Superfeet

[madscot13]

on knott's advice I tried a pair. they are really great. I actually have 2 of them so I can stop switching them out of my shoes so much. She also said to wear them a little bit each day so that I don't aggravate my muscles. actually I tried to bike with them after the first day and my arch inflames. listen to knott!

ps I've only got the Berry's but since they work for me I didn't see the point in anything else.

pps I've tried other insoles even the custom ones from REI and they did not work well.

[kelownagirl]

So are the different colours for different problems? How d you know which ones to wear?

[Becky]

The website has a good explanation of which color for different types of shoes. It has to do with the type of shoes and the amount of shoe volume available. I have green ones in my hiking boots and in my safety-toe workboots, blue in my running shoes, and gray ones in my road shoes. I still need a pair for my mountain shoes (blue, I think).

Superfeet are the best

[trinena]

I have a pair of green ones for my Brooks running shoes. A pair of black ones (stiffer) for my bike shoes. I have berry ones but a PT a while back didn't think they were right for my feet -however I can't recall the specifics she gave-something about where the mt bump was for my foot. I really like my superfeet. I do have to remember to replace them more often. (A podiatrist just recommended permanent orthotics for me but my insurance will only cover if for diabetes -$600-800!). He said I could bring my superfeet in and he could make them more custom-like as an option (I guess I could also buy the softer orthotics). Another insert the podiatrist rec'd is Sole.

Course it's important to walk and break in your superfeet before running in them if they're for running. Break in hasn't mattered as much for the bike shoes for me.
good luck!

[kelownagirl]

I took a look at their website but I still can't figure out which ones are for over pronating and which ones are for underpronating. The colour choices tell you more about the kind fo shoes you wear them with than the specific foot problem you are trying to correct. Or am I missing something here? Thanks!

[KnottedYet]

They are neutral footbeds, which means they don't fix either over-pronation or over-supination. If you pretend they are footprints left in mud, you can imagine the differences. Pretend you are putting your foot into a pre-made footprint made by someone with idealized feet.

Green: a footprint left in deep mud, deep heel cup and prominent arch "bump". Good for unstable feet (like an over pronator) or feet that get tired easily.

Blue: a footprint left in shallower mud. A shallower heelcup and less beefy arch. Good for folks who feel the green is too aggressive.

Berry and Orange: kind of between the blue and green, with the addition of a metatarsal button. Nice for "hot foot" or folks with a dropped met head/collapsed metatarsal arch. Or folks who put a lot of pressure on the balls of their feet (eg: cyclists)

Black and Gray: similar to the blue, but good for lower volume shoes like bike shoes or cowboy boots and some high-heeled shoes. (gray has a build that works well in high heels)

[emily_in_nc]

When buying new trail-running shoes recently (Vasque Blur), the fitter at REI fit me in green Superfeet, and I love them! I adjusted to them instantly, though I did take a couple trail walks in them before I ran in them, but even my first run was pain-free. I needed as much volume in the shoes as possible as I have low-volume and narrow feet, and to get a long enough length in the shoe to avoid black toenail (which I've had before - no fun), I had to go up to a size that is a little loose on me overall.

One thing I learned from this fitter that I'd never known before -- she said that you really need to be fitted for Superfeet or similar inserts rather than simply buying the ones for your shoe size, especially if you are close to being between sizes. She had me try two different sizes, and based on where the arch hit my foot, I actually ended up preferring the larger size, which was for a women's size 8-10 or some such, and my shoes are only a 7.5 (and I normally wear 7's in street shoes). I just cut the toe portion of the insert down to size to fit in the shoe before putting them in. So, I found that interesting and helpful, as I've used inserts before that I felt were hitting my arch too far back (close to my heel), and now I know why!

Emily