A cushioning or padding body for insertion into footwear, a method of manufacturing the body and a method for the simultaneous manufacture and exact fitting of the body to the respective shape of a corresponding part of the foot of the wearer are related. The body comprises a plurality of individual foam material beads alone or a mixture of a plurality of individual foam material beads and a resiliently cushioning, thermoplastically non-deformable plastic material. The beads are each provided with a closed surface and each is generally impermeable to air. The beads are fixed in their position relative to each other by the effect of that.