Think of the most comfortable footwear you've ever worn. Are you picturing slippers? Highly cushioned walking shoes? A pair of slides or flip-flops?
Now, imagine playing a competitive game of pickleball wearing those shoes. You've just rolled your ankle, ruined your shoes, and lost the game.
Performance requires a combination of stability, durability, and response from your shoes. If you pick the widest shoes you can find to play pickleball in. Sure, you'll have lots of room in the toe box. But every time you step to the side, your foot will slide to the edge of the shoe and then you will get traction and push off the step. Wearing a wider pair of shoes to play pickleball in is like running a race in the sand instead of the road. You are wasting energy with every single step, and you're probably going to give yourself blisters. Imagine skiing or rock climbing in a wide-fitting shoe.
Performance activities require performance shoes.
If playing pickleball for you is a comfort activity, go ahead and play in your slippers, or another shoe that is marketed specifically as having extra space in the toe box. If you don't want to lose efficiency on the court, if pickleball for you is a performance activity, you'll need proper equipment. At Montis, we've designed a shoe that prioritizes performance first. Our partial-elastic sock top upper construction is perfect for the performance movements of pickleball. But guess what? It's comfortable too. You might be nervous at first since you've been wearing walking shoes for the elderly to play pickleball in, but don't worry, we know you'll come around. Your shoes should be touching your feet the whole time you have them on. Giving your forefoot a nice little hug - like yoga pants for your feet.