When the much-hyped Nike Mind shoes were released in January, I bought a pair. I was grabbed by the idea that the orange nodules on the sole could, supposedly, focus the mind. The futuristic look of the shoe also appeals. If walking on knobbly things took a bit of getting used to, it was worth it – if only for that irresistible fashion smugness of having something rare. In the last week, I have been stopped in the street and asked where I got the shoes. It turns out they are now out of stock and have sold for over £300 on resale site Goat.
The Mind is part of a wider trend in “exercise slides”, a pre-game shoe designed to ground you ahead of your chosen activity. Nike claim that the 22 nodules on the sole stimulate the mechanoreceptors on your feet, engaging the sensory area of your brain, meaning focus is heightened. Meanwhile, recovery slides made by brands such as Hoka and Oofos use cushioned soles and a shape that cradles the foot to helpfight foot fatigue after a lot of exercise. The Mind are worn by footballers including Erling Haaland and Reece James, runner Keely Hodgkinson and basketball players Victor Wembanyama and A’ja Wilson, while ballerina Francesca Hayward namechecks Hoka’s slides as part of her daily routine.
Of course, the connection between footwear and sport isn’t always purely about function. This month, Crocs partnered with Umbro on a pair of slides that combine the clog shape with the look of a football boot – just because. And American brand Literary Sport have previously styled their design-led activewear with what look like recovery shoes. So: in a world where the ugly shoe is now an established category, could the exercise slide be next in line?
Tom Barker, style editor at Highsnobiety, thinks they have stiff competition in the world of ugly shoes. Consider the Vibram FiveFingers barefoot shoes – originally created for hikers, with a “pocket” for each toe – that are now being worn with cult brands Damson Madder and Peachy Den by people in south-east London drinking skin-contact wine.
“In a time when people are wearing toe shoes, these kind of shoes don’t actually feel that out there,” he says. The Mind 002 collaboration with the brand Fragment – the same sole but with a sneaker upper-covered in cross-hatched lacing – has a chance, though. “That version has the right amount of freaky and weird that it could catch on,” he says. “The normal Nike Mind, as futuristic as it is, looks a little bit like something someone’s made in the lab. It’s very tech oriented.”
There’s little doubt that shoe trends have leaned towards the absurd this century, moving from the relative calm of so-called dad trainers to Martine Rose’s mule Nike Shox, Balenciaga’s oversized 10XL sneakers, and surprising hit hybrids like the snoafer (a mix of sneaker and loafer) and the sneakerina. While some of this might be down to designers’ desire to create the latest viral item, it also reflects the foregrounding of footwear in what most of us wear. Shoes are far from the afterthought of an outfit now – they’re becoming a main character.
If the exercise slide might not win the ugly shoe competition, it could still take off this summer thanks to the boom in running – and its impact on our wardrobes. Whether that’s through a Harry Styles-approved pair of running shorts reworked with a band T-shirt, or run club merch worn way beyond parks, this is a case of lifestyle influencing fashion. “People are wearing [exercise slides] as casual shoes a little bit, but the flip side of that is everyone’s running, it’s not just a pure style thing,” says Barker. “There’s a niche there of people who want nice-looking recovery shoes because everyone and their nan is doing a half marathon.” Put simply, they appeal equally to those still suffering from runner’s toe from the London Marathon, those gearing up for Sunday’s Hackney Half and non-runners concerned with aesthetics, like me.
Ali Ball, the e-commerce director at Runner’s World, sees the shoes as part of a wider trend, with consumers buying into all aspects of their run. “People are investing more in running kit these days, so may be more willing to spend money on extra accessories,” she says. While she has seen a growth of recovery slides for post-race, those who run the races regularly tend to use more tried and tested options: “A lot of [marathon runners] wear Crocs, general sliders, Birkenstocks etc – anything that feels more comfortable and cushioned than a regular shoe.”
But do they even work? And could they be doing more harm than good? Dr Helen Branthwaite, chief clinical adviser at the Royal College of Podiatry, says there’s little evidence either way as yet, but one rule of thumb remains: don’t wear any shoe for an extended period of time. “We know through research [that] if you have a varied choice of footwear, you’ve got a much healthier foot,” she says.
Experts are not convinced by the Mind shoes. Branthwaite says nodules on the sole are not new – she points to similar ones on shoes from Japan, and the Arena pool slides popular in the 70s – but they do have some logic. “If you stimulate the mechanoreceptors in patients with diseases like Parkinson’s [who have lost sensation in their feet] it does bring back some better function.” However, she is skeptical that the bumpy texture will mean more mental focus in the long-term: “If you think of having a pebble in your shoe, after a period of time you get used to it.”
Ball agrees. “Everyone is looking at ways they can improve or get faster,” she says. “I would just urge people to remember that there are other things you can focus on to improve your time – pre- and mid-race fuelling, strength training, for example. Slides won’t magically make you a faster runner.” Or, if you’re like me, clock in a personal best on your next stroll to the pub.
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