Shape-Ups: Do they shape up or down?

In the recent months, I have had a number of patients ask what I thought of Sketchers shape-ups.  My answer: I’m not a huge fan. Heres why:

• Shape-ups appear to “tone” the calf through creating a constant balance deficit for the patient. This causes a constant “ankle response” and forces the calf muscles to work overtime.  I believe future research will show a higher risk of achilles tendonitis in individuals who wear these long term.
• The shoe changes your gait. The shoe assists during all phases of gait, especially from heel strike –> loading response which can decrease your neuromuscular education of muscles active during these phases.  This will make you more relient upon these shoes, and may make it difficult to ambulate without them.   Enough said.
• Sketchers claims are that they will tone the calf, LEs and core.  This ideology allows wearers to think the shoes can replace a fitness program and will prevent problems from developing.

Sketchers claims 4 studies have been performed to prove that they help tone muscle and improve energy consumption.  I attempted to locate these articles and only found reviews on the Sketchers website.  Here are the results of each of the articles:

1. Study performed by 2 chiropractors and a personal trainer.  Study showed weightloss in individuals who wore Sketchers.
2. No authors info provided. EMG study on 10 females.  Results showed increased activity of LE muscles while wearing shape-ups.
3. Again no authors info provided. The results showed increased core activity due to an unstable center of balance.
4. Another study performed by one of the chiropractors from study 1. The results showed increased usage of postural muscles.

All 4 of these studies were funded independently by Sketchers and I was unable to locate any of them in major peer-reviewed databases for a true analysis.

Bottom Line: I am still extremely skeptical about shape-ups.  Proper footwear should not create an unstable surface and no shoe should ever claim to be able replace a proper physical fitness program.