Shoes!

NOTE: No blog post next week; I’ll be teaching at AQS Grand rapids.

I almost get more questions about shoes and feet than quilts! In the last 8 years I have had to “reshoe” my entire shoe wardrobe 4 times to accommodate my then-current foot condition. That is expensive and an unpleasant process as I search for cute but comfy-for-me shoes. I still cling to cute as much as possible. Apparently many of my readers have foot issues too, so I decided to write about what I’ve done.

I have had plantar fasciitis, as well as a general condition of not enough natural cushioning on the bottom of my feet, and a plantar muscle that is oddly placed. Apparently all the walking I have done has worn down some of my natural cushioning. So here’s my story which I tell because so many have asked. This is not meant to be a recommendation to you; I’m just sharing my journey.

I have walked for pleasure/fitness for 40 years, most of that time 3 miles/day or more, plus all the normal walking of a day. I LOVE to walk and I walk in the wee hours with the owls, stars, and raccoons. It is just my nature that I put in, even now with foot issues, well over 10,000 steps almost every single day. I have always bought quality walking shoes and promptly replaced the included foot bed with one that had greater cushioning and support. I replace shoes when they begin to wear out. I visit a podiatrist more often than my GP. I’ve researched and used a variety of modalities and gizmos and foot exercises. And I’ve taken good care of my feet, but I have put a lot of miles on them.

So here we are, the only shoes that currently work for me. My feet are recovering and I expect to be back to my normal when my feet decide it is time. I am positively thrilled that I recovered from plantar fasciitus last fall. This is a very short list of all that I can wear right now :

The butt ugly ones on the left (Ooofa) are of course, the most wearable. I can wear them all day and put in over 10,000 steps. The white, good for maybe 8,000. The two on the right I call the “U5” class, shoes that I can wear comfortably for less than 5,000 steps. I have other U5 shoes not in the photo that are relatively cute.

And a recent addition; I have not yet determined their usefulness:

Vionics. Not all Vionics work for me and I’m not sure about these yet, but DANG, they are cute!! Annoying trend I have noticed lately, see how the tongue barely clears the top lace? That makes it hard to tug the tongue into its proper place. I see this a lot. Does that extra half inch really save them that much money?

Just in case you are curious:

Yes, I have Good Feet inserts as well as podiatrist proscribed inserts. I have resolved to accept that shoes that work for me are expensive. There is no getting around it. I don’t care about the label, not looking for status labels, looking for comfort. The brown shoes on the right are Veronica Beard, a high end fashion label. I don’t give one whit about the label, but I have learned to NOT discriminate just because it is a fashion label. The guy who helps me at Nordstrom’s showed me a pair of Paul Green’s that he thought would work, but they were $420! I would not try them on; that is a bridge too far.

Hear me on this – I have specific and unusual problems that include not enough natural cushioning and an oddly attached plantar muscle. I can almost guarantee that what works for you will not work for me, because I have tried them all. So I am not looking for recommendations. Almost all of the typical geriatric comfort shoes do not work for me. I search for the Unicorn of all shoes. I can fully expect to continue to walk a lot as long as I wear the right shoes. I am teaching and judging next week at AQS Grand Rapids and I’m thrilled that my feet are currently fine in this set of shoes. And they are healing and getting better.

There ya go, you asked! I’ll be linking up:
Nina-Marie’s Off the Wall Friday