Are Table Tennis Shoes worth it
Table Tennis Equipment
Last updated 7 years ago
Devin Hirsch Asked 7 years ago
Hi Alois,
There is a club I go to, and I noticed that almost everyone there wears table tennis shoes. I would appreciate if you could tell me the difference between TT shoes, and your average everyday running shoes. And are they worth the investment?
P.S. I've been watching your new Ask the Coach shows on pressure, and spin among others. And I've gotta say, it is really good! I really like the format. It has the feel like I'm watching a show on one of the major sports tv channels, and I really get a lot out of it.
Thank you,
Devin
Alois Rosario Answered 7 years ago
Hi Devin,
Thanks for the kind words about the show. We feel like the new format is an improvement as well.
Regarding shoes, they are not essential. The main benefits are that they tend to be lighter which help with movement. They have better grip on the sole for better stopping. They also tend to have a lower heel which means that when you are moving sideways you have less chance of rolling your ankle.
The downside of some of them is their lack of support especially if you are doing a lot of movement on hard floors.
I find the general indoors sports shoes are quite good as long as they have good grip and support.
Thoughts on this question
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Jean Balthazar Posted 7 years ago
Table tennis dedicated shoes are made for table tennis dedicated floors. These special floors are quite grippy and soft (the ball hardly bounces when you drop it). You won't find those floors in most of the tennis halls you will play, since they are only mandatory for high level competitions. For the more common floors (wood, concrete, hard syntheric...), dedicated table tennis shoes are not necessarily the best. For me they lack in the field of shock absorption. Therefore I'd also advise you to look into other indoors sport shoes (badmington or volley-ball).
D K Posted 7 years ago
Though,Jean,I experienced that on the other side, non-table tennis shoes got destroyed quickly when used on table tennis floor.
I am also solving similar problem,because I need shoes that can endure the table tennis floor,wooden floors of various types,rubber floors and even concrete.
Jean Balthazar Posted 7 years ago
If you really have to deal with so different surfaces, it'd probably be cheaper in the end to buy several different shoes than to select just one and destroy it when an incompatible floor shows up. Personally I have a pair of real table tennis shoes (that I don't use anymore), a pair of volley-ball shoes (that I use most of the times) and a pair of tennis shoes (for really hard floors).
D K Posted 7 years ago
Then,comparison:
My current table tennis shoes cost 28 pounds.
It has endured all these surfaces and even a hard dirt for nearly 2 years.
Previously,I kept buying normal hall shoes,which cost about 7-10 pounds.
Though,they have endured only one surface for several weeks.
The record was 16 weeks on wood floors.
In total,I needed to buy about 15 pairs per year.
15x10= 150 or 15x7 = 105 pounds.
Compared to 28
Then I am not sure what is more expensive....
After all,I have found out one interesting thing: the more grip between floor and shoes,the faster will your shoes get destroyed.
So,if you will use one certain table tennis shoes for example on only wooden floor,they will last for long,but you will play on seemingly slidy surface.
On the other hand,if you will use the same shoes on only table tennis floor,you will have a great grip,though,your shoes will be gone in a year.
That is my experience
Jean Balthazar Posted 7 years ago
Grippy soles will wear out quicker, that's sure. Unless someone cannot afford it, I wouldn't recommend using hard soles to save money, because sliding around puts your ankles at risk (maybe other bits too). You also need the grip to be able to push yourself quickly laterally in table tennis.
Anyway, if you found something that suits your usage for cheap, that's great. Which ones are these by the way?
D K Posted 7 years ago
"Which ones are these"-which do you mean,my table tennis shoes?
Put ankles at risk?
Tell me about it.....I have just hours earlier found out that my knee problems are caused my old twisted ankle -_-
Jean Balthazar Posted 7 years ago
Yes, I meant which brand and type. if your shoes are robust, affordable and good for all varieties of surfaces, maybe you'd want to recommend them to other.
D K Posted 7 years ago
Currently,I use Joola Rally shoes
Next,I plan to try Yasaka Jet Impact
Maybe those shoes are not thatslidy when new