AdjAir

Adjustable Air cushioning, running shoe series

The idea for an air-adjustable running shoe started with a simple moment. I picked up a basketball and compressed it in my hands. When it bounced back, it had more energy and responsiveness than any foam running shoe I had used.

That moment exposed a gap.

Most running shoes rely on foam. Foam works well at first, but it degrades. With use, it loses responsiveness, forcing runners to replace shoes or rotate between pairs to maintain performance.

Air behaves differently.

When air is sealed inside a controlled system, it doesn’t break down the same way foam does. Its properties remain consistent under repeated compression. That led to a question:

What if cushioning didn’t come from foam—but from pressurized air?

The concept became a sealed air system inside the shoe, where pressure could be adjusted to change how the shoe feels—softer, firmer, more responsive.

But a single air chamber creates instability. It would compress unevenly and reduce control while running.

So the system has to evolve:
Instead of one chamber, the shoe would use multiple air pods placed in specific zones. Each pod would manage pressure and compression independently, creating both cushioning and stability.

Once the idea was clear, progress stalled.

I assumed clarity would come from stepping back. It didn’t.
For me, clarity comes from movement—thinking while doing, not before.

So I shifted.

Instead of waiting to “figure it out,” I started acting:

• sending concept descriptions to manufacturers

• outlining dimensions and specifications

• contacting material suppliers

But that exposed a problem.

I was trying to move too far ahead without a foundation. Manufacturers expect something concrete. I didn’t have that yet.

So I reset the approach.

Nike didn’t start in a lab. Nike started with prototypes.

That became the direction:
Build first. Refine later.

I accepted a constraint:
The first version would not be good. It only needed to exist.

So I needed a base.

Instead of designing a full shoe from scratch, I used what I already had—a worn pair of running shoe with dead cushioning but intact structure and tread. That gave me something stable to build on.

From there, I redefined the system.

Inside Notion, I broke the shoe into components:

• air chambers

• tubing

• manifold

For each part, I defined:

• requirements

• possible materials

• how it would be built

• how to connect them together

• what tools were needed

That created a working plan.

Then reality hit again.

When sourcing parts:

• suppliers didn’t understand what I was asking for

• or required large, expensive orders

That forced another adjustment.

Instead of ideal materials, I chose accessible ones—good enough to test the concept, not perfect.

So I simplified:

• tubing and valves for the manifold from Amazon

• inner tubes for the air chambers from Alibaba

• tools sourced locally

Now the system was real enough to build.

Execution started.

Some parts arrived. Others didn’t.
The inner tubes were delayed and shipped to the wrong location.

So i started working on the pod placement.

looking up foot bone structures, putting in peer experiences with shoes and pain spots, and my own experience to create a pod layout for the shoe.

This is what i came up with.

The letters represent the air pressure of those pods.

➡️

Now I’m waiting for the final materials to arrive before starting the first physical prototype.

That’s the current state:
The idea is no longer abstract.