Let’s take a few recent examples of shoes that seem to be uniquely different and somehow “better for us.” I’m talking about shoes that make claims about being a superior shoe to the average shoe while somehow making our lives and body better as a result of using them. Some very recent examples: Sketchers Shape Ups, Vibram Five Finger Shoes, and Reeboks ZigTech’s.

In case you missed the marketing campaigns of each of these shoes I’ll do a little background for you.

Skechers Shape Ups

Skechers Shape Ups promised the consumer that they would “tone and shape up your legs and rear end.” The idea was that if you wore these rocker bottomed shoes-the groupings of muscles in your legs and derrière-would get used differently-thus toning and improving while you simply wore them.

Vibram Five Fingered Shoes

Vibram Five Fingered Shoes market themselves as the most natural fit to our foot possible. The concept here is that we don’t need shoes and that the closest thing to perfect-is our foot. This plays on a more minimal approach to shoe gear pulling on the heartstrings of the consumer to go with a more “natural” type of shoe gear.

Reebok ZigTech

Reebok ZigTech’s approach is with the concept that a zigzag pattern to the bottom of the soul would create a better return of energy to the person using the concenergy return from the shoe to increase the efficiency of the user during exercise.

Over the next few weeks I will be examining the claim of the manufacturer or the reputation of the shoe and evaluating it. I welcome the questions of anyone about other shoes which might seem unique or interesting for which people would like to more closely examine or discuss the reputation. Hit me with those questions!

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Dr. P. Roman Burk
Providing experienced private practice podiatry services in the Caldwell and Meridian, ID area since 2007.