Looking Fit

A good shoe means a lot more than just looks and style. It is also about the fit. Style becomes secondary and even insignificant when it is not accompanied by comfort. Thus, when you are looking for footwear, make sure that they are comfortable on your feet. After all, your foot bears the whole weight of your body, so wearing comfortable boots is a must. You should never compromise with your shoes, no matter how fantastic they might look.

Here are some tips for finding comfortable shoes when you’re in the market. Before purchasing, hold your chosen shoe at the toe and the heel. The sole should not only be flexible but also bend in the front. At the same time, it should possess quite a stiff bottom along the arch. The sole should always be flexible. Obviously, bending them is the only way to test this. Rigid soles are equal to uncomfortable shoes. They will remain rigid and will not move with you. So say goodbye to these types of shoes or you will be faced with discomfort and even long-term difficulty in terms of your feet and legs.

Wear high heels for special occasions and when you don’t have to stand for a long time. Long-term use of high heels can result in back pain. This does not mean that any heel is bad.  Dansko shoes, for example, have a significant heel height, but Dansko’s superior arch support and high-quality footwear provides all-day comfort, despite their clumsy appearance.

Look for shoes with false toeboxes. This is good rule. If a shoe has a pointed toe, then it very likely means you’re in for some painful days and nights. This feature prevents your toes from spreading out which is a major cause for foot pain. Don’t buy pointed toes if you are in need of comfortable shoes. Another thing that you have to remember is that the heel area should be sufficiently wide to fit the ball of your foot, but not too wide as to allow your heel to move significantly. For example, ECCO shoes have a very narrow heel and cause problems for some people.  In general, for women’s shoes, the width ranges from AA or narrow to EE or extra wide. For men it is BB to EEEE.

You will definitely make a sensible choice if you opt for wedge shoes as they generally evenly distribute your body weight and thus offer good support all the way to the foot. However, be careful, that the limited sole flexibility of any wedge sole increases the chance of rolling your ankle over to one side. In order to check a shoe for cushioning, press a finger into the ball region. It should have a slightly padded feel.

Stay away from synthetic materials as much as possible. Try to wear shoes made of materials like suede and leather, or with fabric uppers. These materials let your feet breathe and even reduce the chance of blistering. You feet are precious – wear comfortable shoes and take care of them.

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Technorati Tags: boots, clogs, exercise, Fashion, footwear, health, sandals, shoes, Shopping, walking

With the right pair of shoes on her feet, a woman can adjust to anything. And she can do it pain free. No other apparel item wields such power. Women all over the world covet the almighty shoe. We hunt for them, compare them, store them for next season, keep them long past their due date, and expect them to gloriously update the dreariest of fashion ensembles.

Whether they cost 10 bucks or 500, a woman’s shoes say much about her mood, her lifestyle, and her personal style. Take Dansko shoes, for example. Now this is a shoe for the active woman who wants support and comfort without having to wear tennis shoes in public. Available in an endless variety of colors, this is the comfortable shoe for the woman who swore she’d never wear comfortable shoes. I know, because I am that woman. My feet are wide, yet the styles I tend to like simply do not come in wide widths. All my adult life I’ve suffered in the name of fashion. I’ve worn strappy leather sandals, cork wedges, kitten heels, high-heeled loafers, you name it. But comfortable shoes? Ha! Forget it. I’d rather go barefoot through the snow.

Being a big city girl from Canada, I was absolutely taken aback when I first moved to Indiana. It didn’t take long for me to notice that almost no-one wears stylish, high heeled shoes around here. And those who do are apparently not appreciated for their sense of style. Rather, they’re seen as flashy. And not in a good way. I was in the country now, and I was surrounded by sensible conservatives. I never got compliments on my colorful shoes anymore. I got sideways-glancing looks of disapproval.

To say I stuck out like a sore thumb in the red suede stilettos with the brass grommets that I like to wear with my distressed jeans is a gross understatement. Suddenly, dismayed to find there was nowhere to wear all my fabulous shoes, I packed them up (along with my single girl outfits) and my sassy, single girl attitude. I wasn’t a single girl who could spend half her paycheck if she wanted to on handbags and shoes anymore. I was married. Thoroughly married. To a wonderful man who appreciates the earthy virtues of the “comfortable shoe-wearing woman”.

So, on the day my wonderful new husband took me out to Main Street in search of sensible walking shoes, that I found my first pair of Dansko shoes. Before we entered the store, I told him that I was was determined to be sensible. Inside, I felt sad. I felt sure that pleasing my husband meant I would have to go home with a truly hideous pair of walking shoes. Shoes made for old people in personal care homes. Shoes made for those with multiple orthopedic complaints. What I found that day was like an epiphany. There they were – cherry red Mary Janes, with just a bit of a heel, and a buckle strap across the bridge of the foot that once in place, would stay that way. Just looking down on these darlings makes me smile!  These are seriously sweet shoes! They rock as you walk! The sole is designed to roll forward as you step onto the ball of your foot, then rock gently back as your weight shifts to the other foot. What ingenious engineering.

I have clocked countless hours in my Danskos. I wore them through two pregnancies – back-to-back and with only three months between. I never, not once, complained of lower back pain, and I was on my feet a lot. My knees hurt a bit, but I’d never blame the Danskos for that. I blamed the babies. My feet never felt better. Sure, the toes are round. “All the better for wiggle room, my dear”, says the sensible woman my husband would like me to be. And in my red Dansko Mary Janes, I know he smiles with pride, walking with his cool-yet-sensible wife, hand in hand down the nature paths and along Main Street in quaint little main-street Indiana.

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Technorati Tags: boots, clogs, exercise, Fashion, footwear, health, sandals, shoes, Shopping, walking