Nike Romaleos 2 Review

Nike Romaleos 2 Review

WODCafe.com - CrossFit, Olympic Lifting and Fitness news and reviews

WODCafe.com has a look at the Romaleos 2 Weightlifting shoe - and is impressed with what they find.

Recently I was lucky enough to snap up a set of Nike Romaleos 2 weightlifting shoes. Id been after a set for a while and in Australia, its near impossible to get your hands on any sort of weight lifting shoes to trial. I wear a Size 11 Reebok Nano 2, and size 11 in just about everything else (except my Asics Running Shoes which are a 12) but given that weight lifting shoes need to be a tight fit I was hesitant to drop 200 bucks on a pair from overseas to only find out that they were too tight or too small. The interweb is inundated with review of people saying that they got half a size down and were happy - this made me a little nervous. Turned out that the size 11 was spot on.

So what do I think of them? - they are awesome! IMHO the Reebok Nano 2 is a pretty damn stable shoe and miles ahead of a typical sneaker or running shoe when it comes to lifting.  as you would expect, the Romaleos 2 is on another planet though. During lifting movements like cleans, squats, jerks etc its like being planted to the floor. 

Many people report these shoes as being overly heavy but I cant really say I've found that. They are extremely stiff, especially in the toe section (which is what you would expect) when compared to the Reebok Crossfit Lifters, and perhaps a little heavier but I cant say that i could be any happier than I am with them.

I have heard anecdotal evidence of people saying that with the Crossfit Lifters, there can be a tendency for the heel to come out of the back of the shoe, but I haven't seen this happen in the Box where I train (Crossfit Norwest). Some attribute this to the size of the heel section in the Reeboks being smaller but not being a shoe expert, nor owning a pair of  I cant really comment.

One thing that the Romaleos 2 does have going for it is flash - people notice these shoes. Being the more shy / retiring type I tend to like blending into the background and being somewhat if a grey man but i think just about everyone in The Box noticed these shoes and commented on them. 

For any negatives, well I wouldn't want to be doing double-unders or burpees or similar movements in these shoes. Some people report that they can achieve this in the Reebok Lifters but there's no way id attempt it in these shoes. To be fair its not their purpose and they were never designed, manufactured or even purchased by myself with that in mind. They are a pure lifting shoe and function brilliantly at doing so.

For someone looking for weight lifting shoes, I'd strongly recommend that they give these a consideration.

For me, its just a pity that you cannot get your hands on these shoes to try in store anywhere in Australia. Maybe I have big feet but everyone in my box seems to have size 10.5 and down. Id tried the Reebok Lifters in 10.5 and to be honest it was like trying to squeeze into my 3 year olds shoes - it just wasn't going to happen. This only added to my shoe anxiety. 

So all in all I love these shoes, id rate them a 4.5 out of 5. They are seriously worth your consideration for a pair of lifting shoes.

check out this review on youtube for more info on the Nike Romaleos 2 as compared to the other main contender, the Adidas Adipower: