We have all seen the commercials. The sexy women with the great rear ends bounce around as the voice over guy tells you that you too can have a body like this if you would only buy Sketchers Shape-Up shoes. No dieting or gym required...just plunk down your money and wear the shoes in your normal day and presto! Well, not so fast. As I wrote in an earlier blog this nonsense is totally unfounded. Any independent study of the Shape-Up shoes, or rocking type shoes by other copycat companies, proves that these shoes do absolutely nothing to help you burn more calories or have your leg muscles work more. In fact, some recent studies show that there is increased pressure on the ankle and knee as well as the hamstrings and these shoes can actually lead to injury. If that were not bad enough, now Sketchers is in the news for marketing these shoes to 7 year old girls. This disgraceful attempt to make money by playing on the insecurities of pre-teen girls has many parents fed up.
A class action lawsuit is pending against Sketchers for false advertising and misleading the public with false health claims. I for one am happy to see this. Many of my patients ask me about these shoes and when I give my opinion they are disappointed. They are looking for the magic bullet. Like your mother always told you...if it seems to good to be true it is. If you are dealing with foot pain you should see a podiatrist who is trained in the treatment of feet and ankles. If you are looking for a good shoe to exercise in, you should wear a well fit shoe that passes a few simple tests. See my earlier blog on how to pick the right shoes for you. If you are looking to lose weight, exercise and diet are the only way to effectively do that in the long term. Don't believe Joe Montana, Wayne Gretzky or Kim Kardashian. They are paid to lie to you!
Committed to your health,
Dr. Craig Conti
Sarasota Foot Care Center
http://www.sarasotafootcarecenter.com
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2 comments:
I am not paid to say this, Sketchers Shape Up Shoes really did help me out. I have FMS & RA. Could not walk more than 15-20 min without great deal of pain. With these shoes I can now walk 4 miles & 5k walks. The first month I only wore them around my house and I did lose inches off certain areas of my body (with no add'l exercise). I wrote down my measurements the day I came home with these shoes. I do think that you need a proper fitting of these shoes. I had a very knowledgeable saleslady help me at DSW. Had I bought these off the shelf at Kohls I would have never known to get them in one size larger. I am not a fan of Kim K but I am of Brooke Burke. But just because you have 2 hot women advertising a product does not mean they are lying. I believe ladies work out and I do think they are wearing the shoes. I wish Sketchers would send me some free shoes...because my only complain is these shoes (as with many sports shoes) are too darn expensive. I wish I could afford more than one pair every year.
I am very happy to hear that the shoes worked for you. I am not saying that they can not work for anyone. What I am saying is that based on real, controlled studies, with many people, no significant improvement was shown. The claims just don't match the science. Fad diets can work for some people but if you apply them to a large group of people, the results are very limited. Thank you so much for you input. I wish you well. Good luck getting a free pair of shoes!
Dr. Conti
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