Based on my experience with this product during past 18 months, I recommend this product to everybody, including my colleagues at work. This is a great product and makes my shoes and boots much more comfortable. It's really easy to use, and you WILL feel the difference right away.
I'm in the Army and I run about 15~20 miles a week. My normal run is minimum of 3 miles and goes up to 10 miles. I run different routes everyday of the week and some are on paved streets and some are on dirt trails. My running shoes are Asics GT-2090 and 2100. I have normal arches and never had a foot problem until about 4 years ago when I first had plantar fasciitis and pain at the bottom of my heel. At that time, I had to stop running for 3 ~ 4 months and get a custom made footbed/sole for my combat boots from a doctor. But I hesitated running longer distance since then, until I found this product early 2004. Before that, I've tried probably at least 10 different types from Dr. Scholes products to gel pads, etc.
This product forms to the shape of your feet. So, I use this exclusively, for my combat boots, my running shoes, and my hiking boots. Earlier this year, I consulted Army podiatrist and she basically told me that this is probably the best one I can use short of getting more custom made soles from the hospital. But compared to the custom made soles I had, I find this product more comfortable. It provides a very good support.
This is really easy to use. You simply have to heat it up in an oven to make it malleable, take it out and slip it in your shoes and stand on it with your weight evenly distributed for a couple of minutes. It's much faster than trying to go see a podiatrist and waiting and getting custom made soles.
Bottom line is that even though this costs about half as much as my running shoes, this is well worth it. Definitely recommended.
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I am a physician during the day and an avid basketball player at night. I never use the stock insoles that come with my nike basketball shoes. They just won't cut it. The Sole inserts are the best non-prescription orthotic grade insoles your can buy over the counter (internet). These will mold to your feet after heating them in the oven for a few minutes. The arch supports and padding are fantastic. They add to your balance and help to align your back and prevent foot injuries. I have at least 10 pair of these and I love 'em. They are the best.
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These soles did not work for me. They put the support in the wrong place. I followed the directions exactly and gave them every chance including walking in them a week and then backpacking with them for two days and 12 miles before changing back to the insoles that came with my boots. Here's the story.
I have always had a problem finding shoes with sufficient arch support (and toe box room). Recently I've started wearing Keen hiking shoes and they come very close to solving my shoe fit problems completely. The low tops are so comfortable that I now use them for everyday wear. However, their mid-rise hiking shoes felt too pronated. I was advised by the salesman (at REI) to try the Sole Softec insoles, so I did. I wear a 9 1/2 or a 10 depending on the shoe so I bought the men's 9 1/2 to 10 size insole and followed the instructions for heating and forming them in my boots exactly. Here's what I discovered.
I first trimmed the soles so that they fit in my shoes. I did this using the Keen insoles as a guide. That worked well. I put the soles into the boots before heating them to see how they felt I wanted to get a feel for how the heating and forming process changed the soles. The support hit me too far behind the arch on the inside of the heel. That was uncomfortable. I heated them according to the instructions, put them into my boots and stood in them for about five minutes. Nothing changed. At least I could not feel a change. So I wore them for two days to let my foot adjust. That didn't help, so I tried the heating process again. Again no detectable change or improvement. Nonetheless, I wore them for 3 more days with no improvement in comfort and again tried the heating process. The support was simply in the wrong place. I flew to Seattle and wore them walking around Seattle for a couple of days. I then went to Glacier National Park and wore them while carrying a pack on the Highline and Loop trail (fantastic hiking). The insoles retained the original problem the support was too far back on my foot it was not under my arch where I needed it it was under the inside of my heel. So I switched back to the Keen insoles and then hiked from Lake McDonald to Sperry Glacier and then out over Gunsight Pass, about 20 miles of rugged and spectacular terrain. My feet felt much better and the Softec soles won't be going back into my boots.
Obviously, they weren't so bad I couldn't walk in them, but I gave them more than enough chance to work and they made my feet hurt throughout the process due to the misplaced distribution of the support. I had hoped that the heat forming process would form the support to my foot. It did not and, in fact, I could not detect any customizing of the fit.
You can check my story for yourself. Just look at the heel in the Sole Softec insoles. You can see that the inside of the heel well right behind the arch is too high. It's not a rounded heel well. There is a visible bump where the inside/forward part of you heel will be and that won't come out as the result of their heat forming process.
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I bought these at a local retailer because they had nice stiff arch supports. I have pretty bad Plantar Fascitis and have to have a strong arch support. Unfortunately, the arches in these are too close to the heel for me, even after heating and shaping them per the directions. They pressed into the front part of my heel where I have the most pain from the PF and made it even worse. After wearing these all day, I was barely able to walk because of so much pain. I am sure these will work well for most people, and they seem sturdy and very well made, but they do not work at all for me. I would recommend the spenco orthodics over these.Spenco Arch-Orthotic Full Length Support for Athletic Shoes MenS 6-7/ WomenS 7-8, 1 Pr
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I have been living with horrible plantar fasciitis for over a year now. I tried just about every insole I could get my hands on with no results. Being an Infantryman in the Army I come across a lot of gimmicks and plenty of people looking to take our money. One day I went into the clothing and sales on Fort Bliss and I saw a rack of these insoles with a clerk doing a bit of a demo. I read the directions and figured even I can't mess this up. A few minutes of trimming and a few minutes in the oven and in the boots they went. I have been pain free every day since. As I look back at all of the money I wasted on insoles, night splints and all of the time spent suffering with horrible pain, I honestly thought I would suffer for the rest of my life. Thank you so much for making a quality product that honestly saved my career and gave me life back.
