Skechers Shape Ups: Fit?

Skechers Shape Ups are shoes that promote fitness in consumers who wear them on a regular basis. Skechers incorporated many different features into the design of Shape Ups. One of the features that make this line of shoes stand out from other athletic shoes on the market is the rocker-bottom of the sole. This feature was designed in order to promote a more physically active form of walking while wearing the shoes. Instead of walking normally, consumers are forced to walk in a slightly different manner while wearing Shape Ups in order to remain stable on their feet. This form of walking is intended to require more effort from the muscles in the legs as well as the core of the body. As a result, wearing these shoes can help to engage the muscles in the legs and core of the body more so than traditional athletic shoes (Talaty, Patel, & Esquenazi, 2016).

There are many unique features of Skechers Shape Ups but the one that seems to be most prominent is the rocker-bottom of the sole of the shoes. According to the designers of the Shape Ups, this is what makes them different from all of the other health-focused athletic shoes available on the market today. In addition to giving the wearer of the Shape Ups an entirely different feeling when they are walking or running in them, it also gives them a completely different physical workout as well. In terms of physical fitness, wearing Shape Ups to go for a walk can greatly improve a person’s posture as well as their overall physical fitness by increasing energy expenditure. Tepper found that when wearing unstable shoes, such as the Shape Ups, that the wearer increased their energy expenditure in comparison to wearing stable shoes such as regular athletic shoes. This, in turn, can also increase a person’s endurance allowing them to do more physical activities for longer periods of time. As was previously mentioned, Tepper found that wearing unstable shoes increased a person’s energy expenditure, making them feel as though they are working out. Many people report wearing the Shape Ups for their daily workouts, often reporting increased endurance.

When it comes to the amount of energy expenditure that the Skechers Shape Ups can provide compared to that of other athletic shoes, Tepper (2010) found that users of the Skechers Shape Ups expended more energy when walking compared to those individuals wearing other athletic shoes. Tepper (2010) also found that many of the users of the Skechers Shape Ups reported a greater feeling of exertion when walking compared to when they wore other athletic shoes. This feeling of greater exertion can have positive effects on the amount of physical activity that people complete on a regular basis. In a separate study by Porcari et al. (2010), the physiological and perceived exertion responses of participants who wore the Skechers Shape Ups were compared to those of participants wearing regular athletic shoes. Participants wearing the Skechers Shape Ups reported higher ratings of muscular endurance and overall muscle strength, as well as higher ratings of perceived exertion during physical activity. Additionally, the participants reported higher ratings of overall satisfaction with the physical condition that they were in and stated that they felt better physically when wearing the Skechers Shape Ups compared to when wearing regular athletic shoes.

More than average consumer satisfaction statistics reveal, a large number of Gen-Z consumers have been wowed by the blend of style and fitness that they get from the Skechers Shape Ups line of innovative fitness shoes. And unlike other products that are specifically developed for use by people with very active lifestyles, these shoes can be used by physically active people, with active lifestyles, who also like to look great while they are exercising, or merely going about their day. Consumers like them because they can wear them for just about anything and everywhere and get a good work out when they need it. Hiral, Avinash, and Vidani (2024), in an innovative qualitative study of physically active, fashion-conscious, Gen-Z consumers of innovative physical activity shoes, uncovered very positive perceptions of the Skechers Shape Ups by this segment of the fitness oriented Skechers consumer.

In summary, Skechers Shape Ups stand out because of their special design that promotes better fitness by engaging more muscle groups. User experiences strongly suggest they help improve posture and enhance walking efficiency. Studies on energy expenditure reveal that these shoes can lead to higher energy use compared to traditional footwear, indicating a greater workout challenge. Moreover, their appeal among Gen-Z highlights a shift in how fitness is approached – blending style with function to encourage more active living., The Skechers Shape Ups were marketed as a new type of footwear designed to promote fitness. To evaluate their actual impact on physical health, it is important to look at research concerning their design and how they compare to traditional shoes. Researchers like Plom, Strike, and Taylor (2014) point out that the shape of the Skechers Shape Ups creates an unstable walking surface. This means that when a person walks or stands in these shoes, their body must work harder to maintain balance and proper gait. This instability can help engage the muscles in the legs and core more than regular shoes do.

However, as Price and others noted (2013), although unstable footwear does increase degree of muscle activation, it also has potential for increased risk of injury. Some individuals will find that Shape Ups increase stress on joints in ways that cause significant discomfort or actually lead to injury, even when attempting to engage in what would typically be considered low-demand activities. Furthermore, certain individuals have physical limitations or health conditions that make use of such footwear not practical. As a result, while creating instability in footwear may engage leg muscles to a greater degree than typically engaged by most types of athletic shoes, this type of footwear is not necessarily healthy for all individuals, and may actually lead to decreased overall fitness for some individuals in the long run.

To find out how Skechers Shape Ups can influence physical health in the long run, it is essential to assess the fitness results in terms of physical health indicators. In this context, mixed results were found in various studies concerning physical fitness in general and the specific muscle groups in the legs and buttocks in particular (Yap, Nakamae, & Henry, 2013). Even though the wearers stated that they felt more toned up in their legs and buttocks after wearing Shape Ups than when wearing normal shoes, the extent to which the users of these shoes were physically fit did not change significantly. Hence, although users stated to walk more than usual when wearing Shape Ups, because of the unusual features of these fitness shoes, the higher amount of physical exercise did not result in fitter users in general. This in turn can be due to the fact that the users of these unusual looking shoes are non-physical active individuals. They probably wear the shoes for reasons of fashion and not for sports purposes. For these non-physical active individuals, the normal amount of physical exercise is not sufficient to achieve any fitness results, which is also the case with the use of Skechers Shape Ups.

In terms of user experience of Shape Ups the feedback, often in the form of reviews and comments left on Skechers’ web pages as well as independent product review web pages, can be generally described as mixed. As can be seen in the article written by the authors Ford and Stohl (2019) the initial launch of the footwear was a massive success for the company, as consumers of all ages were drawn to the footwear, that not only were healthy for the user but also came in a variety of different styles to ensure that there was a style to meet everyone’s taste. The success of the launch was to such an extent that the Shape Ups went on to become one of the best-selling fitness products on the market and a trend-setter for the subsequent release of other similar products, designed for general fitness use. It was noted by the authors that while some consumers commented positively on the innovative design of the footwear, which they described as feeling very different from other types of athletic footwear that they had previously used, others failed to have the same positive experience with the product. It was commented by many of the users that had purchased the product that the footwear had a short life-span and had not been as comfortable as they had initially led themselves to believe. For the company Skechers the feedback left by users of the product could have both positive and negative effects. As commented by the author Salgado (2019) that when a company is perceived to be operating with corporate social responsibility (CSR) then this can have a positive effect on the companies’ image as well as increasing customer loyalty. This would be the case for Skechers as they continue to operate the Shape Ups range, as the feedback left by users of the product could help the company to make changes to the design and improve aspects of the footwear in order to meet the needs of its consumers. Alternatively the negative feedback could have a very damaging effect on the companies’ image as it would appear that the company is failing to meet the needs of its consumers and therefore is not operating with corporate social responsibility.

All of the above research highlights some of the key benefits to the design of Skechers Shape Ups and their functionality in terms of physical fitness. The innovative rocker-bottom and unstable design is very unique in comparison to the majority of current athletic shoes on the market today and creates an unstable surface when standing or walking that can challenge the wearer in a number of different ways and in turn increase levels of fitness. However, some of the key research highlights that there are only limited positive physical health and fitness benefits for users of the Skechers Shape Ups when compared to users of more traditional athletic shoes and therefore highlights that whilst there is some potential for the product to increase levels of fitness in some users there is certainly limited evidence to suggest that it is effective in achieving overall physical fitness for most users. The above points therefore highlight that when considering the potential benefits of Skechers Shape Ups to physical fitness it is important to consider individual differences in physical ability and current levels of fitness as well as other factors.

Citations:

Hiral, P., Avinash, M. and Vidani, J., 2024. To Study Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty for Sport Shoes Skechers Among Gen-Z in Ahmedabad City. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jignesh-Vidani-2/publication/391997868_To_Study_Customer_Satisfaction_and_Loyalty_for_Sport_Shoes_Skechers_Among_Gen-Z_in_Ahmedabad_City/links/683015b8d1054b0207f1253c/To-Study-Customer-Satisfaction-and-Loyalty-for-Sport-Shoes-Skechers-Among-Gen-Z-in-Ahmedabad-City.pdf

Salgado, N., 2019. Equity research-Skechers USA Inc (Master’s thesis, Universidade de Lisboa (Portugal)). https://search.proquest.com/openview/7711ed372aca50b16919d206bfeec7f2/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=2026366&diss=y

Yap, C., Nakamae, L. and Henry, S., 2013. The acute effects of an unstable shoe on energy expenditure. Footwear Science, 5(3), pp.165-169. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19424280.2013.803163

Ford, B.R. and Stohl, C., 2019. Does CSR Matter? A longitudinal analysis of product reviews for CSR-associated brands. Journal of Brand Management, 26(1), pp.60-70. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/s41262-018-0108-2

Tepper, S., 2010. Physiological and subjective differences between walking in flat soled shoes versus fitness shoes (Doctoral dissertation). https://minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/handle/1793/46666/TepperStephanie2010.pdf?sequence=1

Porcari, J.P., Greany, J., Tepper, S., Edmonson, B. and Foster, C., 2010. THE PHYSIOLOGIC AND ELECTROMYOGRAPHIC RESPONSES TO WALKING IN REGULAR ATHLETIC SHOES VERSUS “FITNESS SHOES”. Unpublished report for the American Council on Exercise. https://www.acefitness.org/getfit/studies/toningshoes-findings.pdf

Orr, C., 2011. Toning Sneakers. Network Journal, 18(6), p.40. https://search.proquest.com/openview/39279f36728ef69b53fdfe7c61c3db10/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=43721

Talaty, M., Patel, S. and Esquenazi, A., 2016. A randomized comparison of the biomechanical effect of two commercially available rocker bottom shoes to a conventional athletic shoe during walking in healthy individuals. The Journal of Foot and Ankle Surgery, 55(4), pp.772-776. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1067251616001435

Plom, W., Strike, S.C. and Taylor, M.J.D., 2014. The effect of different unstable footwear constructions on centre of pressure motion during standing. Gait & posture, 40(2), pp.305-309. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966636214004809

Price, C., Smith, L., Graham-Smith, P. and Jones, R., 2013. The effect of unstable sandals on instability in gait in healthy female subjects. Gait & Posture, 38(3), pp.410-415. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966636213000052