139 Reports of Skechers Shape-ups Injuries Filed
Complaints regarding the popular Skechers Shape-ups have been formally reported on the online database Safer Products.gov, as early as April of last year. As of today, there are over 130 complaints filed by consumers who have been seriously injured whilst walking in their Skechers Shape-ups. Toning shoes hit the market, promising unbelievably amazing results to wearers with minimal effort. Skechers Shape-ups and similar toning shoes were a hit across the America, millions of people of all ages bought the shoes. In recent months, independent studies found no measurable benefits from wearing toning shoes, but the number of injury reports are raising concerns regarding the safety of these products.
Dangerously Designed Rocker Bottom Soles
All toning shoes sport a thick, rounded, and soft heel, designed to create "micro instability," forcing the wearer's muscles to work overtime to take steps and maintain upright. While the overworked muscles are the basis of Skechers' claim that the Shape-ups can increase fitness simply by walking, the repeated incidents of injured consumers are indicating that the sole design may actually be dangerous. Consumer Reports reviewed the product and advised persons with balance issues or pre-existing bone conditions to avoid using the shoes altogether.
Shape-ups Related Injuries
Because toning shoes like Shape-ups force the body to distribute its weight in an unnatural fashion, the strain causes back, knee, and hip pain for many wearers. In addition, the change in posture puts excessive pressure on the hips and ankles that overtime fractures may develop. Other injuries that have been reported in regards to Skechers Shape-ups include:
- Broken bones
- Achilles tendinitis
- Dislocated hips
- Torn muscles, tendons, and ligaments
Skechers Product Liability
When companies endanger the safety of consumers by manufacturing, marketing, and distributing dangerous products, injured consumers maintain the right to seek compensation from the parties responsible. The lack of any safety tests for a product that forces the body beyond the boundaries of natural movement is egregiously negligent. According to foot experts Wendy Tyrrell and Gwenda Carter, rocker bottom soles should be prescribed only for specific foot conditions, and many other podiatrists have also agreed that the rocker bottom soles can be potentially dangerous to wearers. To mass-produce and market prescription style shoes without any safety tests was irresponsible, and is the reason why dozens of people suffered irreparable injuries.
Consult a Skechers Shape-ups Injury Lawyer
Speak to a professional product liability lawyer today regarding your potential case. At Estey Bomberger, our Skechers Shape-ups injury lawyers have already filed a class action suit on behalf of 37 claimants who have been seriously injured as a result of this dangerous product. Call us today at (800) 890-6722 to schedule a free consultation.
Curved soled toning shoes, like Skechers Shape-ups, promise to get people in shape just by wearing them while walking. Toning shoe's curved sole or "rocker bottom" supposedly forces the wearer to use muscles not normally used by creating an unstable walking surface. Walking in a toning shoe has been compared to balancing on a wobble board or walking on soft sand. Despite manufacturers' claims of improved muscle tone, recent studies released by the American Council on Exercise and Consumer Reports found toning shoes did not provide superior fitness benefits and in some cases, were responsible for causing serious injuries, such as broken bone injuries. 
Researchers at the American Council on Exercise and the Exercise and Health Program at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse, found no evidence to support the claims that Skechers Shape-ups or any other type of toning shoe helps wearers burn more calories or improve muscle tone. In fact, researchers concluded that toning shoes could be dangerous, especially for individuals suffering from gait issues, balance problems or loss of sensation in their feet. 
Toning shoes are not without controversy and concern. While advocates insist the shoes are effective and safe, critics are dubious as to whether the shoes actually burn calories, and actually are safe to wear. Now Skechers is marketing the trendy exercise shoes to girls as young as seven years old. A commercial running on children's channels such as Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon shoes a group of slim, in-shape young cartoon girls wearing Shape-ups, with one girl being chased by out-of-shape boys dressed as hot dogs, ice-cream and cupcakes. 
