Whether walking, running, hiking or simply standing, wearing proper footwear helps keep your joints and muscles healthy. When buying shoes, most people consider the looks and the price but not other features that help pronation, support and cushioning. While trusted brands offer good features and sizes, every person’s body reacts differently to different exercises and sports. So the confusion about what type of shoes are the best remains.
Difference Between Sports Shoes and Regular Shoes
While many people get confused between the different types of shoes available and their uses, some find it challenging to understand which one is right for them. In this section, we discuss the major differences between sports shoes and regular ones.
What are Regular Shoes?
Regular shoes, also known as casual shoes, come in different shapes, sizes, and designs and are widely used by both men and women. Regular shoes such as sneakers are more popular among the young generation as they add to the style statement with unique looks and colours. Such shoes are highly comfortable and flexible. However, they can also be on the heavier side because of their thick soles that provide sturdiness to the shoes. Therefore, you can style regular shoes on a daily basis and for different occasions.
Benefits of Wearing Regular Shoes
Most regular shoes are made of non-absorbent materials without any cutting-edge technology. But they do provide the primary advantages of shoes, such as the following.
- As they cover the feet, they provide protection from dirt, debris, harmful bacteria, etc. Thus preventing infection, foot issues, and injuries.
- Regular shoes also help prevent slips, falls and trips by providing friction and traction and maintaining balance.
- It offers protection from rain, snow and extreme cold, thus preventing frostbite and circulatory problems.
- The rubber soles used provide better protection from electric shocks.
- Regular shoes can be worn with almost every outfit and look good.
- They are easy to maintain, clean and store.
- They are less expensive and hence suitable for daily wear.
What are Sports Shoes?
Shoes designed especially for physical activities such as running and other sports are called sports shoes. As the name suggests, such shoes are mainly used by athletes and sportspersons. Besides comfort and relaxation, sports shoes provide an easy grip and enhanced pace due to their lightweight materials. A lot of engineering and designing goes into making sports shoes as they then catty the sportsperson’s weight and provide good traction and flexibility to enable quick movements.
Sports shoes are unique for their special sole used in their making, known as the Phylon sole, which is slimmer at the front. Running, high-intensity exercises, jogging, walking, hiking, and different kinds of sports activities can be performed while wearing these shoes.
However, there are different types of shoes available for various sports, such as cricket, basketball, badminton, football, motorsport, etc. Each type comes with unique features and materials that help the wearer play the sport to their maximum potential.
Benefits of Wearing Sports Shoes
- As designed according to different foot types, they offer arch support and correct foot pronation if needed, which helps prevent, alleviate or eliminate several foot problems.
- Supreme cushioning and excellent traction provide extreme comfort and motion control.
- Shock absorption features in sport’s shoes make them great for sports and also maintain overall health by protecting the joints and muscles.
- Moisture-wicking properties and the breathable materials used to make such shoes allow good air circulation. Thus it decreases any discomfort, and you can wear it for longer durations.
- With cutting-edge technologies, it does sports and runs more effortlessly and efficiently.
- Sports shoes help significantly in alleviating pains and preventing several injuries that can happen while physically exerting activities.
Main Differences Between Regular Shoes and Sports shoes
While each sports shoe can have a unique feature, a brief comparison of regular shoes and sports shoes is mentioned below.
| Parameters | Regular Shoes | Sports Shoes |
| Purpose | Serves basic purposes such as providing protection, warmth, and style. | Mainly used in sports and other physical activities to improve performance. |
| Weight | Made with thick materials, therefore heavier in weight. | Made with lightweight materials, therefore, lighter in weight. |
| Sole Type | Uses regular “Rubber soles” | Uses special sole called “Phylon sole”. |
| Comfort | Provides comfort but for short durations. | Provides comfort for longer durations as it is designed for different foot types. |
| Availability | Available in the general market. | Available in speciality stores and from high-end trusted brands. |
| Features | No interesting or unique features. | Designed with several features such as arch support, superior cushion, motion control, etc. |
Conclusion
Improper and ill-fitting footwear can not only hamper your performance but also cause several foot issues, from corns and bunions to shin splints and plantar fasciitis. Now that you know the differences between sports shoes and regular footwear, you can easily choose which one to wear. When you buy sports shoes online, make sure they are of a reputed brand with sneakers and runners designed for style, engineered for performance and built for your lifestyle.
