Many of my clients are picky about their footwear in order to ensure foot comfort. Their ages range from 30 to 80 and their foot issues run the gamut. From bunions, hammer toes and foot bones that are prone to blistering, to plantar fasciitis, arch pain, burning balls of the feet, Raynaud’s and ultra narrow heels that slip out of shoes. Some have extremely high insteps and arches that make footwear hard to fit. Some have pinky toes that slip out of sandals. Some need footwear that is wider than a size WW, which makes dressy shoes a very tall order. And some need to fit custom-made orthotics into their shoes.
I GET IT.
Count me in as someone who finds it hard to find comfortable shoes. As a result, a fair amount of my time shopping with clients is spent finding the right shoes. We scour stores, place lots of online orders, experiment, road-test, and eventually — with patience, tenacity and bit of luck — find fab looking footwear that ticks all the boxes and goes the distance. Then we duplicate when we can.
We also use all sorts of footwear tools and tricks like stretching kits and techniques, BodyGlide, cushioning insoles, inserts, moleskin, heel grips, support socks, foot petals, corn cushions and no-show socks to make shoes even more comfortable.
If you’re having ongoing foot issues and foot pain that you can’t seem to solve on your own, seek advice and guidance from a professional like a GP, physician or podiatrist. There’s also an interesting thread in the forum about members seeing chiropractors, physical therapists, neurologists and acupuncturists to solve foot issues.
Feel free to share your foot issues and how you solved them in the comments section.