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myths on shoes
so called "supportive" shoes are actually the most harmful, here's why:
so called "supportive" shoes are actually the most harmful, here's why:
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1st myth: arch support
2nd myth: heel cushioning (air bubbles, gel & other shock absorbers) 3rd myth: shank stiffeners 4th myth: motion control (medial posting) |
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problem of arch support
your arch is your body's natural suspension system, think of it like a 'leaf spring' suspension of a car. When you put support under it, it has no room for displacement (no way of compressing down & springing back up). Your arches actually get stronger with weight on them. The arch is the strongest shape in natural architecture and becomes more structurally stable with more weight pushing down. The only way to collapse an arch is to put pressure up from underneath it; which is what arch support does to us.
Tip: let your arch muscles strengthen by getting rid of your arch support. |
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problem of heel cushioning
shoe company's have come up with more gimmicks on heel cushioning than any other part of the shoe (all gimmicks: nike air bubbles, nike boing shox, asics gel, heel springs, etc.) These cushioning systems raise to heel which throws off your natural alignment. More harmfully, they force you to run & walk on your heels which sends shock to your lower back & knees. Don't fall for the gimmick of having shock abosorbers in your heels. Shoe company's are making us beleive that we need to be walking from and landing on our heels, which any athlete knows is an impossible position to move from.
Tip: wear a flat shoe with little to no cushioning |
 'SelectRide' switches cushioning. lol. |
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problem of shanks
shanks are nothing more than putting a SPLIT in the sole of a shoe, just like the split you would put in a cast for a broken bone. Shanks would make sense if we had broken bones in our feet, but we don't. Shanks isolate the foot from movement, which is not what we want. Shoe company's put in shanks to "stabilize" the rearfoot. The problem is that the natural motion of our feet is not stable, it's rolling. Our feet & ankles naturally roll to the outside through each step. Rolling is healthy for the muscles & tendons of your feet & ankles.
Tip: bend a shoe in half to check to see if there's a shank in it |
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problem of motion control (medial posting)
Motion control is mainly used in running shoes. It's a way shoe compaines came up with to correct overpronation. What they do to the shoe is beef up the inner edge of the shoe with stiffer cushoining and a stiffer shank bridge. The bridge of a runnning shoe is a shank that stiffens the shoe under the arch from twisting and torquing. The stiffer innner edge means the shoe is unbalanced which therefore "controls" your foot to make it move the way the shoe has designed it to move, instead of the way of natural motion.
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