Designing for Healthy Feet

After returning from a 6-mile walk around Old City to check out the Design Philadelphia Window Competition, my intention to focus on the displays had been completely diverted by an ache pulsating from my feet. I took on this endeavor wearing a pair of boat shoes, which I will admit, were not the most intelligent choice. My boat shoes have no arch support, no tread, and to make matters worse, I wore them sockless. Other than kicking the battered leather shoes off and sitting down, I did nothing to actually tend to my throbbing body. Lets face it; we regularly put our feet through the wringer and never give them much attention afterward.

The human foot is a complex organization of 33 joints, 26 bones, 20 muscles, and hundreds of ligaments and tendons all with the single goal to support us. Despite this we are constantly abusing our feet; cramming them into high heels, flats, sandals, boots and other pretty but painful contraptions. Even the tennis shoe is a culprit in the physical abuse of our feet. A study done in 2009 found that running in tennis shoes can be 16% more likely to cause damage than walking in high heels (D. Casey Kerrigan et al.). Dr. Daniel Lieberman from Harvard University explained in an article for the Daily Mail, “A lot of foot and knee injuries currently plaguing us are caused by people running with shoes that actually make our feet weak” (Christopher McDougall). Basically, the assets we favor in tennis shoes like supportive linings and foam or gel cushioning actually hinder our feet and can cause long-range damage. It turns out the pain from my 6 mile excursion was not induced by the lack of support in my boat shoes but from the excessive support of my tennis shoes.

To address this issue, Vibram, a rubber sole company has developed a line of athletic shoes called FiveFingers. The shoes look like pair of toe socks that have been reinforced by a rubber sole. The shape allows for the most natural weight transition and movement when exercising. As a result, the shoes encourage stronger and healthier feet. Similarly, the ever-popular Shape Ups by Sketchers and FitFlops have been advertised to strengthen and tone legs. Both styles have reconstructed the sole and lining of the shoes to increase muscle engagement when walking. However, these shoes appear to do the opposite of the FiveFinger style because they encourage an unnatural foot movement to increase strength. I cannot help but question whether the Shape Ups and FitFlops are in fact healthy options for our feet.