Knee problems, foot fatigue, black toes? Superfeet's Green replacement footbed could be the answer to your problems.
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Superfeet Synergiser
Green
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Price:
£32.00
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Weight: 96 grammes
(men's43)
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Features:Natural
shock absorption system, rear and mid-foot control points,
patented support bridge, friction-reducing top cover,
polyethylene closed-cell foam construction, trim to fit (see
Superfeet dealers)
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Improve biomechanics for many people.
Those with serious pronation or other problems may need
custom orthotics.
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What are they for?
In an ideal world, every time you took a step, all the joints in
your knees would line up perfectly, in particular your knee would be
directly above your ankle and if you drew a straight line up your
calf or shin, the two would line up.
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Synergy Green - rear foot uses
moulded
plastic section to stabilise heel and forefoot
and to prevent the arch from collapsing
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Apparently back in the days before we wore shoes, this all happened
naturally, but being humans, we've screwed things up and now around
80 per-cent of the population over-pronate to some extent. That means
that on every step, the arch of your foot collapses slightly, and
your ankle tends to roll outwards, this, in turn, means your knees
are out of line which can cause all sorts of problems from aches and
twinges on long walks to serious long term joint damage.
Superfeet are a corrective footbed, which replace the standard
insoles that came with your boots or shoes. Produced by a company
with a background in medical orthotics - the things used by
podiatrists to correct serious misalignments - they're a combination
of dense foam and a rear hard plastic section that cradles the heel
and incorporates a pronounced arch support.
There's a lot more to it than that, the whole thing is
computer-designed for optimum performance, but from the consumer's
point of view, Superfeet claim that the footbed is designed to
control and limit pronation while supporting the foot and, despite
the hard feel of the rear foot section, aid natural shock absorption
by cupping the fat pad that lies under the heel.
The end result, they say, is a better aligned, more stable foot
that reduces stress on muscles and joints, gives better balance and
control and, over the course of a long walk, will reduce overall
muscle fatigue and improve endurance.
Sceptical, moi?
You could be forgiven for being a bit dubious about these claims,
we were pretty sceptical when we started using them around 12 months
ago, particularly as we'd never had any significant leg or knee
problems, but after pretty well constant use for walking and running,
we're converted.
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Deeply cupped heel claims
to cup natural fat pad and optimise
natural shock absorption
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The Synergiser Green is quite bulky - it has 60 per-cent more foam
that Superfeet's other footbeds - but that makes it ideal for high
volume walking boots. At first it felt a bit odd, particularly the
supporting section under the arch that stops it collapsing and
spreading under footstrike - and they are firm compared to the soft,
formless foam footbeds that come as standard.
You get used to the feel pretty quickly though, or at least we
did. Wearing Superfeet is a bit like getting a sharper picture on a
TV screen. You don't really notice that the original is fuzzy till
you go back to it and we found much the same effect when we swapped
back to 'normal' OE insoles.
The Greens were significantly more stable underfoot and made the
whole boot feel more solid and supportive and, in some cases, by
filling up excess volume, improved the fit as well. It's hard to be
sure about fatigue reduction, but they were certainly comfortable
over long days and a minor knee twinge that appeared occasionally
with heavy loads in the past, hasn't reappeared since we started
using them.
As a bit of a clincher, the product was also recommended to us by
sports podiatrist Andrew Stanley at the Rebound
Clinic in Settle when we saw him independently for a gait
analysis. Stanley reckons that the product is ideal for those with
mild over-pronation traits.
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Verdict: It's hard togeneralise
about the effects of Superfeet because everyone differs,
however despite having no serious bio-mechanical lower limb
problems, we've been converted and now use the footbeds both
in walking and running footwear and - in lower volume form -
for casual shoes as well. We've found them comfortable,
supportive and stable and they've also banished an
occasional left knee twinge. The biggest difference we
notice is in going back to standard issue footbeds. Let's
just say that we've not going to.
That's only half the story though. If you
do have problems with knee, or hip pain, or your feet expand
significantly on foot strike, maybe pushing your toes
against the end of your boot, the Synergy Green could help
to relieve those symptoms and have a significant impact in
making your walking or running more comfortable. Even if
they don't work for you they won't do you any damage. We
know of several people who've found the footbeds have sorted
out ongoing foot or knee discomfort.
If you have more significant
bio-mechanical problems then it may be that you need
professionally made orthotics prescribed after assessment by
a podiatrist or possibly Superfeet's own custom fit
footbeds.
The bottom line is that we put on a lot
of mileage either testing, training or just for fun and we
wouldn't be without these now.
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Performance
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Value
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Pushed for time:
Superfeet are replacement footbeds that claim to improve
support and stability and to work against the overpronation
that approximately 80 per-cent of us are prone to which can
cause leg aches and pains. Inuse we've found them
comfortable and stable over long days in the hills and they
also seem to have banished a minor knee twinge that surfaced
occasionally with heavy loads. They're not clinically
corrective and if you have serious biomechanical problems
you should consult a sports podiatrist, but they are
significantly more supportive than flacid standard footbeds
and we know of several people who've found them to sort out
longstanding leg pain. Bottom line: after a year's use we
know if they're not in our boots and we wouldn't be without
them.
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Know more or want to?
If you'd like to add your own experiences of this product check
out our user review system and post your opinions to the world. If
you have questions you can mail
us direct, ask
Richard Gear or try a posting to our gear
forum.
