running long distances—say, you’re warming up with a 10-minute run/walk or jog before you lift—you can also consider a cross-training shoe like the Reebok Nano X4, the best general gym shoe in our 2024 Sneaker Awards. These tend to provide a combination of cushioning and lateral support that’s a little more middle-of-the-road.

One final option to ponder: Simply sliding off your running shoes and lifting barefoot. Of course, if you’re lifting in a gym, that’s not always possible (or safe). But for those who lift in home gyms or other more private spaces, it can even provide additional benefits.

“You can improve your proprioception—feeling more connected to the ground, more balanced, being able to activate some of those intrinsic, small muscles in the foot,” Dr. Bui says. That not only helps your stability when lifting, it can also translate back into better running performance.

If you have any specific issues with your feet—including previous injuries that might impact your running gait or lifting form—it’s a great idea to get footwear advice from a healthcare professional who’s trained to work with active people and athletes, such as a physical therapist or sports podiatrist, Dr. Arguelles says. They can look at your biomechanics, top to bottom, and recommend shoes that work with your body for the activity you’re embarking on.

While it can be confusing to choose the “right” shoes for each workout, there’s at least one surefire way to know you’ve got the wrong ones, Mercer says. Any sharp pains during your workout—in your feet, but also in your knees, hips, or back—likely point to a problem with your current pair. In that case, it’s a good idea to try another option, preferably one that’s even better suited to your activity of choice (and, if the pain doesn’t go away, to check in with a healthcare professional).