With the release of the Reebok Legacy Lifter 2, many lifters are now wondering whether they should upgrade their Reebok Legacy Lifters and how the new design compares to the old.
For those that don’t already own a pair of the original Legacy Lifters, you may be interested to know which of the two weightlifting shoes are the best to go for.
I have been lucky enough to try out both the original Legacy Lifters and the new Legacy Lifter 2s first hand, so in this article I am going to share my thoughts on both, weighing up their individual pros and cons to help you decide which of the two weightlifting shoes are the right choice for your lifting needs.
If you would like a more in-depth review of each weightlifting shoe, you can check them out at the two links below:
Reebok Legacy Lifter vs Legacy Lifter 2 | Looks
I have always been a big fan of the original Legacy Lifters and really appreciate the wide variety of colors they come in and given their popularly in the strength sports community, many others clearly feel the same.
For these reasons, the new Legacy Lifter 2 will need to be something special to knock the originals off of their perch!
I feel simplification has been the name of the game with the new Legacy Lifter 2. There are a lot of parallels with the original Legacy Lifter, however, Reebok has taken a back to basics approach without skimping on quality.
Gone is the double strap system, for example, now replaced with a more traditional single strap (although Reebok still managed to squeeze in a unique feature to it, more on that later).
Interestingly, Reebok has also reverted to their original logo. No more Delta logo on the side of the shoe!
The wide color choice of the original Legacy Lifter has now been vastly reduced with the Legacy Lifter 2. Lifters can choose from a white or black and white variant with a few more colorful options available.
The Legacy Lifter 2 features a much higher ‘egg cup’ heel support, which now rises higher around the heel joint and the Achilles pad runs higher up the back of the foot as a knock-on effect.
Beyond these main differences, both weightlifting shoes are fundamentally the same. As mentioned, it was about simplifying an already proven design without taking away from what made it so successful in the first place!
That said, when it comes to looks alone, I still prefer the original Legacy Lifter over the new design of the Legacy Lifter 2. Color and style options were the main factor with none of the current choices available on the Legacy Lifter 2 particularly catching my attention, whereas the world is your oyster with the original.
Who knows though, perhaps once the Legacy Lifter 2 becomes more established, Reebok will make more options available. But for now, The original Legacy Lifter wins on looks.
1st – Reebok Legacy Lifter
2nd – Reebok Legacy Lifter 2
Reebok Legacy Lifter vs Legacy Lifter 2 | Fit and Feel
Overall, both weightlifting shoes are up there with the best of them when it comes to fit and feel.
It’s worth noting that both are about the heaviest weightlifting shoes on the market right now, with the new Legacy Lifter 2 being the heavier coming in at 685g as compared to the Legacy Lifter’s 590g.
Although both weightlifting shoes are on the heavy side, neither feel particularly heavy on the foot, which speaks volumes for the level of comfort they offer.
I’ve tried a lot of weightlifting shoes and the Legacy Lifter and Legacy Lifter 2 have been two of the best fitting overall for my foot shape. The Legacy Lifter 2 did, however, have a lot of extra space in front of the toe and the toe box was roomier overall.
If your feet are on the flatter side, you should be aware that both the Legacy Lifter and Legacy Lifter 2 have very high arch support. This was more than comfortable as someone with a relatively average arch so for the majority, this should not be an issue.
Getting both weightlifting shoes on and off is about what you would expect from a weightlifting shoe. The original Legacy Lifter being slightly more difficult due to being a tighter fit overall.
Again, I would lean more towards the original Legacy Lifter when it comes to fit and feel. The Legacy Lifter 2 is excellent, but loses some points due to the unnecessarily large toe box and only having one strap, which offers a bit less adjustability and control over the fit.
1st – Reebok Legacy Lifter
2nd – Reebok Legacy Lifter 2
Reebok Legacy Lifter vs Legacy Lifter 2 | Straps & Lacing
One of the biggest changes between the Legacy Lifter and Legacy Lifter 2 is the switch from two straps to one.
In truth, I feel like this was a step backward, as I like the control and flexibility that a double strap affords me.
That said, as single straps go, the Legacy Lifter 2 is perhaps the best in the business.
The strap is a lot wider than is typically seen on other weightlifting shoes and the buckle is a lot bigger and feels much more solid and robust.
A feature I have never seen before is that the strap unfastens at both sides of the shoe, so in effect its neither a single strap nor a double strap but some sort of clever hybrid.
It’s quite a neat feature and allows that little bit extra control over the tightness but I do still prefer two individual straps.
The lacing system on both weightlifting shoes is good but not the best out there I feel.
With the original Legacy Lifter, a lot is going on in that area of the shoe so tightening and loosening the laces is a fiddly affair. The shoe is also so well built that it takes a lot of effort to adjust the lacing.
The Legacy Lifter 2 has one glaring issue with the laces and that is in the final eyelet at the top of the shoe. While some weightlifting shoes do a good job of strengthening their eyelets with inserts or other methods, the final eyelet in the Legacy Lifter 2 is simply a hole punched through the material.
When tightening this up, it just didn’t feel very secure and over time I would guarantee that this would be the first part of the shoe to wear out. If you bear this area in mind though and are careful, the lacing system is much improved over the original Legacy Lifter.
Overall, the pros and cons of both shoes are fairly well balanced in this department. I am going to declare the Legacy Lifter 2 the winner though due to the innovative strap design and in general being a bit more user friendly.
1st – Reebok Legacy Lifter 2
2nd – Reebok Legacy Lifter
Grip/Traction
In the Powerlifting Perfection Grip Test the Legacy Lifter scored 0.61 and the Legacy Lifter 2 scored 0.91.
Naturally, this makes the Legacy Lifter 2 the weightlifting shoe with the most traction of the two.
I want to point out that the original Legacy Lifter has all the grip you will ever need when lifting and this is proven by its popularity within strength sports such as Powerlifting and Olympic Weightlifting.
All this test does is provide a means of direct grip comparison between weightlifting shoes and (unless a score of 0 is achieved) the number alone doesn’t necessarily mean that the grip is bad.
Its good to see that an updated version of a weightlifting shoe has achieved a clear improvement over its predecessor.
1st – Reebok Legacy Lifter 2
2nd – Reebok Legacy Lifter
Reebok Legacy Lifter vs Legacy Lifter 2 | Performance
The Squat
Both weightlifting shoes are an excellent choice for squatting, in fact, there are very few weightlifting shoes that come close to Reebok’s two Legacy Lifters when it comes to out and out performance.
One of the key features of both the Legacy Lifter and Legacy Lifter 2 that make them ideal for squats is the ‘egg cup’ heel design. This design applies the TPU material up and around the lifter’s heel and provides stability to the joint whilst also flaring out at the base, providing an excellent platform to push from.
The Legacy Lifter 2’s updated egg cup is superior to the original Legacy Lifter as it rises higher around the heel joint providing more security and stability than its predecessor.
The base of the heel cup is about equal on both weightlifting shoes, however.
Regardless of the nuances of both, this design is one of my favorites when it comes to the walk out. for me, this is one of the riskiest areas and the last thing anyone wants here is to lose their balance.
The flared base makes this close to impossible, once your foot hits the floor nothing is going to unbalance you.
The raised heel support of the Legacy Lifter 2 comes into its own during the squat itself. If you’re squatting with good technique, you’re probably torquing through your feet, screwing them into the floor for that extra bit of tightness.
The raised support provides great resistance to this lateral torquing that gives you that extra feeling of strength and tightness as you squat, which I love.
At the front of the foot, the extra space in the toe box of the Legacy Lifter 2 is both good and bad.
I prefer to spread my toes when I squat, so the extra room this affords me is advantageous of course. however, with all that room and by only having a single strap, my forefoot does feel a bit unsupported as compared to the original Legacy Lifter where this area is a lot more locked in, whilst still providing enough room for toe splay.
Both weightlifting shoes have the standard TPU midsole and the effective heel height is about equal at 0.75″ so nothing really to separate them here.
Overall, you can’t go wrong with either of these weightlifting shoes when it comes to squatting. The heel of the Legacy Lifter 2 is an improvement, however I do prefer the extra tightness I get in the mid to front of the original Legacy Lifter.
Given that the heel design of the Legacy Lifter 2 is only a small improvement, and the tightness of the Legacy Lifter is more important to me, I would rate the original as the better weightlifting shoe for squats.
1st – Reebok Legacy Lifter
2nd – Reebok Legacy Lifter 2
The Olympic Lifts
Like with squats, Reebok knows how to make weightlifting shoes that suit the two Olympic Lifts well.
much of the pros and cons of each weightlifting shoe that I mentioned in the squats carries over to the clean and jerk and snatch, with a few extra points worth discussing that I look for in the Olympic lifts.
With the more dynamic movements that these lifts bring, heel slip becomes a more prominent issue that I test for in the clean and jerk especially, but also the snatch.
The original Legacy Lifter has an outstanding design feature that pretty much removes the possibility of heel slip. This feature is an elasticated band that runs around the back of the shoe, this band rides just over the top of the heel bone (or calcaneus if we want to give it its proper name) and prevents it from lifting out of the shoe.
This has always been one of my favorite design features of the Legacy Lifter, and I’m glad to see it carried over into the Legacy Lifter 2.
In the Legacy Lifter 2 however, it rides a little higher and looks to be a little tighter too. It’s subtle but in theory, this should do a better job of preventing heel slip and locking your foot in more.
As both shoes do this so well, it was hard to tell if there was actually a performance difference in the lifts but the Legacy Lifter 2 certainly felt more locked in here.
One small gripe I have with the original Legacy Lifter which is most noticeable during the split jerk is that when my toes are bent, the material of the toe box folds over and digs into my foot.
It’s not super annoying, but its enough to throw me sometimes.
Thankfully, the Legacy Lifter 2 doesn’t do this, however as the front of the shoe is a lot more open and spacious, it feels a lot less stable when my leg is extended behind me in that split position.
It’s hard to call a winner as both shoes are very very similar. In the end, I feel like the Legacy Lifter 2 just edges it.
1st – Reebok Legacy Lifter 2
2nd – Reebok Legacy Lifter
Reebok Legacy Lifter vs Legacy Lifter 2 | Price
Given that the Legacy Lifter 2 is the newer shoe, it is a bit more expensive overall.
That said, the price of the original Legacy Lifter varies quite a lot depending on retailer and color variant. They’re also becoming a lot harder to find brand new and given their popularity, expect the price to continue to either stay high or even increase as their rarity may spark more demand!
If you’re looking to save as much money as you can on weightlifting shoes and you’re set on the Legacy Lifter series, then you’re more likely to get the originals cheaper.
From my research, I have found that although more expensive in most cases, the Legacy Lifter 2’s price tag is more stable across the board.
For that reason alone, the Legacy Lifter 2 is my choice based on price.
1st – Reebok Legacy Lifter 2
2nd – Reebok Legacy Lifter
You can check out the latest Amazon prices of both shoes in the links below. Note though that if you are set on a pair of the original Legacy Lifters then I would move fast, as they’re either going to get more expensive or become impossible to find as time goes on!
This is already evidenced when you visit retailers such as Rogue Fitness, where there are very few sizes still available for the original!
Final Thoughts
Whether it be the original Legacy Lifter or the new Legacy Lifter 2, Reebok has proven themselves to be one of the top weightlifting shoe manufacturers around.
I would highly recommend either shoe to anyone looking for a pair of weightlifting shoes as they nail pretty much every department from fit to performance alike.
I have to pick a winner though and I think the Legacy Lifter 2 just about edges it overall, but believe me, this was a very close call! in fact, in all the categories that I compared both shoes, neither was an absolute standout, with only minor details separating them.
