G8 custom orthotic insoles have had great success with performance athletes and leisure riders worldwide so we’re excited to bring them to our store. The innovative design helps with power transfer, increased blood flow and reducing foot numbness/pain. Read about our bike fitter Dan’s experience with them below:
Most customers I see need a level of arch support in their shoe; it holds the foot stable, preventing any ramifications further up the kinetic chain. Finding a perfect match to an insole is a difficult task. Approximately 25% of the bones in our body can be found in our feet and everybody’s anatomical make up is different! Why not get moulded insoles I hear you ask…
Moulded insoles are a viable solution but need to be replaced each year because feet change shape and insoles tend to deform. The G8 2620 has a removable arch support that you can adjust and replace if needed. That makes it a much more customizable and convenient option. However, where the 2620 really comes into its own it it’s functionality.
The arch piece flexes to a certain degree, depending on how much force is applied. This allows the foot to pronate and splay under load - quite different to the rigid insoles that treat your feet like levers. It proves suspension, but not enough that your foot falls asleep. In technical terms the arch piece is sending proprioceptive feedback to your brain to activate your foot muscles, similar to walking over pebbles on a beach. It is the pronating and flexing that strengthens your foot over time, giving you a stronger pedal stroke and actually allowing you to progressively move up in arch size.
Outside of bike fitting, I’ve been racing with the G8 2620 insoles since 2015 and to say that they’ve been pushed to the limits is an understatement. Banking some huge days in the saddle and surviving some biblical conditions. But the reason I stuck with them is the comfort factor. Before discovering G8 I’d toyed with everything from rigid moulded insoles to unsupportive flat insoles and I can affirm these felt the best.