OT: Skechers Shape-ups

Babette wrote:I might want to go walking in them. And that's all that's important to me. That they feel comfortable when walking.

Okay, now I'll have to hunt them down. I don't feel comfortable in any shoes lately, and my walking shoes, which cost me over $300, certainly aren't an exception!

Babette wrote: I might want to go walking in them. And that's all that's important to me. That they feel comfortable when walking.

After all these years, it is amazing what I am still learning from the forum.

Okay. I'm dense. What's your point Rooster?

All I meant was that I don't think these will tighten my buns or mystically make me lose 75 pounds while I sleep.
B.

Does "Gillette" ring a bell?

Craig P wrote:
The Vibram Five Fingers are like a set of manufactured calluses for your feet. They do protect them quite well. Naturally if you spend too much time on hot asphalt your feet will get overheated no matter what shoes you wear.

I would seriously consider spending as much time barefoot as possible to exercise your feet. Numerous studies are beginning to show that these high priced athletic shoes do nothing to protect your feet and in fact may cause more problems. A good read is the book "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall.

Craig,

I went to our local outdoor store today and tried on the Vibram Five Fingers KSO Trek. They are not much more material than a thick sock but I was very impressive with how good they felt.

There was a junior high kid beside me trying a pair on (the cheaper model - $85). He said many of his friends are wearing them to school and one friend is running cross country in them.

The store had built a wooden tray, poured concrete in it and set in it some jagged granite rocks from our local mountains. I stood up on the two sharpest rocks and bounced up and down while balancing on one foot at time. Everything felt fine. I think running on pebbles would be comfortable. However, I doubt it would feel well coming down a steep mountain incline at a fast hiking pace.

I always like to buy things at a deep discount. I needed a shoe one size smaller than the one I tried out and they were out of stock. The store told me the demand is much larger than the supply. I doubt these shoes will be discounted anytime soon.

I would like to have a pair of the Treks ($125), but in the meantime, I need to buy a new pair of trail runners and a new pair of low hikers. Maybe first I should buy a pair of the $85 Five Fingers to wear everywhere but on the trail. I feel like my feet, ankles and the whole of my legs are very strong now but maybe shis would take it to the next level.

Overall I am very impressed with the Five Fingers concept. There was an older, heavy lady in the store complaining about feet problems and trying on shoes. She kept watching and listening to me try on the Five Fingers. Before I finished she bought an $85 pair and left the store!

Honestly I think that the Vibram Five Fingers KSO Trek looks ugly.
However the review in Amazon.com is great and positive. This is a must try shoe and I would really like to have one to try

cpapernewbie wrote:Honestly I think that the Vibram Five Fingers KSO Trek looks ugly.
However the review in Amazon.com is great and positive. This is a must try shoe and I would really like to have one to try

Quite ugly in my opinion. Some of the other models look quite sexy. Well I could tell Vibram us guys who go out in the wilderness all by ourselves still want to look sexy!

(No animal jokes please. )

Roster wrote:(No animal jokes please. )

Spoilsport. So tempting....so many choices....itchy fingers....

I see in today's Sports Authority ad a New Balance Women's "Rock and Tone Fitness" on sale at our local stores for U.S. $70 - http://www.sportsauthority.com/product/ ... 29.1204145



Here is another collection of so-called toning shoes. More brands out than I realized. http://www.dsw.com/dsw_shoes/catalog/pr ... 0423c27407

Rock and tone your way to firmer legs and butt in these fitness shoes.

Babette and -SWS,

Care to give us an update on your adventures with your new Skechers?

Thanks,

roster wrote:Babette and -SWS,

Care to give us an update on your adventures with your new Skechers?

Thanks,

Thanks for asking, Rooster! I had been contemplating reopening this thread to report back. But I wasn't sure if anyone was still interested in the Skechers topic.

As a recap, my wife and I both tried the Skechers Shape Ups design. My objective was to simply find a more comfortable shoe. Candidly, I found some of the Shape Ups marketing claims about physical conditioning a bit incredulous---and still do. I can report mixed reviews in our household. My wife has minor knee and hip issues. Somehow the Skechers design manages to slightly aggravate her knee joints. Ironic IMO since Skechers reviews on the Internet indicate that the Shape Ups design is beneficial for a variety of orthopedic issues. We gave my wife's nearly-new Skechers to my niece and sister to try.

In stark contrast with my wife's experience, my Skechers Shape-Ups comfort experience has been truly wonderful. I don't particularly care for the sole's clunky appearance, but the unique sole design is part-and-parcel to the shoe's objectives regarding impact-absorption and forward-roll. I find the comfort to be a vast improvement over all my previous shoes. So I'll gladly take the esthetically unappealing soles. I even bought a second pair. I expect I will continue purchasing this functional shoe design again and again throughout the upcoming years.

I would not recommend the Shape Ups' elevated sole for running or vigorous athletic activity. I think the elevated sole would pose too much risk for ankle injury under those circumstances. However, I do use them for brisk several-mile walks, and I wear them all day long more often then not.

Personally, I don't sleep with shoes on, but if it helps your sleep apnea, and you lose weight, I say go for it! I also like Roster's post. Does anyone remember the wooden sandals Dr. Scholl used to sell that were supposed to firm behinds? They looked so painful.

[quote="profoundapena" Does anyone remember the wooden sandals Dr. Scholl used to sell that were supposed to firm behinds? They looked so painful.[/quote]

I wore those way back when. They were very comfortable but I kept kicking my inner ankles which ended up black and blue every time I wore them. They never did a thing for my butt. I was hoping that when I put weight on I would get a nice big butt and some real thighs but all the weight is stuck at my waist.

Thanks for the report -SWS and I am glad you are having such good results with Skechers. It is amazing to me how those have affected the market in a big way and the competition is rushing to introduce their versions.

In the meantime, I bought two new pairs of trail running shoes and found one that I love (Asics Gel Trail Attack 5). I called a lady at Asics about the model after I had 100 miles on it. After we talked for a while she said, "Oh, you like a minimalist shoe. That model is a minimalist." She then explained that a mimimalist trail runner offers virtually no support and just enough cushioning and rock plate to protect from stone bruises. It is also very lightweight. Your foot sits close to the ground which helps eliminate ankle injuries.

I feel like trail running over very rocky steep ground has built up the muscles in my feet and ankles so much that the only way I would sprain an ankle would be to get my foot wedged in something while I was moving fast.

After 100 miles the Trail Attack 5 still has plenty of grip on the outsole and the light cushioning is still working, but the trails have shredded the toes and other parts of the uppers. I have the option to return the shoes for full credit, but I like them so much, I am considering patching the toes and uppers together with bicycle tube repair patches. (It will look like crap, but I don't get too many people laughing at me when I pass them on the trails. I have only been passed by two guys this year.) Anyone ever used those bicycle tube repair patches on running shoes?

Oh also, I still hope to have a pair of Vibram FiveFingers some day, but I will not use them for the trails. I have talked to some young guys using them and they just cannot make the pace as fast as using running shoes. But I would like to have a pair for the grocery store, mall, etc.

Maybe Babette will report on her Skechers.

I was looking at them sketchers at Swains here in town today and holy cow!!!! Now what old bag on a fixed income can afford to pay over $100.00 for a frickin pair of shoes???? Not this old bag! Sheese I can't afford more than $20.00 for a pair of shoes and that is cheap. shoot I can remember when a pair of tennis shoes costed $2.00 a pair. I wouldn't mind trying a pair of sketchers, but at the price they want for them, I'll never be able to afford them or any of these other kinds of shoe y-all are talking about. I do remember earth shoes tho, I wore them years ago when I was working and before I got married back in 73. I used to have a pair of sandals that have a sole pretty much like the sketchers do and those were called " get there" and I loved them. Never found any more of them. I live in slippers and don't put on a pair of shoes unless I'm going out. Now that our weather is finally getting hot, I can dig out my sandals and crocs. Have a great day, Huggies, Fay