Buying proper fitting shoes is not an easy task. But if you follow a few basic steps (no pun intended) you can insure you have shoes that not only look nice, but are healthy for your feet as well. Here are the basics:
1: Purchase shoes later in the day. I tell my patients to go shopping for shoes in the middle afternoon to evening. Blood pools in our feet during the day so are feet are generally larger in the afternoon and evening then in the morning.
2: Have your feet measured routinely. I already wrote a post regarding this issue, but I recommend after the age of 40 you should measure your feet every couple of years. For infants, juveniles, and adolescents who have not reached skeletal maturity of the foot (an x-ray by a Podiatrist can tell you if your child has or not), I recommend annually.
3: Wear the appropriate sock or stocking. This is common sense but I see people buying athletic shoes after work with dress socks or stocking on their feet. Take a pair of athletic socks with you or some stores have slip on socks so you can try on shoes.
4: Evaluate the toe break. Take the shoe you are wanting to purchase and hold the heel placing the toe of the shoe on a solid surface at a 45 degree angle. Push toward the toe area and the shoe should bend at an area close to the tip. If the shoe breaks towards the middle, this shoe does not have adequate support to your middle foot and can create problems. (Jogging shoes are notorious for this problem).
5: Walk, walk, walk. I recommend you spend about ten minutes walking in the shoe. Don't just slip the shoe on for a couple of minutes and decide it is the right fit. Give the shoe a bit of a workout.
A little attention to detail can go a long way to prevent foot pain and deformities in the future.
"The journey of life is taken one step at a time... none of them should be painful." G.M. Barclay, DPM, AACFAS
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