The Mid-Flex Leather is our Mid-Flex support, topped with a compact, lightweight cushion and covered with luxurious leather for the ultimate in comfort. Designed to fit comfortably in most dress and athletic shoes, the Mid-Flex Leather is the perfect companion for the athlete who needs a support that will stand up to the rigor of their sport, without interfering with the natural motions of the athletically active foot. Though the Mid-Flex Leather is strong enough to support all four arches of the middle- to high-arched foot, its sleek profile accommodates even tighter dress shoes. With the aid of Velcro®, the Mid-Flex can easily fit into your favorite open-heeled shoes and sandals!
Flexibility: Medium
The Mid-Flex Leather is also named for its flexibility, which is the medium, or “middle,” flexibility level available in Maintainers. The sturdy material of the Mid-Flex Leather makes it ideal for customers with arches of average height and flexibility, who stand or walk for extended periods of time.
What’s in a Mid-Flex Leather?
Leather Covering
Our leather-enhanced Maintainers are covered with an eighth-inch of shock-absorbing comfort foam, finished with a durable layer of supple top-grain leather. The Mid-Flex Leather’s covering is available in a stylish midnight black.
Far from being merely a luxury, the leather covering of the Mid-Flex Leather serves an important biomechanical purpose. It is the first line of defense for feet that need a little extra shock absorption to help prevent inflammation of ligaments or pain due to excess pressure. Most customers find our leather-enhanced Maintainers to be the perfect companions in dress shoes and sandals, as they provide all the support and comfort a properly aligned body requires, without the need for a bulky cushion to cover the entire support.
Metatarsal Rise
The “toes” end of the Mid-Flex Leather features a small lump. This is called the “metatarsal rise,” and it is designed to help take pressure off the ball of the foot and the toes every time the foot takes a step.
What Does It Do, And How Can It Help?
By properly supporting the metatarsal arch, the metatarsal rise lifts up the bones in the ball of the foot, effectively preventing them from hitting the ground too hard every time the foot pushes off for a step. This means that the metatarsal rise in the Mid-Flex Leather can help reduce pain caused by corns, calluses, and excess pressure on the ball of the foot.
The metatarsal rise on the Mid-Flex Leather is much less aggressive than the same feature in the Exerciser arch supports. The Mid-Flex Leather’s metatarsal rise is designed to provide support to the active foot, preventing the ball of the foot from hitting the ground too hard, and distributing pressure away from the toes. Due to its strong construction, the Mid-Flex Leather can significantly reduce the pressure caused to the foot by impact during high-contact sports.
The metatarsal rise on the Mid-Flex Leather helps to support the ligaments and tendons in the forefoot, as the entire foot works during strenuous or sports activities. The Mid-Flex Leather’s metatarsal rise helps to maintain the forefoot in the ideal pressure-distribution pattern, by properly dispersing body weight through the foot with each step. This means that the metatarsal rise on the Mid-Flex Leather can significantly improve sports performance, by ensuring that the active foot is stable, even while pivoting from the ball of the foot.
Heel Platform
The heel end of the Mid-Flex Leather is a “heel platform;” a tapered end that fits the shape of the heel, yet does not cup the fatty pad of the heel to align each step. The heel platform helps to support the transverse arch, while allowing enough freedom for the heel to roll and twist naturally during sports and leisure activities.
What Does It Do, And How Can It Help?
The heel platform of the Mid-Flex Leather supports the Transverse arch, which is located in front of the heel. This arch includes a sensitive spot where the very important Plantar Fascia ligament connects to the heel bone. By supporting the transverse arch, the Mid-Flex Leather can help protect the heel against inflammation of the Plantar Fascia ligament, while still allowing the foot the freedom it needs to perform during sports or leisure activities.
Though it supports the heel during gait, the heel platform on the Mid-Flex Leather is primarily designed to maintain the foot in the ideal position, for proper distribution of body weight during gait. Because the heel platform on the Mid-Flex Leather allows the heel to move, it is ideal for use during sports that require the foot to roll or propel the body from side to side, such as tennis or basketball.
The lower profile of the heel platform allows the Mid-Flex Leather to fit comfortably in open-heeled dress shoes, with the aid of some Good Feet Velcro attached to the bottom of the support. Very many happy customers use the Mid-Flex Leather every day to ensure all four arches of each foot are supported in all of their fashion-forward shoes. The Mid-Flex Leather is also popular with soldiers, and athletes looking for a comfortable edge on the competition.
Inner And Outer Longitudinal Arch Support
The Mid-Flex Leather also features support for the inner and outer arches of the feet. These are designed to stabilize the foot during gait, to help prevent it rolling inward or outward with each step. As an arch support of middle flexibility, the Mid-Flex Leather gently sustains the proper alignment of the flexible foot, while still promoting healthy freedom of motion for the active foot.
What Does It Do, And How Does It Help?
By supporting all four arches of the foot, the Mid-Flex Leather helps to properly distribute pressure through the entire foot, thereby preventing any one part of the foot from taking on too much pressure. This can help alleviate pain in areas of the foot that are straining under too much stress.
The Mid-Flex Leather’s inner and outer longitudinal arches stabilize the foot during gait, helping to prevent pronation and supination (rolling inward or outward). By stabilizing the foot, the Mid-Flex Leather helps to promote proper gait, thereby reducing excess stress in the ankles, knees and hips. The Mid-Flex Leather’s medium flexibility level makes it the perfect Maintainer for those who need moderate motion-control in their dress and athletic shoes.
As part of a complete Good Feet Arch Support System, the Mid-Flex Leather is ideal for:
- Walking
Weightlifting
Working (boots, shoes, etc.)
Running and contact sports
Leisure, casual and dress shoes
