Superfeet Orange

This review is my initial impression of the Superfeet Orange insoles that I hope will address some issues I have been having with my feet. After I get in a few hikes using these new insoles I will come back and provide an update to this review with my final impressions.

I am heading out on a trip in a few days to do some hiking and hopefully a little fishing in the Black Hills area of South Dakota and also spending some time hiking in Arches National Park and Moab in Utah and decided I would break down and pick up a pair of Superfeet insoles to try out in a new pair of Keen Siskiyou Mid WP that I recently picked up and will be using on this trip. 

I have had several friends speak highly of Superfeet in the past and as I have gotten older my feet don't hold up like they did a number of years ago, so I decided to make the investment in a pair of these insoles (the 20% member coupon from REI softened the finical hit...) to see if they are as good as everyone makes them out to be.

I selected the Superfeet Orange model based on a recommendation from the person at REI who fitted the insole to my foot and the type of activities I planned on using them for. If you are considering picking up a pair of Superfeet I would highly recommend going to a store like REI where they have people who are trained to to properly fit these insoles.

The person who helped me at REI really took the time to explain the differences between the different models of Superfeet, measured my shoe size, and then we tried out several pairs until we settled on the Orange version of Superfeet that seemed to fit my instep the best.

The basic Superfeet Orange insole is composed of a hard but flexible plastic element that provide the instep support and a heel cup feature. There is a cushiony layer of orange foam that is under the balls of your feet and then there is a black layer of foam that runs the length of the insole that is covered by a smooth top orange liner material.

I have included a few shots below to help show the construction (the imprinted text on the orange cushiony layer is from my Keens that I have had these in for the last couple of days).

I was lucky in that the pair of Superfeet I purchased slipped right into my Keens without any trimming. There was a significant difference between the insoles that came with my Keens and the Superfeet, in that the Keen insole seemed to be formed from a material of constant thickness and while there was a instep feature, there really wasn't anything there that would provide support for a long amount of time.

Here are a few shots of the new Keen insoles I removed next to my new Superfeet showing the differences in the heel cup and instep.

With the insoles in my boots my initial impression was mixed. First, I really didn't feel much additional cushion and what really struck me was that it felt like I was walking in high heels (and so no rumors get started, I don't have any experience wearing high heels :-) ). Now that I have had them in my boots for a couple of days the high heel effect has worn off and I am getting more used to the insole.

The real test will come over the next two week as I get some hikes in with my wife during our upcoming road trip to visit the Badlands NP, Arches NP, Moab, and a few other places we plan on visiting. When I get back from my trip I'll provide an update, but I'm keeping my hopes up that these insoles will really make a positive difference.

Update as of 7/19/17

I used the Orange Superfeet for several months with my Keens and one or two other pairs of shoes/boots and really did not find any improvement over the existing insoles, so in the end I returned them to REI. While I don't doubt that Superfeet has provided a significant benefit to other people who use them, for me I really didn't experience any benefit for my combination of footwear and feet that would justify the expense associated with these insoles.

Put these in a pair of Timberland hiking boots that I could never get to fit correctly. They were strange at first but they made the boots suddenly fit correctly. They were no longer overly tight through the middle of my foot. But they also felt like the arch was too far back. The arch hits right in front of the heel. Read the instructions after wearing them for a day and it says:

1. the arch will feel like its too far back, it is supposed to be right in front of your heel

2. get your feet used to them by only wearing for a few hours a day the first few days

My feet are now used to the insoles and I love them. They are very comfy and have made my boots comfortable to wear. They are cushy but without being overly soft. They provide great support for my feet. I wish they were not so expensive but they do feel better than what I had. I have started moving them from shoe pair to pair as I change shoes throughout the day (office, golf, walking the dog, hiking, etc...).