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Hi everyone i was just wondering what everyone's thoughts are on fit flops??

Thanks

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Me I´m just wondering if the product will be a flop or not.

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Mike Weber.



Crazy Mary

Can't find much on fitflops, but I've attached a PhD thesis which looked at various flip-flops. If you read the lit review you'll find the other stuff published on shoes which go both flip and flop.

Attached Files

flip-flop phd.pdf (2.33 MB, 49 views)

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"My mission drive is to open up my eyes, 'cause the wicked lies and all the sh!te you say..." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4NW5S1UTPQ

"Science is the antidote to the poison of enthusiasm and superstition."

Good evening Lucy,

Depends what you want to use them for. Being in a country on the equator, I have a group of patients with both the climate and cultural considerations, who will either wear flip flop type shoes or will look at you in a funny way as you try to educate them on "good" foot wear and then go home and stay in the same amount of pain as they were in when they came to you in the first place. Even if that is a lot of pain.

I have found fit flops to be useful for things like painful hallux limitus and what Prof Kirby calls dorsal midfoot interossei compression syndrome. I find the rocker style sole useful for those patients with a "saggital plane blockade". So in a nutshell, they can be useful for patients who will, regardless of your best efforts to suggest the opposite, spend a reaonable length of time in them. In my opinion.

As for the micro wobble board technology.. I think it is as useful as a broom with nipples.

Hope that helps.

S

Hi Lucy,

I'm with Sam. Some people seem to love them. But it is fair to say they are not for all. The other thing that has not been mentioned in this thread yet are their dubious claims that have not been backed up by any science. Go onto the official fit flop website and quicker than you can say 'marketing bulls**t' you will see what I mean.

I was asked to write a 'Podiatrist's opinion' on them for an online store who sold them. I guess I should've known better, but the version they published was cleverly edited and not a true reflection of what I originally said. I wasn't particularly negative about them - but they obviously deemed it was enough to jeapordise their sales so they altered it, but sadly still attributed it to me. You live and learn I guess. I have PM'd you the link so you can read for yourself.

Ian

Hi Lucy,

I don't have much to add that Ian and Sam have not already said. The claims about being a workout are a little far reached and even on cursory examination, they have none of the elements of say an MBT and an Earth shoe that would make them more physically demanding than a regular shoe.

However, they have a good pitch built in(i.e. not totally flat like a flip flop). They have a slight meniscus at the heel which will perhaps limit some of the heel translation commonly seen with flip flops. There is some M.L.A. contouring which although very small may be enough for some people.

However, the biggest pluses are definately the slight rocker sole to give sagittal plane assistance for hallux limitus and the (I think) polyurethane top layer which many people find comfortable. All in all, not a "good shoe" as Sam said, but in many cases, far more preferable to the alternative.

If you are looking for something more substantial for a patient, you might want to think about Aetrex Sandalistas. I have mentioned them in another thread and am hoping for a commission if I keep mentioning them! They are similar in set up to a Fit Flop but have a far more contoured MLA and the polyurethane inlay is removable. They have a style very similar to Fit Flops but also some other styles which are more formal looking as well

http://www.aetrex.com/pm/pm-contactus-sandalistas.html

Anyway, Fit Flops - not all bad, not all good and in the the words of Dr Spooner - "my missus loves 'em"

Robin

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I see you girls checkin' out my trunks
I see you girls checkin' out the front of my trunks
I see you girls lookin' at my junk, then checkin' out my rump, then back to my sugarlumps

I also reccomend them to patients with Achilles insertional calcific tendinopathy (AICT). I tell them to keep them beside their bed and put them on as soon as they get out of bed and wear them around the house (as opposed to going barefoot). The heel lift in them reduces any compression of the tendon on the calcaneus which seems to be the problem with AICT.

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Cheers,
Kent

Performance Podiatry & Physiotherapy

My location

The fitflop has done very well in our store for people with moderate to severe foot pain. I was especially surprised at how it reduces plantar fasciitis pain for many in our store. For what the shoe is, we are very pleased with the results. That said, nothing works for everybody, but it's a useful shoe to have.

Hi Lucy

I went to a lecture given by Marcia Kilgore, the founder of Fit-Flop, in March of this year at a Livery do in the City of London. She is a very good marketing person and a very good speaker. She has already been very successful with her main business lines which are women’s beauty products both in the US and more recently here in the UK.

She is very clear in what she says. The five motivations that bring women to buy a product are: Greed, that is getting something for free in this case a gym in your shoe - Saving time, in this case get your workout whilst walking to work - Exclusivity, in this case having something that others don’t and would like - Inclusivity, belonging to a group of friends who have discovered something new. Actually I can’t remember the fifth one but it was certainly not about foot health.

FitFlop is primarily about running a successful business and marketing a product. Secondarily it's about making a useful article of footwear. She said so herself. She’s a fascinating woman and knows her stuff. Michael it won’t be a flop and this autumn they’re branching into winter footwear as well as warm weather articles. It’s a rocker sole just like a Lancashire clog or a walking cast. It’s just prettier and it's set up to appeal to the five great motivators!

Bill

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Put on your red shoes and dance the blues away.

Bill Bird Shoes

Hi Lucy

I went to a lecture given by Marcia Kilgore, the founder of FitFlop, in March of this year at a Livery do in the City of London. She is a very good marketing person and a very good speaker. She has already been very successful with her main business lines which are women’s beauty products both in the US and more recently here in the UK.

She is very clear in what she says. The five motivations that bring women to buy a product are: Greed, that is getting something for free in this case a gym in your shoe - Saving time, in this case get your workout whilst walking to work - Exclusivity, in this case having something that others don’t and would like - Inclusivity, belonging to a group of friends who have discovered something new. Actually I can’t remember the fifth one but it was certainly not about foot health.

FitFlop is primarily about running a successful business and marketing a product. Secondarily it is about making a useful article of footwear. She said so herself. She’s a fascinating woman and knows her stuff. Michael it won’t be a flop and this autumn they’re branching into winter footwear as well as warm weather articles. It’s a rocker sole just like a Lancashire clog or a walking cast. It’s just prettier and it's set up tp appeal to the five great motivators for buying things!

Bill

__________________
Put on your red shoes and dance the blues away.

Bill Bird Shoes

I'm kicking myself I was offered the chance to sell the fitflops from my surgery and turned them down.

A local shoe shop has them and told me the other day they have sold hundreds and cant keep up. most people come back for second/third pairs.

there new "sparkly" one is now selling well.

oh well back to the feet work, no fast bucks for me!!

I bought a pair this afternoon as a trial. Main motivation was that they were more shock absorbing than the summer shoes in my wardrobe. The slightly easier dorsiflexion they seem to provide was a bonus.
I am about 4 weeks down the line from a distal fibula stress fracture so was looking to make the walking I am doing as easy as possible now and a comfy summer shoe in the long term. Have serious doubts that they will do anything at all for my leg musculature.
I am thinking of taking them back to the shop after noticing increased pronation. I tend to pronate anyway so its not helpful!
Need to read more, but wonder whether all publicity about legs getting a work out is just glut med trying to externally rotate the leg to compensate.

I personally love them! I got a pair last year after finding my Birkenstocks were causing an achilles discomfort. I bought a new pair a couple of weeks ago and hardly had them off my feet. I also recommend them to a lot of patients.

I too disbelieve the hype re: leg musculature as I wore them all summer last year and I am still awaiting legs like a supermodel! One can dream, I suppose :)

I bought a pair a few years ago when they first came on the market to trial. They are definitely more cushioning than standard slides however I found them heavier which in turn increased the clawing of my digits to keep them on.
On a side note, my dog loved them...