Shoe Lifts Explained: Internal Inserts, External Lifts, and What "External" Really Means

Step Rite Shoe Lifts

An internal lift is a wedge inside the shoe under the heel and works for a half inch or less. An external lift is built into the sole of the shoe itself, at the heel and the ball, so any height can be corrected and the shoe rolls normally. It is color matched to the original sole.

The internal lift

A wedge of firm foam or cork under the heel, inside the shoe. It works for small amounts in a closed shoe with room in the heel. Above about a half inch it pushes the heel up out of the shoe and tips the foot forward.

The external lift, step by step

We split the sole of the shoe just above the outsole. We add the lift material at the height you were prescribed, at the heel and the ball. We round the toe so the shoe rolls through the step. We match the color to the original sole and finish the edges so the profile looks like the shoe. Lifts over three quarters of an inch are honeycombed to keep them light.

What "external" gets you

Any height. Sandals, slippers, and open shoes. The foot at its normal pitch. And a shoe that people do not notice.

"Color match was great! You can barely tell a difference."Crystal Prose