Adidas Leistung Review – An Elite Weightlifting Shoe
Adidas Leistung Review
Pros
- Highest Heel Height (1 inch)
- BOA lacing system
- Extremely light
- Flexible
Cons
- Heel could be too high for some
- Most expensive on the market
- Only one color scheme
Overview of the Adidas Leistung:
Visually, the Adidas Leistung’s are unique, not only as shoes, but as weightlifting shoes in general. The upper part of the shoe is a distinctive synthetic material coupled with some mesh ventilation spots towards the front of the shoe. Immediately noticeable is the BOA dial lacing system, the same they have on the Adidas Drehkraft’s. These shoes use what’s called ‘BOA technology’, which is essentially shoe laces for babies. Instead of typical laces, the shoes are fitted with a strong fiber cord, and you turn the dial to tighten up the shoes. The resulting benefit (that the BOA company claims) is a lace which will tighten up far more than you could achieve with a strap or traditional laces. Pretty innovative I’d say.
Saying that, you start to wonder how many weightlifting shoes adidas need to make, and the overwhelming choice makes it more confusing than it need be, but these are basically Adipowers (click for review) mixed with the drehkraft’s lacing system.
The quality of the material is superb and the overall design and build is top notch, and you feel like you’re wearing something that costs north of $200. As for design, they come with one universal design in the bright red like the adipowers, if you’re looking for color choice, check out the little cousin of the Leistung, the Adidas Powerlifts 2.0s or 3.0s.
Performance Review:
One of the most interesting aspects of this shoe was the lacing system, and heel height. The TPU (Thermoplastic polyurethane) heel, now a standard on adidas weightlifting shoes, made sure no 
power was lost via compression, but the lacing system seemed to enhance that. Think about it, there’s only so much you can do with traditional laces. But with the BOA system, it felt like you had locked your feet in on a snowboard. There was literally no give, and so perfect for powerlifting movements. I think all shoes should have this system. You can definitely get some serious grip in these shoes, and you can tighten up really firmly, which means there’s no room for slipping and sliding. I actually preferred this shoe for one main reason: I’m lazy and you can take these on and off in a second. Which means when I’m in the gym and want to do box jumps, I don’t have to waste time dealing with straps and laces!
Traditionally, most weight lifting shoes are very inflexible in the toe box (the front of the shoe), which can be more of a hindrance outside anything that’s not squats. However, in our comprehensive Adidas Leistung review, we couldn’t help but be amazed with how it’s built with more front flexibility than most shoes on the market, so this makes it better for dynamic movements such as snatches, cleans and even makes it suitable for crossfit athletes. Not saying these are ideal for boxjumps, but you could actually do them in these, try doing it in powerlifts and you’re on a shortcut to a sprained ankle.
They are also very light, thanks to a nifty distribution plate in the sole (unique to adidas), which allows it to be made of a lighter material. The lacing system keeps you pinned to the floor, there’s no give in the sole and the sides are incredibly durable giving you really decent ankle support.
The shoes patterned exterior also helps provide support for ropes climbs and exercises where grip is needed. Now for the most important bit…
Heel Height:
These shoes have the highest heel height I’ve seen on weightlifting shoes. They have a full One inch heel which is higher than the adipowers (0.75 inches) and the powerlifts and other shoes (0.6 inches). The result is a truly deep squat and should be perfect for those that struggle to hit full depth.
Personally, this was a negative aspect for me, since the heel was just a little too high, and consequently I felt like there was extra stress on my knees as they began to go over my toes too much. For those with tighter lower legs, this would be fine. I couldn’t really work this out, this is an elite level set of shoes – surely these athletes don’t require a one inch heel?
Sizing:
The size runs true to size, but was more narrow than the adipowers. This could be a consideration if you have narrow feet. If you’re specifically looking for wider shoes check out: Nike Romaleos 2 review.
The BOA dial is super convenient, but if you tighten it up too much you have to reset and go again, it doesn’t loosen and tighten up both ways for those small adjustments.
Final Verdict of the Adidas Leistung:
As Adidas’ most premium weightlifting shoes, they did not disappoint. If you’ve got the money I’d get the Adidas Leistung every time.
