ROCKER SOLE REVOLUTION
extremity of the body – uses more energy. This
well accepted physiological effect by itself has
nothing to do with the rocker sole concept.
Walking with a rucksack full of rocks on your
back will also result in greater caloric output,
muscle activity and corresponding loss of body
weight. The further and faster you walk – the
greater the effect.
It is also interesting to note that although all of
the physiological benefits of MBT’s rocker soles
are equated and credited to the African Masai
peoples – they don’t actually wear shoes to
achieve these benefits. Such is marketing logic.
(Fig. 4)
With the help of attractive female models with
shapely abs, butts and legs “toning shoes,” as
they are now called, represent a sizable shoe
market segment. It’s a market driven by a
customer base that is 90% women, accord-
ing to an industry spokesman. There is little
doubt that the destabilizing rocker affect on the
body created by toning shoes does change the
wearer’s gait pattern and posture when walk-
ing and standing. However, like other footwear
trends there are a growing number of practitio-
ners that have come to the realization that not
all radical biomechanical concepts are suited
to every patient or wearer. Toning shoes create
their advertised benefit by destabilizing how
a person walks thus forcing the core muscles
of the body to rebalance. This affect generates
more muscle activity in the gluteus maximus
muscles and upper thigh muscle groups. It is
only a short marketing leap away to therefore
claim that the wearer is burning more calories,
fighting cellulite, improving their posture and
circulation while also reducing knee stress.
However, that instability can result in sprained
ankles and strained Achilles tendons. These
44
Pedorthic Footcare Association | www.pedorthics.org
types of unstable soles may also cause particular
problems for older wearers or those who have
difficulty keeping their balance.
ROCK STEADY
A pedorthic rocker sole, as stated, is basically
used for off-loading pressure on the forefoot
or heel. It facilitates easier heel-to-toe gait and
reduce the motion of the foot and ankle. A
SACH heel rocker is particularly useful for
patients with ankle osteoarthritis or those who
have had an ankle fusion. This common shoe
modification is usually accomplished by creat-
ing a fulcrum at the heel or across the shoe sole
medially to laterally. It affects the sagittal plane
and helps to rock the shoe forward from heel to
toe without bending the shoe.
Of late, a growing number of clinicians are
advising wearers that toning shoes do not
deliver on their marketing promises created by
their advertisers as benefits. Worse, some are
warning that unstable rocker sole shoes could
cause injuries, such as strained Achilles tendons
and ankle sprains by destabilizing how a person
walks and forces a change of gait pattern.
Claims that toning shoes can significantly con-
tribute to a person’s fitness are “utter nonsense,”
according to Barbara de Lateur, a professor of
Physical Medicine and rehabilitation at Johns
Hopkins University of Medicine in Baltimore.
Another warning comes from Bryan Mar-
kinson DPM, chief of Podiatric Medicine at
Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.
Markinson says some of his patients who are
“not in the greatest of shape” have inflamed
their Achilles tendons while wearing toning
shoes. People thinking of buying them, he says
should begin an “active stretching program” or
else risk injury.