Exercise shoe

An exercise shoe (10) has an upper (14) and a sole (18) fastened to the upper. The sole (18) has first and second impervious, surface gripping portions (20, 22). The portions (20, 22) are separated by a third, moisture-penetrable fabric sole portion (24). The interior of the shoe (10) includes a terrycloth layer (54) for moisture absorption. An ankle strap (26) extends from upper rear (32) of heel (34), forward around a wearer's ankle (36) above the shoe (10). A body (56) of cushioning material is located between the terrycloth layer (54) and sole (18). Cushioning body (56) terminates at (58), behind a wearer's toes (60) and protects ball (62) of a wearer's foot (12).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
This invention relates to a novel exercise shoe especially adapted for 
aerobic exercises and gymnastic routines. More particularly, it relates to 
improvements in sole, insole, and upper construction of an exercise shoe, 
which is especially adapted for aerobic dancing exercises and gymnastic 
routines, but which may be used for other types of exercises as well. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
There is a wide variety of exercise shoe and related designs known in the 
prior art. For example, the following issued U.S. patents disclose various 
exercise shoe and related designs: U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,154,054; 2,619,743; 
2,683,316; 3,793,748; 4,254,563; 4,272,899; 4,277,897; and 4,294,023. 
Particularly with current increased interest in exercise and physical 
fitness, there is a corresponding increased interest in exercise shoe 
designs. 
A comparatively recent phenomenon has been the development of aerobic 
dancing exercise sessions, such as commercially available under the 
"Jazzercise" name, and similar programs. Aerobic dance routines 
incorporate certain characteristic foot movements which vary for different 
routines. Also, many of these movements are also performed in other forms 
of exercise, including various gymnastic routines, competition beam, 
floor, jumping, and the like. 
While the art relating to exercise shoe designs is a well developed one, a 
need remains for further improvements in shoe design for carrying out 
these and related exercises. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an exercise shoe 
design especially adapted for aerobic dancing and gymnastic routines. 
It is another object of the invention to provide such an exercise shoe 
which will provide an increased level of protection against foot, lower 
leg and knee injury, without interfering with effective performance of 
aerobic dance and gymnastic movements. 
It is another object of the invention to provide an exercise shoe with an 
improved sole design that provides enhanced gripping of surfaces contacted 
by the sole, while allowing a wearer's feet to feel a surface on which 
exercise routines are being performed. 
It is a further object of the invention to provide an exercise shoe with 
enhanced protection for fat pads under each bone of the ball of the foot, 
while allowing a wearer's toes to feel a surface on which exercise 
routines are performed. 
It is a still further object of the invention to provide an exercise shoe 
in which a wearer's feet are less prone to become overheated during 
strenuous exercise routines. 
It is yet another object of the invention to provide an exercise shoe with 
improved retention in a proper position on a wearer's foot during 
strenuous exercise routines. 
The attainment of these and related objects may be achieved through use of 
the novel exercise shoe herein disclosed. In one aspect of the invention, 
an exercise shoe in accordance with the invention has an upper and a sole 
fastened to the upper. The sole has first and second impervious, surface 
gripping sole portions. The first and second sole portions are separated 
by a third, moisture penetrable fabric sole portion. In another aspect of 
the invention, an exercise shoe in accordance with the invention has an 
upper and a sole fastened to the upper. A soft, absorbent fabric inner 
layer, such as a terrycloth inner layer, is placed inside the shoe to 
contact a wearer's foot. In another aspect of the invention, the exercise 
shoe has an ankle strap extending from an upper rear heel portion of the 
shoe upper. The strap is dimensioned and configured to extend from the 
upper rear heel portion forward around a wearer's ankle above the shoe. In 
a further aspect of the invention the shoe upper is formed of a soft 
material and has a stiff material heel reinforcement applied to opposing 
upper outside edges of a heel portion of the upper. Another aspect of the 
invention is a body of cushioning material positioned to be between the 
sole and at least a ball of a wearer's foot. The cushioning material 
terminates short of a toe end of the shoe. A still further aspect of the 
invention includes a pocket on the body of the cushioning material 
positioned and configured to contain a removable arch support. An arch 
support is removably inserted in the pocket. Improved exercise shoe 
designs in accordance with the invention desirably incorporate various 
combinations of the above features. 
The attainment of the foregoing and related objects, advantages and 
features of the invention should be more readily apparent to those skilled 
in the art, after review of the following more detailed description of the 
invention, taken together with the drawings, in which:

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Turning now to the drawings, more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is 
shown an exercise shoe 10 in accordance with the invention in place on a 
wearer's foot 12. The shoe 10 has a soft fabric or animal skin, i.e., 
leather upper 14 sewed or otherwise fastened around its bottom 16 to a 
porous, soft fabric or animal skin sole 18. Rubber or similar smooth, 
surface gripping material sections 20 and 22 are respectively adhesively 
bonded to the heel and ball through toe areas of the sole 18. In practice, 
the sections 20 and 22 may be fabricated by placing thin rings of rubber 
at the heel and ball of sole 18, then covering the rings with a layer of 
rubber cement to give the finished sections 20 and 22. Rubber sections 20 
and 22 may also simply be cemented in place. The center portion 24 of the 
sole 18 is left exposed. If desired, the fabric center portion 24 may have 
small rubber or similar nodules 25 on its surface, for enhanced gripping 
of exercise surfaces. An elastic ankle strap 26 has two ends 28 and 30 
fastened to the upper rear 32 of heel portion 34 of the upper 14, to form 
a loop of the elastic material. If desired, the ankle strap may be 
separated into two portions which fasten together around the wearer's 
ankle 36. As shown, the ankle strap 26 extends forward from the upper rear 
32 of heel 34 around the wearer's ankle 36 above shoe 10. Crossing straps 
38 and 40 are respectively fastened at 42 and 44 and 46 and 48 to opposing 
sides 50 and 52 of the upper 14. 
In the interior of the shoe 10, a terrycloth or other soft absorbent fabric 
inner sole 54 contacts the bottom of the wearer's foot 12. A body 56 of 
commercially available EVA medium density cushioning material is 
positioned between the inner sole 54 and sole 18. The cushioning body 56 
terminates at 58, behind the wearer's toes 60. In the form shown, the body 
56 extends over the remainder of sole 18, but it need only cover ball 62 
of the wearer's foot 12, in order to protect natural fat pads located 
under each bone in the ball 62 of the wearer's foot. The wearer's toes 60 
are able to feel a floor or other surface on which exercise routines are 
performed while wearing the shoe 10. 
In use, the ankle strap 26 serves to retain the heel 34 of the shoe 10 in 
proper position during the execution of strenuous routines, especially 
those involving a substantial amount of stretching. The straps 38 and 40 
further aid in retaining the shoe 10 in the proper position on foot 12. 
The terrycloth inner sole 54 absorbs moisture to keep the foot dry during 
strenuous activity. The sections 20 and 22 provide improved gripping of 
smooth surfaces on which exercises are performed. The exposed center 
portion 24 of the sole 18 provides a different type of surface contact, 
desirable for other types of exercise surfaces and certain exercise 
routines. The ability of the wearer to feel exercise surfaces with toes 60 
is advantageous for certain aerobic dance and gymnastic routines. 
Turning now to FIGS. 3-7, another exercise shoe 80 in accordance with the 
invention is shown. Upper 82 of the shoe 80 wraps around for attachment to 
sole 84 of the shoe 80. As in the FIGS. 1-2 embodiment, the upper 82 is 
formed from a soft, porous fabric or animal skin. The sole 84 is formed 
from a textured, pliable, non-skid material, such as rubber. Sole 84 
should provide a non-skid sole with a minimum restriction of movement. 
Upper 82 of the shoe 80 has a plurality of air holes 86 located in toe 88 
and arch 90 of the shoe. Upper 82 incorporates a conventional lace closure 
92 with reinforced eyelets 94, and a cushioned tongue 96. Heel 98 of the 
shoe 80 has reinforcing portions 100 of a strong, stiff material, such as 
vinyl or other plastic stitched to the outside of upper 82. An additional 
strip 102 of the stiff reinforcing material extends from top 104 of heel 
98 to sole 84. 
In the interior of shoe 80, a terrycloth or other soft, absorbent fabric 
layer 106 is provided on the interior sides of the shoe for moisture 
absorption. A body 108 of EVA medium density cushioning material is 
provided between the sole 84 and a wearer's foot, as in the FIG. 1-2 shoe. 
The body 108 also terminates behind a wearer's toes, in order to allow the 
wearer to feel an exercise surface with the toes. A commercially available 
Spenco type insole 114 is provided over the cushioning body 108. The 
Spenco insole 114 has a top layer of soft, light weight, woven fabric and 
a bottom layer of spongy, non-compressable rubber, which absorbs a large 
proportion of all shock transmitted into the shoe during use. A 
stretchable, absorbent fabric pocket 110 is fastened to the upper surface 
of body 108. Alternatively, the fabric pocket 110 can form part of the 
insole 114, facing the cushioning body 108. A non-compressable, 
cork-rubber composite arch support 112 is inserted in the fabric pocket 
110. The arch support 112 is removable, so that different sized arch 
supports can be provided for different arch configurations. The fabric 
pocket 110 is desirably formed from stretchable terrycloth, and the arch 
support 112 is fabricated from commercially available Korex or similar 
cork-rubber material. 
In use, the heel reinforcements 100 and 102 assist conventional closure 92 
in retaining the shoe 80 in proper position on the wearer's foot. Both the 
shock absorbent insole 114 and the cushioning body 108 protect the fat 
pads of the wearer's foot. The variable thickness arch support 112 allows 
better fit of the shoe to different feet. The wraparound upper 82 
alleviates ankle injury due to rolling off of shoes with a conventional 
sole design. The terrycloth lining 106, terrycloth arch support pocket 110 
and the air holes 86 remove moisture from the wearer's foot. 
It should now be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that a novel 
exercise shoe design capable of achieving the stated objects of the 
invention has been provided. The shoe of this invention provides an 
increased level of protection against foot, lower leg and knee injury, 
without interfering with effective performance of aerobic dance and 
gymnastic movements. The shoe incorporates an improved sole design and 
shock protection that provides enhanced gripping of surfaces contacted by 
the sole, while allowing a wearer's foot to feel a surface on which 
exercise routines are being performed. The shoe incorporates structure to 
provide improved retention in a proper position on a wearer's foot during 
strenuous exercise routines. The shoe construction also reduces 
overheating and moisture on the wearer's foot during such routines. While 
the features of an exercise shoe in accordance with this invention make it 
especially adapted for aerobic dancing and gymnastic routines, the 
desirable features of this shoe should find wide application in other 
environments as well. 
It should further be apparent to those skilled in the art that various 
changes in form and details of the invention as shown and described may be 
made. It is intended that such changes be included within the spirit and 
scope of the claims appended hereto.