I wear athletic shoes every single day– primarily when I work out. I walk my dog, stretch, do cardio + sculpting workouts, I am on my feet a lot. I always use insoles in my athletic shoes because I want to reduce the harmful aspects of impact via these workouts. I have 4-5 pairs of athletic shoes that all have insoles. I rotate the shoes every single day so that both the shoes and insoles don’t get hit more than twice a week. I like to make sure my shoes- and my insoles- have some recovery time. It improves the longevity of the shoes and insoles. I have used insoles for several years. Recently, I was offered a chance to review a pair of insoles via Tomoson.com.
Disclosure: I received this product in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. It does not affect my review other than make it possible to give an authentic and honest review of this product. This post is a review via Tomoson.com.
Here’s the information about these insoles from the brand: Beyond Comfort Gel Insoles. (#BeyondComfort)
Beyond Comfort Gel Insoles
Perfect for Any Shoes – Made with Durable, Premium-Quality Material – Designed to Provide Long-lasting Cushion For the Feet
MADE OF DURABLE, PREMIUM-QUALITY MATERIAL – This premium gel insoles are made from Premium Quality Gel, Lightweight, and Comfortable! It is Durable and is Ideal for Longer Hours of Use
–PERFECT FOR ANY TYPE OF SHOES – They work really well for just about anyone and those who suffer from foot cramps, aches and pains
–WELL-DESIGNED – Designed to provide a quality long-lasting cushion that act as a shock absorption for the feet–EASY TO USE – Washable and reusable that deliver long-lasting, tough and resistant material
–3 YEARS WARRANTY and future discount!
We pride ourselves on great reviews, top customer service, and highest rank so if you find that you are not “5-Star Happy” with us or our products then please contact us and we will do whatever it takes to make sure you are 100% happy
The gel insole side view
Here are some facts that aren’t clearly displayed on the Amazon page:
The insoles come in one size only for men and women. This means that the exact same insoles for men are what the women get.
What does that mean?
Men sizes:8-12 (size of shoe)
Women sizes: 10-14 (size of shoe)
They are trimmable. They have made trim lines on the underside of the insoles going down to size 7 for women (at least I think that’s what that 7 meant. Maybe it was a men’s size 7.)
The problem with providing one set of insoles for both sexes is that men’s feet are often wider than women’s feet. These insoles are VERY wide. I had trouble fitting them into my widest pair of athletic shoes and it barely fit– and I had to trim down to a size women’s size 8 which I don’t know if the trim lines were for men’s size 8 or women’s size 8. If you don’t know the difference, there is a HUGE difference between men and women’s shoe sizes. Most women don’t have size 10 feet !
The size specification of men’s and women’s shoes differ by 1.5 inch and two-widths , that is, the same size of shoe in men’s shoe size will be 10, whereas in the women’s shoe size it would be 11.5.
Standard width of men’s running shoes is a D; for women, it’s a B!
So based on this chart which is for size measurement only , because I am a size 8, I should have cut my insole down to a 6.5 rather than the 8 that the brand had told me to.
There is a video from about.com here that explains these differences in the short video.
In other words, men’s and women’s shoes sizes are definitely different due to a men’s longer, wider foot and the women’s narrower, shorter feet.
Having been a fashion writer for several years and worked for a footwear trade magazine, one picks up lots of extra information and the sites I have referenced above you (and me!) some really noticeable differences.
If you are a man, order your size and go for these insoles. They are a great value and should be pretty good.
If you are a women with less than a size 10 foot, I can’t tell you how well they work because I trimmed mine down and they do not work for me or for anyone that is my size.
1) Insoles for women are generally narrower than those for men. While some brands make them a smidge narrower for men so that they can shift the sizing of the insole to accomodate women’s feet as well. I buy insoles that are for women. I don’t buy men’s sizing and size down. That doesn’t work for me.
Here’s what happened with these insoles — in photos with captions!
These are my favorite workout shoes (Asics T580N).
Next is their massaging gel insole. Nice, but it doesn’t work for me– because it’s too wide and it’s still too long. I have already cut a couple inches from the toe.
The middle insole in green is the insole I bought last year (and has lasted because I rotate my shoes daily). It is shorter than the massaging gel and also narrower too than both of the Beyond Comfort insoles.
The last insole is the one that is the subject of this review. This is an orthotic-type insole. Do not confuse this with a genuine orthotic. It has not made specifically for your foot. It’s wider and while it looks shorter, it’s not really. A bit of the length got cropped out of the image.
Note the difference in the width in the arch and heel areas between the green and the insole on the far right. The far right one is huge. The heel cup has that gel pad, which would be great if the heel cup were narrower. Because it’s so wide it won’t fit most women’s heels properly and will throw off your gait a bit because there is not enough support in the heel cup. It’s a bit of a shifting, wobbly walk as my heel waffled around.
This is a different shot of the insoles so you can see the difference from a different view. My insole is on top of the trimmed gel insole. You see the green insole(mine) on top of the turqoise insole (Beyond Comfort Gel Insole) See the width of the insole on the bottom. That’s a lot of extra width that is the arch support. You can see where the arch support is on the green one, but you can’t see it on the turquoise one (not in this photo or in the photo above!). The arch support is much wider (inner edge of insole to almost halfway in to the arch support is on the green one longer too. My arch is shorter because my foot is shorter anatomically. The Beyond Comfort insole is geared for a man’s foot and the men will love them. For a woman with below a size 10 foot (which is most of us), it’s not going to help much because of a narrower, shorter foot. When I tried it (one time) I was not walking in a stable manner and my gait and posture had to shift to deal with more arch than it was used to as well as a too large heel box which didn’t provide me stability or support.
Here’s one more photo that shows you that the quality control is a bit off.
Here is the complete set of the 2 gel comfort insoles. This is the view of the bottom. Note the L in the circles on each insole. That indicates each are supposedly a LEFT FOOT insole– when clearly the right insole is for the right foot.
Recommendation:
Great for men at a great price. Do be aware that they are not very thick and if you use them every day without giving them a rest, they will collapse sooner.
For women size 6-8.5 (women’s size), these aren’t really meant for you, particularly if you have a narrow heel. If you have high arches, you may or may not find these help.
Additional trimming of the insole is only geared towards the toebox. It is not meant to be done on the sides of the insole or the heel cup. I took these to a shoe repair to see if they could trim them. I was told that I got the wrong size — the one for men. (!!)
NOTE:
It might sound like I am picking on this brand. Some might ask me why didn’t I contact the brand? I did– 4 times, all through Tomoson.com. Since this review was scheduled through Tomoson.com’s website, I could not use Amazon.com to get the brand’s attention. I can’t tell if the brand even saw my emails to them via the Tomoson.com platform. I know that the brand contacted me through Amazon.com to ask me what I thought about the insoles. I told them to go back through Tomoson.com to find the emails I had written to them. I never heard from them after that. I sent 2 more emails within the last 3 weeks and got no reply. I did notify Tomoson.com to see if they would reach out to the brand. I gave the lots of details about the lack of communication I was dealing with. I was instructed to post my review honestly. I am doing just that.
I would like to thank the brand for providing the insoles. I wish I hadn’t trimmed them as they suggested, because I could have given them to my husband.
Disclosure: I was given this product to test-drive. It does not affect my review other than make it possible to give an authentic and honest review of this product. This post is a review via Tomoson.com.
Stevie Wilson,
LA-Story.com
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