The Five Main reasons that Sole Supports are not like other custom orthotics:
They actually change your foot posture.
They combine great comfort with superior control.
They can correct knee, hip and back posture.
They are the only orthotic calibrated to match your weight, foot flexibility and activity level.
They may reduce established deformities with regular use.
The whole world has heard of orthotics: arch supports or custom insoles. They are incredibly common; most orthotics today are based on archaic principles. In the last 12 of years, Dr Edward Glaser has developed a completely new and transformative viewpoint to orthotics by combining his skills as an engineer with his medical training in podiatry. The results are cutting edge technology in the form of Sole Support Orthotics.
So what’s the big deal? Well, ask someone who really suffers from a persistent foot pain or a deformity that keeps rubbing into their shoes. Or ask someone who has just had their third surgery to correct a bad bunion. Or someone who is off work because their plantar fasciitis is so bad they can’t stand or walk for more than 10 minutes at a time. The fact is, many people suffer from foot disorders and are constantly looking, sometimes desperately, for relief.
The most common approach to helping the flat foot often involves taking a mold of the foot by stepping into foam which simply captures all that is wrong about your feet: the fallen arch, the splayed forefoot, etc. Common practice often avoids direct arch contact or simply matches the lack of arch that one naturally has. Combinations of cushions and wedges or generic undersized arch supports are used to try to control the flattening foot. This is why most major studies have shown that typical custom foot orthotics work no better than what you might buy off the shelf at the drug store or supermarket.
In order for the foot to function optimally, the arch needs to be raised to its highest possible level. The foot must wind up inside to raise the arch and stiffen itself. If the arch stays down the body has to propel itself forward with a mushy foot. That is not only tiring because your muscles have to work harder, but it leads to common foot pains and deformities that afflict millions every day: bunions, plantar fasciitis, and metatarsalgia to name a few.
Sole Support orthotics come out of years of research regarding the dynamics of the bones, muscles and ligaments of the feet. The foot is actually a complex machine that depends on all of its 26 bones and even more joints to work in harmony. The foot unwinds to absorb shock as the heel strikes the ground, changes shape to accommodate to varied terrain, then winds back up to be a firm, propulsive lever to advance forward. When it works as designed, the foot is not only pain-free and healthy, but it ensures the well-being of the joints above: including ankles, knees, hips, spine and neck.
From a very common-sense, mechanical point of view, the only way you can effectively control the foot is to apply a force directly up under the arch. The reason we can now do that comfortably is modern plastics. Sole Supports cast your feet in a very specific way in order to capture the corrected position we want the orthotic to impose on your foot. That is why providers are certified; because we are carefully trained to do a specific casting technique. The goal is to create a custom, supportive platform for each foot that is rigid enough to achieve the arch up state, yet flexible enough to allow some small degree of flattening for shock absorption, terrain adaptation and comfort. To do that we have to know how much a person weighs, because bigger people need more support. We also need to know how flexible their foot structure is, because floppier feet need more support. Throw in what kind of activities a person is used to doing and now we have some real custom information to make a device that can control their feet.
No one makes orthotics like we do. It costs more to make them, we have to reject casts that are not done well enough, we only take orders from providers who have had our training and we have to do our work carefully and thoroughly in order for you to be comfortable. But the good news is, once we have bothered to do all that, we have created an orthotic that really works the way it is supposed to. We actually change how a foot functions on the ground. We make people better (our company motto).
There are many routine treatments for foot problems, from anti-inflammatory pills to cortisone injections, to a zillion different pads, cushions, ointments and, of course, surgery. All of these have temporary, pain-relieving effects. But, if you want the chance to permanently solve the problem, you must change the way your feet function on the ground.
In my practice, I work on a person’s feet before taking a mold in order to support the body in its optimal positioning and performance. By beginning with the delicate manipulation of Manual Therapy to restore the optimal structure and function of the feet and follow it with custom made Sole Supports, you have the optimal pairing for success.
Meg Blanchet is certified by Sole Supports in making a totally new concept in orthotics.
