Flexibility and Technique relatd to shoe height
 

My question is will I become dependent on a higher heel weight lifting shoe after using them for a while or will I easily be able to switch back to a lower height? Another way to look at this is, if you are familiar with the book Starting Strength, Rippatoe notes that some lifters that have trouble getting into a deep squat position will cheat by placing small weights under their heels. Well the Do-Win's I have are basically like having small weights under my heels all the time. So am I going to become dependent on these shoes or will I be able to switch back to a lower heel height with no problem.

Background: I got a good deal on some Do-Wins, which are my first weight lifting shoe. I hadn't done any research but come to find out Do-Wins have one of the highest heel heights. I already have good flexibility in my hips and ankles and have relatively short legs and a long torso. So I think I should have bought a shoe with less of a heel lift. Since this is already a sunk cost, I was just going to wear out the Do-Wins before getting some Adidas or something.

At the very least you should add some straight- and bent-knee calf stretching as a regular part of your routine if you want to do your best to make this a non-issue in the future.

I guess in a way you could be come dependent on them, but if you always use them...is that really a dependency or just a matter of fact? It's not like you're going to change lifting shoes every workout.

I would imagine you could keep with them, but like Garrett said, keep ankle flexibility a regular part of your program. I would say that if you switch to another shoe after a fair amount of time with the do-win's, just plan on an adjustment period.

FWIW, I measured the heel of my silver adistar's and subtracted the width of the sole...the difference measured 7/8". So a hair under 1 inch.

That is almost spot on with the Do-Win's. I measured the sole in the front, which was 0.5", and the sole in back, which was 1.5". So the net lift is 1". I'm surprised to find out the Adidas are almost the same at 7/8"

Sadly, I have become dependant on mine. I was at the gym for my metcon, which I do in regular shoes, and it was supposed to involve thrusters, but i couldn't get below parallel with a verticle torso...

I have stretched the **** out of my ankles today, and will continue to do so...most likely forever.

If I still did thrusters (I don't, I find them an odd exercise, actually), I would put them in the context of a workout where I could wear my OL shoes.

The extra ankle ROM afforded by the OL shoes goes a long way in preventing low back "caving" at the bottom of a thruster. Also, the lack of full depth squatting on thrusters puts extra wear and tear on the knees.

Thrusters done with DBs allow for a much more upright torso and are what I would prefer doing.

Ack, since this isn't a discussion about thrusters, I'll shut up now.