Best Pole Shoes For Floorwork
A question was recently posted in my studio's student page asking what is the best type of shoe to do floorwork in, or as we like to call it, to floorwhore in. Here's my contribution to the discussion:
The perfect floorwhore shoe is the shoe that feels perfect for you.
The open sandal type Pleaser gives you more freedom of movement through your foot and ankle, makes pointing your feet easier, and lines look amazing. And they come in a HUGE variety of styles, colours, and patterns.
The ankle boot, open toe or closed, provides a lot of stability around your ankle. This is good if your ankles are weak or you have a tendency to roll on them, or get the wobbles. Being a boot style they can get quite hot to wear, and you will get sweaty in them.
In my experience it takes me longer to destroy an ankle boot compared to a sandal. The straps of the sandal cop a beating and will stretch, or unfortunately pull apart. The foot strap, the one that runs across your toe area, will stretch, some styles more than others, and your toes will slip forward. This burns like a bitch when you do toe drags as the lip of the platform no longer provides protection. I also find the front of my foot will try to slide backwards and out of the toe cover as it becomes looser, leaving the shoe dangling off your foot. My Expression shoes started to do this which was why I ended up wearing socks with them to create thickness for the toe cover to wrap on to.
Expect both the platform, and toe area especially, of ANY shoe you do floor work in to be wrecked. The clacking, banging, and dragging movements, which all look freakin' awesome, will cause wear marks, scratches, and peeling at the contact points of your shoe, either with each other or the floor. This is a great reason to HAVE to buy two pairs - one to train in and one to perform... oh, how we suffer.
My ultimate floor whore shoe though is the full boot, to the knee or to the thigh, dependent upon what is most flattering to your leg shape. I love the look, it screams hotness, is totally sex on legs stuff. BUT... they are a lot heavier, and they are incredibly hot - as in temperature. You do need to wear a sock to absorb the moisture, and you will sweat, sweat, sweat in them... but damn they look fine!
So there you have my non answer as a self proclaimed shoe guru. The number one thing to remember is they are a functional shoe and as such they will be destroyed, they will not stay lovely or pretty, they are the equivalent of your gym shoe and are expected to cop a beating.
Find what works for you, what suits your leg, what suits your floor style and the types of moves you prefer... if it means buying multiple styles of shoes over the coming months, years... well, I don't see anything to complain about in doing that.
