It sounds like you may have some issues with your feet that the comfort of these shoes is compensating for. Ideally, I think the best approach would be to identify and correct the problem. If the problem can’t be corrected, then I suppose these shoes are a good alternative since they’re relieving your pain.

I didn’t mean to imply that wearing these shoes will literally damage your feet. One of my arguments against them is that the cushioning and instability is likely to alter walking mechanics and result in less use of the intricate structure of the feet. This reduction in use could potentially lead to a weakening of the muscles and connective tissue in the forefoot. Although this would be undesirable, it doesn’t necessarily mean damage. However, if the arch becomes weak, it can lead to overpronation of the foot while walking and running which can transfer stress to other joints and muscles throughout the body. In extreme situations, such as with a distance runner, the repetition of this stress could cause muscle and joint damage, but this is much less likely to happen from every day walking.

In general, given the questionable claims of Reebok EasyTones or any similar shoe having a notable impact on fitness or appearance, my point and opinion is that even the slightest of risks associated with alterations in walking mechanics is not justified. Perhaps for people like yourself who rely on these shoes for comfort, there is more justification, but I still think it would be preferable to try addressing the cause of the pain rather than just compensating for it.

Since these are your only sneakers, a much more likely cause of damage is from an acute injury. The instability of these shoes are likely to increase the risk of falling or rolling an ankle while exercising or engaging in rigorous activity.

I totally agree that they shouldn’t be worn for rigorous activities. Although this probably qualifies as common sense, the cost of these shoes may cause people to rely on them as their only pair of sneakers and leave no other options.

To say that the foot needs outside help for arch support is suggesting that it’s not capable of doing the job itself. I personally don’t believe this. Arch support not only comes from the connective tissue of the foot, but also from its muscles, (Basmajian et al, 1963) and it has long been known that corrective exercises can help to improve natural arch support and lessen the severity of flat feet. (Bettmann, 1937) In addition, it’s been shown that shoes can limit the range of motion of toe dorsiflexion which limits the foot’s natural ability to support the arch. (Bojsen-Moller et al, 1979)

While some people may indeed need an artificial method of arch support, to say that we all need this is like saying that we all need to walk with crutches. Furthermore, using such a support reduces the required activity of the muscles involved in naturally providing arch support and this can potentially lead to them becoming deconditioned and less effective.

I agree that to prevent pain and injury it’s important to strengthen the stabilizer muscles that surround joints, but this seems to contradict what you say in regard to the feet. In general, I don’t see any reason why the concept of naturally strengthining the function and stability of a joint shouldn’t apply to the feet as well. In my opinion, saying that people with healthy feet who don’t wear shoes will develop flat feet is like saying that people with healthy knees who don’t wear a knee brace will develop knee problems.

In regard to your diet pill analogy, if you eat right and exercise, then you shouldn’t need diet pills. The same goes with Reebok EasyTones and all of the other toning sneakers that are similar to them.

No, I’m not a therapist, nor have I claimed to be, but that doesn’t preclude me from having valid ideas and beliefs.

I can see how shoes that introduce instability can help to correct excessive or insufficient pronation. The instability of these toning shoes would probably exaggerate such problems and make walking more difficult unless an adaptation is made, which in this case would likely be a beneficial one. However, it is other aspects of foot function that I’ve been referring to as being restricted or altered.

My arguments are primarily based on heel strike and use of the forefoot. The structure of the forefoot is well adapted to absorbing landing force, and increased shoe cushioning, which is a common aspect of Reebok, Sketcher, and Avia toning shoes, encourages one to land more on their heels. While the added cushioning may absorb some of the impact force, it’s arguable that landing more towards the forefoot would absorb more of it. This has already been shown with running shoes. (Shorten, 2002 and Lieberman et al, 2010)

Although toning shoes might expose the muscle, connective tissue, and bones of the feet to other forms of desirable stimulus, heel striking will reduce the stimulus that results from the forefoot’s natural ability to gracefully absorb landing impact. Anyone who becomes more inclined to land more on their heels as a result of wearing toning shoes may be more likely to continue this habit while wearing other less cushioned shoes. This can lead to more impact force being transmitted through the rest of the body, and perhaps it can result in a deconditioning of the forefoot’s natural capacity to absorb impact.

Another concern is that the stiffness of a shoe’s sole can restrict the function of the forefoot. Unrestricted dorsiflexion of the metatarsophalangeal joints (the joints joining the toes to the forefoot) is important for natural arch support and efficient propulsion. The sole of a shoe, especially if stiff, has been found to reduce this dorsiflexion by half. (Bojsen-Moller et al, 1979) In contrast to walking barefoot, or even with less restrictive shoes like Vibrams or Nike Frees, one can easily feel the restriction in this dorsiflexion when wearing regular sneakers. Common sense suggests that adding even more cushioning to a shoe’s sole, as is done with toning shoes, would likely increase this restriction. I think this applies even more so to shoes that have a rounded sole like the Sketcher Shape Ups.

I do think you’ve highlighted some legitimate functional benefits to toning shoes, but the question still remains if such benefits are worth the potential disadvantages. Besides, I suspect that most people who buy these shoes are doing so more for the appearance driven desire for muscle toning than the potential to improve excessive or insufficient foot pronation. I think we can agree that the former motive is not very realistic.

In regard to basic exercise that would improve lateral ankle stability, I think this could be accomplished quite well with single leg exercises, especially if done barefoot or with shoes like Vibrams that don’t provide lateral support. This can even be taken a step further with the use of a $20 stability disc. Single leg exercises are a great thing to include in a basic exercise program, and regardless of whether or not a stability disc is used, they’re likely to generate a much greater increase in blood flow than walking.

I do understand that toneups are not designed to participate in all activities that would be stupid for someone to think because of the fact that they do create a slight unstability. But everything we do to our bodies causes issue with our joints. He stand on concrete floors, hike, ride bicycles, run, etc. All of these things effect our joints. The best way though to help your joints is to strength the muscles around them. I should know this because I also joint disorder that cause my joints to be able to move out on their own under stress. I have seen several doctors about this and have figured that doing things that are not recommend help my joints, like running because strengthens my muscles. Before just l listen to one point of view.

They do work but like everything you cannot expect them to make miracles. Everything in life is not simple. If you take a diet pill you still have to work out and eat right. If you workout all the time you still have to eat right or you will just stay the same.

I am a physical therapist. I bought the Reebok Simply Tone ( a cousin to the easy tone) to find out how they impact gait first hand, and be able to advise appropriately when asked by clients and non therapy colleagues.

They provide good toe room-and incidently do a better job of having the toes function for balance and “toe-off” then the naked foot-stimulating the toe proprioception-many people actually skip using the toes actively. The position my ankle is placed in corrects too much anterior pelvic tilt (tired posture), pulls in the abds to support better posture, decreasing back and knee pain, and dysfunction caused by nerve or organ compression.

“Just as likely to alter foot function like any other sneaker.” “It would seem they reduce function…” Not true- predjudice and speculation.

“However, in regard to the benefits of improving musculoskeletal health and preventing injury, this can also be accomplished through basic exercise.” Over simplification-so much so, I would say wrong. In your workout do you have some basic exercise that has some lateral ankle stabilization to prevent a common sprained ankle, what about correcting that patella that rides too laterally for over supinating from your running workouts? And the shoe does not advertise that it will prevent injury nor correct injury or dysfunction.

These shoes do allow proper gait mechanics- and increase the use of the muscles in roughly the amount advertised–better and more efficiently then most people who think they know what they are doing in the gym.

Any piece of equipment can be mishandled by any idiot. This a comfortable walker that provides a good foot bone workout, good plantar and dorsiflexion workout as well as lateral ankle workout. It is actively giving me, as a supinator, a work out to strengthen my ability to put a little more weight through the ball of my big toe. I broke all the middle metatarsals of both feet back when I was 19 when a 70lb bar dropped on my bare footed weight work out, with resulting traumatic arthritis (I am 46 now)- Zero foot pain using these shoes on my feet all day at work. The best foot bone workout I have had since I was last able to roller skate. Also add in the subsequent increase in blood flow in my feet, ankles, calves, thighs, and yes, butt. All good things.

I will recommend them when asked- for the appropriate patients. They are not for someone who is “athletic”, they are not for jogging, bike riding, weight lifting. Just for the average busy Jane, who already incorporates some walking activity in their day or wants to. Its not to add fun or excitement or variation or enhance athletic performance, its just to make the best of walking.

If you feel that your heels are hurting from running, you may want to consider looking at your running technique and trying to land more towards the balls of your feet instead. Doing so allows the intricate structure of the forefoot to gracefully absorb much of the landing impact. Landing on your heel eliminates this possibility and results in much more impact force being transmitted to the rest of the body. Research has shown (Lieberman et al, 2010) that landing on your heels, even in a cushioned shoe, is likely to generate more impact force than landing on your forefoot.

The fact that your foot spreads as you put weight on it is a sign that it’s doing it’s job of absorbing the force of that weight instead of transmitting more of it to the rest of your body. I’m not sure why you interpret this as a need for more support.

I do agree that shoes like the Reebok EasyTones have the potential to active muscles that might not be used as much during ordinary walking. However, in regard to the benefits of improving musculoskeletal health and preventing injury, this can also be accomplished through basic exercise that everyone should be doing anyway, and this is arguably a much more effective way to do so.

For someone who needs more excitement and fun in their exercise routine, it would make much more sense to me for them to add variation to what they’re doing rather than what they’re wearing on their feet. For example, try a bike ride instead of a jog, or try walking up stairs or up a hill instead of walking on flat ground. Doing so will add much more stimulus than simply walking in a shoe with extra cushioning!