If you have ever spent a long day on your feet and have come home with feet that just ache, then you know the difference between happy feet and upset feet. Even if you don’t think you do, you need some insoles. Your feet maybe haven’t let you know just yet, but believe me, they’re in silent protest. Stock insoles that come in the majority of shoes are thin, little pieces of cardboard that are good for very little.
An after market insole will provide you with the arch support your feet need along with better heel retention and some bonus cushioning. For me, custom insoles take away that ache after a long day of walking or standing around in non-supportive, non-athletic footwear.
One of my current insole favorites is the QuickFit insoles from FootBalance.
I like them for a couple of reasons; they make my feet happy and they’re custom moldable. They’re custom moldable via two different methods. The first method, and probably the easiest is molding them by wearing them. You just trim them to fit and then start wearing the insoles in your shoes. The second method, and in my mind the more fun method, is to heat mold them using your home oven. While this might sound a little more technical, it’s super easy as well and provides a quicker result.
I know using your home oven sounds a little intimidating, but it’s actually pretty easy. For testing purposes I used a beloved old pair of The North Face trail running shoes. These shoes have long since been retired from running but are still used for light hikes with the family and strolling around town. All activities that a new set of insoles could make better.
One important item to mention, you need to break your foot into wearing a new pair of insoles. They might feel a little strange the first couple of times you wear them and that’s normal. It’s recommended that you ease into your new insoles, only wearing them for shorter amounts of time the first couple of days you wear them.
Here’s how you heat mold your QuickFit Foot Balance insoles using your home oven:
Step 1 – Using your old insoles as a template, trim your new FootBalance QuickFit insoles to fit in your shoes. It’s best to use a sharp pair of scissors. Dull scissors will leave behind a ragged edge leading to the insoles wearing prematurely.
Step 2 – Test fit the insoles in your shoes. It’s a good idea to make sure they fit right before heating them up.
Step 3 – Turn on your oven and set the temperature to 175 degrees. Make sure the laces on your shoes are nice and loose.
Step 4 – Place your insoles on a baking sheet upside down. I lined my baking sheet with a piece of aluminum foil. This was just a precaution as I wasn’t sure if the QuickFit insoles would soften up too much and possibly stick to my baking sheet. I also prefer to keep food and feet separated, even if these are brand new insoles. The QuickFit insoles didn’t even come close to sticking, melting or leaving behind any little bits of themselves. So there’s nothing to worry about the next time you bake some delicious goodies.
Step 5 – Once the oven reaches temperature put the foot beds (on the baking sheet) into the oven. Set your oven timer for 5 minutes.
There’s a small sticker on the bottom of on of the insoles, when it changes color, the insoles are ready for molding. If the sticker hasn’t changed color by the time the timer goes off, pull them out away. They’re done and ready for some molding. My soles took about 4:50 for the sticker to fully change colors.
Step 6 – Put the insoles into your shoes as fast as you can. Not so fast that you bend them all up or something, but try to be hasty about it.
Step 7 – Slip your hooves into your shoes and lace them up nice and tight. Not so tight that your feet are falling asleep, but tight enough to form a good fit.
Step 8 – Enjoy your toasty warm shoes while you walk around for about 5 minutes to complete the molding. The dynamic Balance Plate will help you achieve optimal posture and alignment while walking.
Congratulations!
You now have a pair of properly fitted Foot Balance insoles. Go ahead and schedule some type of activity that requires you to be on your feet all day, maybe some shopping or a trade show, and prepare to be amazed by just how good your feet are about to feel.
For more information check out the QuickFit insoles
FootBalance QuickFit can be easily molded to your unique feet in the comfort of your own home by following these simple steps in our video.
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