Stuffitts Review! Have my stinky sneakers found respite at last?

STINKY FEET. SMELLY SHOES.
Yes, those are my nicknames along with "Michele the Gazelle." Not nearly as 'cool', but there it is.  In fact my sneakers used to smell SO badly in college that my roommates used to 'lock' them in the bathroom so as to minimize their offensiveness!

Flash forward a few years...one of my apt. roommates bought me baking powder to sprinkle in my shoes because...you guessed it!  They stunk.  I too, noticed a pattern.  Unfortunately at that point there weren't a lot of options aside from shoving newspapers into my shoes.  This is a great trick which actually DOES help dry them out but unfortunately doesn't eliminate the stink! Plus, being in the digital age I don't always happen to have newspapers laying around to stuff in my shoes. Ok, ok and I'm being a dork. The newspapers SMELLED after I took them out. Ew.

Well, enter a good friendship I've developed with fellow triathlete/runner IronBrandon (who is getting ready for IM Louisville!).  Brandon was offering a random contest featuring a pair of Stuffitts as the prize.  Knowing my boyfriend would indeed love my sneakers to be less smelly during triathlon training, I entered the contest.  Lo and behold, I won!  After a very very speedy e-mail exchange and just a few days later, my red Stuffitts arrived!

Visual Impression:
When I first saw them, I admit.  I was a little doubtful.  My stinky feet/shoes are legendary.  The Stuffits looked pretty harmless, they were even soft!  And yes, they are red. I like red.




Practical Impression:

Another thing I noticed is that the zipper on the side meant you could remove the fabric cover and wash them!  I was a bit relieved when I saw this because unlike the insoles that I have in my running shoes (which have no way of being really washed) Stuffitts would be easy to clean. To be sure, I removed the entire cover and put the cedar core back in.  Ok, that was easy.

Practical Impression #2. 
The 100% eastern red cedar core was NOT overwhelming.  It's slightly woodsy, but the nice kind that makes you think of long trail runs and hiking.  No chemical intensity or super-powerful smell (unlike the foot sprays you get in your local drug store). 

Practical Impression #3
They FIT inside my shoe.  This might seem obvious, but Stuffitts have to be able to fit into the contour of many shoes and the fit in quite easily even with my insole inserts. 

The Test
My Newtons are a little...beat up.  Training for a 1/2 Ironman puts some serious time into them. They're my only pair of running shoes (bad Michele, I know!) But since they are and I wouldn't dare throw them into a washing machine for fear of warping and distortion, I thought that these would be a great testing 'ground' for Stuffitts.   If Stuffitts could work on these bad boys, then they'll most likely work on any shoe!

12-mile run later, I cast off my shoes (much to the chagrin of my nose-wrinkling boyfriend) and pop the Stuffitts right in.

The next morning: Well, since people don't normally WANT  to sniff their sneakers up close I really wasn't a fan of this part!  And....nothing. No stink!  Normally I don't say "honey, SMELL MY SHOES" But I did.

Verdict:
Do my shoes smell brand new?  Well, no. I've run many MANY miles in them. However, they smell a heck of a lot better than they did before!  Boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands, wives and family remembers rejoice.  Stuffitts are one stocking stuffer you'll want to include for your athlete.