Advantages of Using Heel Cups
Why would you want to consider heel cups for your shoes? Actually- there are several reasons to.
1. Heel cups offer pain relief to sore and sensitive heels.
2. Heel cups reduce foot fatigue.
3. Heel cups keep your heel properly aligned when you walk, thus preventing the development of other foot issues.
4. The American Podiatric Medical Association approves heel cups for their function in treating certain foot conditions.
5. Heel cups cushion your entire heel area.
6. Heel cups may be imperative for kids with Sever’s disease.
Heel cups come in two basic sizes – small/medium and medium/large. Which one you’ll select depends on the current shoe size you wear. If you’re a woman with a shoe size of 5 to 8, select the small/medium heel cups. If your feet are larger than size 8, go for the larger one.
How Heel Cups Are Sized
If you’re a man with a shoe size of 6 or 7, select the small/medium heel cups. Men’s shoe sizes 8 through 15 will easily accommodate the heel cups sized medium/large.
Types of Heel Cups To Choose From
There are different heel cups on the market. Spenco makes one called Performance gel heel cups. They call this one “Performance” because it’s created for comfort all day long and because they boast an increase in energy of 44%. Apparently, their studies proved it. They also report pain reduction with these Performance gel heel cups, but of course, you have to have heel pain to start with to have pain reduction!
One of the testimonials on this product on the website, TheInsoleStore.com was from a woman named Betty who reported that the Performance gel heel cups eliminated her heel pain.
Another brand of heel cups is the Sof Sole Airr Cup. This one is built for tough workouts that pound the feet into the ground, such as those who are running on trails. The Sof Sole Airr Cup has tapered edges so it will fit inside most shoes. Like a lot of other heel cups, it cradles the heel. This one is made with gel pods in columns to make sure your heels are protected in every way. Add air chambers to the picture and you can feel like you’re running on clouds. The air chambers may give you extra speed and conserve your energy during running.
The KidZerts Children’s Heel Cups are the only ones on the market for kids that are moulded to the child’s feet as he walks or runs. These are also recommended by podiatrists to relieve pain in the heel, such as what is found in kids who have shin splints, Sever’s disease, and Achilles tendonitis. And since studies show that kids with Sever’s disease have a quality of life that is severely affected by the heel pain, you definitely want to get these KidZerts Children’s Heel Cups and not wait. Every day your child has pain is another day of dealing with a cranky kid!
Heel cups can make a huge difference in the lives of both adults and kids. But first you have to get them into your shoes!