Shoe and Insole questions

I love my Lone Peaks. I think but I'm not certain that I love my green Superfeet insoles, the arch is a little high.
I have read in "Fixing Your Feet" to drill four holes with a hot nail in your shoes to allow water to drain out. Do people really do this? Is it recommended for hiking? Maybe it is for real "trail running", but not hiking?
How are the green and blue Superfeet different?
And many miles do you put on a pair of Superfeet before you buy new ones?

This forum is very helpful and I really appreciate your input.

Vickie
Section hiker

i once tried green superfeet years ago. they did nothing for me, never tried them or any other ones again.

a few years ago the stock insoles in my trail runners got wrecked and i needed new ones in a pinch. i intended to get something simple and inexpensive but i couldnt find anything. in desperation i went to the mall and an employee at a shoe store pointed me towards the walking company.

long story short i stepped on some sort of high tech stride measuring device and spend 4x the amount i started out intending to spend and then went out and hiked 60 miles without my feet hurting once even the least little bit.

they wore out fast though. i'm on a second set now, a slightly different model, that will hopefully hold up better.

If I remember correctly, Superfeet green are to help with Plantar Fascia issues. I quit using them when I switched to Altras for road and trail running. I don't put holes in my shoes as the Altras generally drain pretty well on their own. No point in introducing 4 new points of failure.

The blue are thinner lower volume and for flat feet.

FWIW, although the green Superfeet are marketed as providing more support and for high arches with my high arch they never provided the arch support required.

If you recently switched to Altra designed running shoes from a a very different running shoe design approach this can cause issues in itself. Drop, stack, cushioning, tighter toe box, etc.

I read that too in Fixing Your Feet. We don't need to do everything that is suggested. No, I've never drilled holes in any shoe to help them drain. Reiterating JC, Altras(non WP models) drain well on their own. You never said whether or not you have the Noeshell LP's or not.

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Originally Posted by vickietyer

I love my Lone Peaks. I think but I'm not certain that I love my green Superfeet insoles, the arch is a little high.
I have read in "Fixing Your Feet" to drill four holes with a hot nail in your shoes to allow water to drain out. Do people really do this? Is it recommended for hiking? Maybe it is for real "trail running", but not hiking?
How are the green and blue Superfeet different?
And many miles do you put on a pair of Superfeet before you buy new ones?

This forum is very helpful and I really appreciate your input.

Vickie
Section hiker

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Your feet are moldable. Wear it enough, a few mo, and your feet will mold to insole.

Runners typically pour water over their heads at aid stations, which runs right into their shoes. This leads to soggy macerated skin. But a couple holes wont hurt.

Dont use superfeet.
I have about 27 yrs daily wear and many many thousands of miles on the orthotics in my shoes. Daily wear, running, hiking.

Dont judge fit of the superfeet until you wear it 1 mo + continuously , imo. Its likely you will not notice it by that point

Here's a vote for Superfeet Green! They've been great for me. And if you're wearing regular trail runners, you don't need to drill holes. When picking footwear for hiking, I would recommend against the "waterproof" route. After a few stream crossings, yes they will let water in, but they also let water out. Good socks are important too. I love DryMax socks as part of my overall system.

The advice that I got from my local trail running shop was that if your feet hurt then the shoe is the problem and the insoles are just a band-aid. I bought another brand of almost zero drop shoes with thicker soles and better arch support and have been very happy that I made the change.

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Originally Posted by JPritch

Here's a vote for Superfeet Green! They've been great for me. And if you're wearing regular trail runners, you don't need to drill holes. When picking footwear for hiking, I would recommend against the "waterproof" route. After a few stream crossings, yes they will let water in, but they also let water out. Good socks are important too. I love DryMax socks as part of my overall system.

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I'm not seeing why anyone would opt for new WP shoes and then drill holes in them? It sounds self defeating.

Most are commenting on “yea” or “nae” to Green Feet. I tried boots without and thenwith and noticed a difference so I stuck with them. You asked about mileage and how long they last... in my opinion they last about as long as the shoes themselves; so I planned on 500 miles. However, I alternated older Green Feet with new shoes. Then after 250-300 miles I would replace the Green Feet in the now older shoes. I switched to Altra’s in Hot Springs and got new Green Feet in Damascus. Then I switched to Solomon’s in Waynesboro VA. It was there that I learned I was wearing the Greenfeet correctly. They go in the shoe 1st and then the normal shoe insole goes on top. So it is important to use the Green Feet insoles as well as your hiking socks when trying on new shoes. Help this helps, ecause it’s all personal choice!

We switched to Sole brand insoles. I used the Superfeet Green for years, but the Sole seem to be better. Now they are all cork, which has been less durable than the plastic, but they still fit well. I usually get two pairs of shoes out of one pair of insoles, if that makes sense.

I tried Green
I tried Blue

And ended up going with the Trail Version of Superfeet.

Altra Lone Peak 3.0, 4.0, Timp, Superior 3.0

Same insole works in all of them.

I have slightly more arch in my left foot versus my right. Insoles seems perfect for right foot and just a little off for my left foot.

Wearing them for a period of time does help especially if you are not used to zero drop shoes. But that being said it’s easy to tell right away when you have a mismatched insole for your feet.

YMMV


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