Shortly after returning from our latest trip to Mexico in February, I found myself dealing with metatarsalgia in my right foot. At first, I didn’t know what it was. It felt like I had a pebble in my shoe and was particularly bothersome when I walked barefoot on the hard floor. Thankfully, the symptoms didn’t show up until after we got home, but they were likely caused by the amount of walking that I did on uneven surfaces in less than adequate footwear. I had my good Asics sneakers with me which I bought specifically for walking, but on hot days I chose to wear sandals or flats instead. Unfortunately, they didn’t have as much cushioning or support.
My foot is better now, but it became very obvious that I needed to buy a good pair of walking/hiking sandals, especially since I’ve challenged myself to try to walk 350 km between May 1 and October 31! This week I found exactly what I was looking for.
I’m a frugal fashionista and I love thrift store shopping, but good quality footwear is something that I’m willing to spend a significant amount of money on. I first saw the right sandal at Atmosphere, “Canada’s Outdoor, Hiking, Camping and Adventure Store” but they didn’t have my size, so I went directly to an ECCO store. Not only did they have the right size, they had it in six or seven different colours including a couple that don’t even appear on their website! I wanted something neutral that I could wear with anything and, as the very helpful salesperson pointed out, the ones I chose look great with my gold summertime toes!
Most of the hiking sandals that I looked at had closed toes which would definitely be an asset on a rugged trail, but I’ll continue to wear my trusty Merrell hiking shoes for that. The sandals will mostly be worn to pound the pavement in and around town and on easier trails.
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I agree with you Elaine, if you don’t have proper foot ware when you are walking not only your feet will hurt but the rest of your body will start letting you know it too doesn’t like what you are neglecting.
That’s a very good point, Verna!
I agree with you that good footwear is important. If we cannot move, we are truly stuck. I like your challenge of doing 350 km. A good idea which I might try. Thank you for your emails. Happy walking!
I find that if I give myself a challenge and keep track of how far I walk, I actually make sure to get out and do it. I didn’t do that last year and didn’t walk nearly as much as I should have.
I have those exact sandals and I LOVE them!!
That’s great to hear!
I saw your comments on High Heels in the Wilderness on wearing blazers and came to your site. I have four pairs of those Ecco sandals -blue, red, white and fuchsia/orange combo that I have collected over the last four or five years. They are so comfortable and the next best thing to wearing my ASICS. I have also picked up a pair of well-cushioned Zero Grand Cole Haan sneakers that I walked all over Paris in.
Ah, Paris! Definitely a city for walking and for wearing comfortable shoes! So glad you came over from Sue’s blog. It’s one of my absolute favourites.
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