Do orthotics work?

3 watchers

Drell Dec 2013 5:55pm, 17 Dec 2013 1,591 posts	0 Drell An interesting article from the Guardian: theguardian.com Apparently it's not known how they work. If, in fact, they do (in general -- anecdotally, they appear to work for some people).
Johnny Panic Dec 2013 7:17pm, 17 Dec 2013 342 posts	0 Johnny Panic It's like the answer to, "do women wear socks?"; the answer is probably, "yes, sometimes".
bannyboy Jan 2014 12:11pm, 2 Jan 2014 3 posts	0 bannyboy When I first developed PF orthotics helped control the pain. I wore them in all my shoes - including slippers. But they didn't do anything to fix the issue. After years of stretching and orthotics, foot strengthening (following Eric Orton's regime for a while) seemed to have a much bigger affect. I wouldn't say cured - but definitely controlled.
martin K Aug 2014 7:31pm, 27 Aug 2014 5,503 posts	0 martin K the answer is YES they sure do, i have been wearing mine now for 10 yrs from Foot Mechanix in West Byfleet, Surrey
The Jogger Aug 2014 8:34pm, 27 Aug 2014 956 posts	0 The Jogger I had mine made in Canada from a mould, just starting back to running, very slowly but I am certainly using these to try and avoid the knee issues of the past, so far so ...........
Arjin Sep 2014 8:27am, 29 Sep 2014 92 posts	0 Arjin I was perscribed orthotics for PF which helped clear it up. Unfortunatly, as my glutes were weak and my knee drifted in, causing me to over-pronate, the only thing that flexed when my foot was stopped from rolling was my achillies which soon started to really hurt and is now twice the size and full of scar material. Orthotics binned, on the road to recovery with the achillies and doing what I should have done from the beginning, strength work and correcting my running form.
BaronessBL Sep 2014 9:58am, 29 Sep 2014 4,022 posts	0 BaronessBL I am not a natural or efficient runner and when I started running regularly I developed knee pain that made it impossible to run at all. I was prescribed orthotics and also given stretching exercises to do as well as having some massage where some of my muscles had got very tight. This all helped immensely and I have worn orthotics ever since with none of the problems I had before (I am going back tomorrow to get my current pair reviewed and probably replaced.) I have one pair of shoes that I can't put my orthotics into and if I run too much in them the problems begin to return. I probably don't do as much of the stretching as I should and if I thought I was ever going to run 'seriously' and significantly improve my times I know it would take more than orthotics and a concerted effort to change my running gait/style but I'm happy to plod along at the back of the pack, I'm not getting any younger and my days of significant PBs are probably long gone so if the orthotics improve my gait a bit and keep me pain free when running I'm happy to say yes, for what I want to achieve they work.
BaronessBL Sep 2014 10:01am, 29 Sep 2014 4,023 posts	0 BaronessBL Wierdly, the minute I posted the above, a text came through from the podiatrist reminding me of my appointment tomorrow.... is she reading this I wonder
smallclanger Feb 2015 9:53pm, 19 Feb 2015 61 posts	0 smallclanger I can't run without them! Even with trainers to correct over pronation without them my feet roll in.
Wazelle Feb 2015 10:00pm, 19 Feb 2015 1,629 posts	0 Wazelle I wore orthotics for over 10 years and always ran with them. They were prescribed due to low arch and knee pain. Difficult to get used to, but they gave me confidence I thought they did help, but probably what helped as much was the work on strengthening the muscles on the outside and inside of my thighs. Different coach not keen on them ( Something to do with them reducing flexion in the foot?) and wants me to stop using them, so I have. Nothing bad has happened, but my arches hurt sometimes, so now don't run in them, but sometimes wear them at other times.