When you wear any shoes or boots, you want premium cushioning and comfort. And the comfort and cushioning to your feet depend largely on the insoles of your shoes. In fact, a good pair of insoles with proper padding might even protect you from lower back pain and injuries.
Thus, many people even choose to wear two insoles for their shoes. Although it seems a bit absurd, it’s true. However, there’re questions on the usefulness of wearing two insoles. Thus, many people ask, “Is wearing two insoles bad?”
According to our research, wearing two insoles won’t negatively impact your ankle, feet, and knee as long as you wear them rightly. Also, it could be useful if you have a bigger pair of shoes or boots and you don’t want to return them. On the contrary, wearing two insoles might give you a tighter and snug feel with your regular shoes.
Therefore, you need to consider the benefits and drawbacks of wearing two insoles to decide whether or not you should use two insoles simultaneously for your shoes. Also, we will discuss the setbacks of wearing shoes without insoles.
So, stay with us and read the article if you are concerned about the health of your feet and don’t want to experience any lower and back pain.
What's Inside:
What is Shoe Insole?
If you look inside your shoe, you will find a piece of material there. It is referred to as the shoe insole. Its alternatives include inner soles and footbeds. Also, manufacturers use the insole inside the shoes to increase their wearing comfort. The better cushioning and comfort of shoe insoles will help you walk without any pain and save you from punctures and pointy elements.
Manufacturers use different materials to manufacture the shoe insoles. However, the four most common shoe insole or footbed materials are:
- Foam
- Cork
- Gel
- Leather
Each of these insoles has different properties, so their benefits vary largely. For instance, cork insoles will mold according to the shape of your feet. On the other side, gel-based insoles will be highly responsive and return the lost energy to your feet. Thus, you will feel less tired with these insoles on your shoes.
Benefits of Wearing Shoe Insoles
When you wear the insoles regularly, it relieves you from back pain. It also saves your feet from stress and fatigue during a long day of work. Thus, shoe insoles have numerous benefits. You need to know them before deciding whether or not you can use two insoles simultaneously.
Reduces foot problems
Many people suffer from different types of foot conditions, including bunions, ingrown heels, or plantar fasciitis. People with flat feet will suffer most from these problems due to improper foot movement. However, inappropriate foot patterns might also cause these foot conditions.
Thankfully, wearing an appropriate insole will relieve you from these conditions largely. A well-cushioned footbed or insole will step the overstretching of the plantar fascia. So, you will get rid of foot aches and pain in the long run.
Improves arch support
Another key benefit of shoe insoles is their improved and well-distributed arch support. If you have a flat arch, investing in a high-quality insole will be the perfect choice for you. The insole will offer better support to the flat arch, so it stops flattening the existing arch anymore.
Consequently, you will find better movement patterns and get rid of your flat arch problem. Also, it stops the arch from further flattening, so you will love its support and cushioning.
Enjoy healthy movement
When you wear an appropriate pair of insoles, it will ensure the healthy movement of your whole body. Yes, proper cushioning and the comfort of the insole will correct your foot movement. It works as a foundation for your body movement.
Thus, when you have proper insoles in your shoes, it will automatically correct your body movement. As a result, you will enjoy better posture and greatly eliminate the risk of injuries.
Performance improvement
If you are a professional athlete, having a flat arch can be deadly for you. Yes, a flat arch will impact your running and shooting performance. Thus, many athletes actually use insoles to support their flat arch. As the arch support improves, you will also see improvement in your running performance. Thus, shoe insoles will increase the running pace, and it is a great help for professional athletes and sprinters.
Relief from lower back and feet pain
Lower back and foot pain will gradually develop if you lack cushioning and comfort in your feet. So, insoles will save you from such inconvenience with better cushioning. Also, the insoles of the shoes will work like shock-absorbent. So, you can walk and run better without any pain.
What’s more, the added padding of the shoe insoles will protect the ligaments, joints, and muscles around your feet for protection from pain and stress.
Is Wearing Two Insoles Bad?
We have described the practical benefits of wearing shoe insoles. Thus, you might be tempted to wear two insoles to enhance these benefits. But can you put two insoles in shoes?
It is not bad if you want to wear two insoles and also it will not cause any foot disorder to happen. Furthermore, there are some medical conditions where you would need extra padding or cushioning in your shoes which will make you wear two insoles.
There are some situations where you would need to wear two insoles like for increasing comfort, for reducing any unusual fittings etc. So, in these situations wearing two insoles can save you from buying a new pair of boots or shoes.
So, if your pair of shoe or boot have space for one extra insole then you can definitely use it. It will never cause you any harm and any bad effect to your feet.
Reasons For Wearing Two Insoles
By now you must have completely understood that using two insoles is not a bad thing. But there would still be a question that why would someone use two insoles?
That is why we brought all the reasons for wearing two insoles in this section which will also make you think twice and make you interested in wearing two for yourself.
1. Reducing Loose Fittings
Sometimes there would be boots or shoes that you buy which feels a bit loose after a couple of months of usage. These kinds of fittings are uncomfortable to be worn for a long time.
These loose fittings tends to leave gaps and empty spaces inside and you will feel the difference while walking. You will also feel imbalanced and would want to replace the pair of shoes.
But here it comes, the usability of wearing two insoles. When you wear two insoles inside these shoes, the loose fittings will get reduced and you will regain comfort wearing those pair of shoes.
2. Reducing Foot Pains
There are some illness which causes foot pains which requires you to wear softer shoes or boots. You will have constant pain in your feet if you have these illness. So, wearing more comfortable shoe or a softer one will reduce the pain and will let you walk on those shoes for a long time.
That is why to reduce these pains people use two insoles which gives extra cushions making the shoe softer. These extra padding will help you with your foot pains and conditions.
Just you need to make sure that the both insoles are set perfectly and they are well balanced.
3. Preventing Feet Getting Wet From Sweat
Some shoes or boots don’t have proper ventilation system, which will cause your feet to sweat more. So, if your feet keeps sweating you will feel uncomfortable wearing the shoe for a long time.
That is when you can wear two insoles which will absorb the extra sweat and will not let your feet get wet. This will prevent your shoes from getting damp and will make them last long.
4. Increases Original Insoles Lifespan
Last but not the least, people uses an extra insole padding to protect the original insole of the expensive shoe. When you wear two insoles the percentage of your original insole or your shoes to get damaged is very low.
As the extra insole will reduce the pressure and stress on your shoes, the lifespan of your original insole and shoe will increase eventually.
Nonetheless, you must consider a few factors before choosing the two insoles for your shoes. Or else, it might hurt your feet. So, for the next section we have kept the top considerations for choosing two insoles.
Top Considerations for Choosing Two Insoles
When you decide to choose two insoles for your shoes, you can’t just pick any insole from the market. So, you will have to consider a few factors for it.
Material of the Insole
You need to check the different materials of the insole. It is crucial because the material of the shoe insole will largely control its effectiveness and benefits. For instance, regular EVA-foam insoles will offer better cushioning and return minimal energy to your feet. But, for maximized energy return to your feet, you should choose insoles made with gels.
Next up, if you have sweaty feet, you should avoid materials that will sweat easily. So, consider these points before choosing the insole.
Insole Design
You must check the design of the insole. It is crucial because a specific insole is made to fit a specific model or brand of shoes and boots. So, ensure that the insole you choose will fit inside your boots and shoes.
If the insole is incompatible with your shoes, it won’t fit properly. Thus, you will lose comfort with these insoles and might even face back and foot pain. It emphasizes that you choose an insole that fits properly with your shoes.
Orthopedic and Orthotic Insole
Since you will choose double insoles for shoes to combat foot conditions, you should choose orthotic insoles. Also, you might consult a podiatrist and choose the orthopedic insole according to his suggestion.
The orthotic insole is customized and supports improving body movement and patterns to relieve pain and fatigue. Henceforth, you should choose customized shoe inserts for the secondary insoles to improve your foot’s movement.
You can custom-made the orthotic inserts to fit your body anatomy and enjoy better comfort and support.
FAQs in wearing two insoles
Can I remove insoles from my shoes?
Yes, you can remove and wash the insole of your shoes. Since most shoes offer removable insoles for washing and reusable features, it is possible.
Does removing the insole of a shoe make it bigger?
Yes, when you remove the insole, your shoes will feel slightly bigger. As you remove the insole, the space occupied by the insole frees up. So, you will feel bigger even with a tight pair of shoes.
Can wearing insoles hurt your feet?
Although wearing regular insoles won’t hurt your feet, you need to be careful with customized orthotic insoles. If designed inappropriately and do not match your feet’ anatomy, these insoles might increase the pain instead of reducing it.
Do I need to break in the insoles?
Yes, you should break in the shoe insoles to prevent blisters and burns. You can break them in slowly or use a hammer to break them in quickly.
Can You Wear Shoes Without Insoles?
For experimenting one or two times you can wear your shoes without insoles, but it is never recommended to do so. Because without insoles you will get foot paint and probably cannot even stand for an hour.
Takeaways
If you consider wearing two insoles for shoes, you should know that wearing two insoles isn’t bad for your feet. In fact, when you wear two insoles, it will relieve you from pain in your feet and lower back. Also, it boosts the running performance and pace of the athletes too. Last but not least, people with foot conditions will love the cushioning and comfort of wearing two insoles for sure.
Hello, I’m Kristin, the founder and main author of footwearsfact.com. I’ve been working as a footwear designer and have built a keen interest in different footwear problems, suggestions, and designing. I hope I’ll be able to serve your needs with my skillful team member.