My Quest to Find Support For My Over-Pronating Feet

I have flat feet. They over-pronate. When I stand up relaxed, they look like this.

When I try to correct, they still pronate.

Trying to stand up straight.

My feet are so flat, I can make suction cup noises on the floor.

My shoes get worn thin on the insides. So I took a couple pairs of shoes to the belt sander to even-up the wear so they don't lean in so far.

I can't run far. I used to try to run. One summer, I had the goal to be able to run a mile. I tried several times a week for that summer. I was never able to run more than a quarter mile at a time.

I tried several different kinds of shoes. I usually find maybe one in ten pairs of shoes that is somewhat comfortable - just acceptable. When I was a teenager, I had some Nike Air Pegasus shoes that were great. I don't see them in the stores anymore. I have to try shoes on. I don't want to order ten pairs of shoes online and return the remaining nine.

I asked a person at the shoe store for shoes for flat feet and they suggested flat shoes with no arch supports. That wasn't very helpful. I need thick arch supports, just a different shape than normal.

I tried the Dr. Scholl's custom fit computer that you step on. My feet are so weird, it was asking if I had switched my left and right feet. I had to keep hitting the button, yes, I put my feet on the right sides today! It recommended some low arch inserts that didn't help at all.

I tried Dr. Scholl's athletic running insoles. These were ok. They were better than what came in my shoes. But still most of these inserts are for neutral to supination strides. They had too much arch support on the outside edge of my foot. That doesn't work for me. I need to prevent rolling inward, not outward. So I took these to the belt sander too. After thinning the outer edges, they work ok for me.

I tried Sof Sole athlete insoles. They weren't contoured to my feet. In fact, I don't think anybody's feet are contoured like that. But they were better than the flat insoles that come with most shoes.

The SoftFoam+ insoles that came with my Puma shoes were great. The cushioning was excellent. But they were totally flat, so these didn't help my excessive pronation. I'll use these to make some home-made DIY insoles.

The AmpliFoam insoles that came in my Asics were flat and unimpressive at best, but better than nothing. These will be the ones I cut up to make a pair of custom fit insoles.

I tried Sof Sole low arch support insoles. These had a surprisingly high arch for being called low arch. But the arch support was too high in one area and didn't fit my weird feet. Imagine stepping on a 1" PVC pipe. I tried them for a day and was worried that I would be sore at the end of the day. I wasn't sore, but they weren't comfortable for me. The chemical smell from these insoles was almost unbearable. It lasted for weeks. I could smell them while I was wearing my shoes, so I only wore these a few times. The other insoles from the same brand didn't stink.

Sof Sole low arch support insoles

I next tried the Sof Sole Airr Orthotic Insole because I saw in the comments that the company rep recommended these for pronating feet.  They were significantly more expensive than the Sof Sole athlete insoles, but no better for my feet. The gel on Sof Sole insoles is sticky. You can press them on the wall and let them hang there. Then peel them off. I guess they won't be bunching up in your shoes.

Sof Sole Airr Orthotic Insoles

One thing I observed from trying multiple insoles in multiple shoes is that the thicker the heel padding is, the more my heel slides in my shoe.

I have to lift the balls of my feet off the ground to straighten my ankles. So I decided to try cutting and pasting some insoles together. Folding these over and cramming them under my feet makes some progress straightening my ankles.

Here's attempt #1 using the old cut and paste method. It was quick and easy. I sacrificed one pair of insoles to make these.

These have better support than all of the insoles I've tried so far. But they could be better. I need to double the angle.

I need more thickness in the arch and under the ball of my feet on the inside, behind by big toe. The padding on the inside needs to be more firm and thicker than the outside since most of my weight goes on the inside of my feet.

I tried these out for a couple weeks now. They're my preferred insole so far. I like them better than the others because they help correct the angle of my feet.

I tried ASICS Gel Foundation running shoes. These are for extreme over-pronating feet. I was kind of disappointed though. As is typical with most shoes, I have to order a half size bigger so that my big toe isn't crammed against the end of the shoe. My heel slides. The top is too tight. The toe box is too big. These shoes are overbuilt. They try to be too many things. The most important thing for extreme over-pronators is to correct the angle. These don't. But they do have support on the inside edge, and that helps. 

 

On my list to try

• Dr. Scholl's Custom 3D Printed Inserts - I probably won't try these since they probably won't make them the way I want. I haven't seen any insoles that change the angle of my feet. 

Why don't they make shoes that are the same shape as your feet? I know my feet are weird, but I'm thinking something's wrong with this picture.

Next to try
Make a 3D printed arch support that changes the angle of my feet. I need about a ten degree angle correction so that my ankles are more straight.