How much time and money do you spend on your feet? By that I am referring to pampering rather than how much you spend on shoes.
If you think about how much work our feet do, it is surprising how little attention we pay to them. Advice from my Podiatrist has been invaluable. Here's a summary;
He believes that all walkers will at some time get an ingrowing toe nail, so keep your toe nails short and in good condition.
Wear breathable socks that have good padding, not too thick and not too thin.
Make sure you have good quality, well fitting shoes. Go to a reputable retailer and get them to fit your shoes properly for you.
Important to have days wearing different shoes to give your feet a rest and to change the pressure points.
Stretching after walking while you are still warm will prevent injuries - yes you need to stretch your feet as well as the rest of your body.
I also asked my Podiatrist to check out how I walk to make sure that my gait was not going to impact more on my knees and hips. We did this by using a treadmill and checking my heel strike and stance over a 10 minute period. He was good enough to pick up that my walking gait was only slightly off and after questioning has put this down to my back problems. However, there were no changes needed and agreed that my walk was not impacting on anything else.
So that's a few pointers worth thinking about before you start.
These are the shoes I bought for walking on and off road Brooks Adrenaline 14 and they are like walking on clouds. A definite good buy!
I have walked a fair distance in them and so far have had no issues. They are still feeling comfy when walking on rough trails or normal city footpaths. As you can see I haven't cleaned them since my last walk in the park 2 days ago! It was rather wet underfoot so I have waited for them to dry off before giving them a good brush.
If you think about how much work our feet do, it is surprising how little attention we pay to them. Advice from my Podiatrist has been invaluable. Here's a summary;
He believes that all walkers will at some time get an ingrowing toe nail, so keep your toe nails short and in good condition.
Wear breathable socks that have good padding, not too thick and not too thin.
Make sure you have good quality, well fitting shoes. Go to a reputable retailer and get them to fit your shoes properly for you.
Important to have days wearing different shoes to give your feet a rest and to change the pressure points.
Stretching after walking while you are still warm will prevent injuries - yes you need to stretch your feet as well as the rest of your body.
I also asked my Podiatrist to check out how I walk to make sure that my gait was not going to impact more on my knees and hips. We did this by using a treadmill and checking my heel strike and stance over a 10 minute period. He was good enough to pick up that my walking gait was only slightly off and after questioning has put this down to my back problems. However, there were no changes needed and agreed that my walk was not impacting on anything else.
So that's a few pointers worth thinking about before you start.
These are the shoes I bought for walking on and off road Brooks Adrenaline 14 and they are like walking on clouds. A definite good buy!
I have walked a fair distance in them and so far have had no issues. They are still feeling comfy when walking on rough trails or normal city footpaths. As you can see I haven't cleaned them since my last walk in the park 2 days ago! It was rather wet underfoot so I have waited for them to dry off before giving them a good brush.
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