The 3 Biggest Mistakes People Make When Selecting Their Summer Footwear!

As the weather heats up and the long summer days arrive, it’s time to transition from our winter boots to our summer shoes. If you’ve ever struggled with this or just don’t know what to look for, then keep reading as I am going to going to reveal the 3 biggest mistakes people make when selecting their summer footwear and how to avoid them.

Look, no one likes to be stuck in ugly closed in shoes all day when its 40 degrees outside. Just dealing with the heat of the day is bad enough, let alone closed in shoes making your feet extra hot and sweaty. Unfortunately, so many of the traditional summer options don’t work for a lot of people and may not be that good for your feet – although they are often good for our business (if you read between the lines 😜!

As a podiatrist, I get it and understand how difficult it can be to find the perfect summer shoe. Most of the fashionable summer shoes are made to look great, not necessarily feel or function great. For example, as heel height increases your pelvis is increasingly tilted forward. This can change the way you walk and impacts your back, by increasing the pressure on your toes and the balls of your feet as an example. And if you have foot problems and pain or are dependent on orthotic shoe inserts, then the choices for summer shoes can be even more limited.

If you can relate to any of what I’ve said so far on any level, then it’s important that you avoid the 3 biggest mistakes people make when selecting their summer footwear.

“You can never take too much care over the choice of your shoes. Too many women think that they are unimportant, but the real proof of an elegant woman is what is on her feet.” – Christian Dior

So, what are the 3 biggest mistakes people make when selecting their summer footwear?

Mistake #1 – They choose super flat shoes with little support

Flat shoes have little to no support. These can cause dropping of your arches, placing extra strain in your feet, ankles, shins, Achilles, knees and even hips and lower back. On top of this flats often lack shock absorption, and as your foot slams into the ground again and again with walking, the repetitive impact can lead to problems over time.

Walking with flat shoes that have thin, unsupportive soles also can lead to incredibly painful blisters, especially at the back of your heel on your Achilles tendon where the back of the shoe rubs repeatedly against your heel.

So, choosing shoes with sturdy, thick heels that are not too high may be better for your foot health than shoes that are completely flat.

Mistake #2 – They choose shoes with poor fixation

Slip on shoes or the iconic Aussie thongs don’t have much holding the shoe onto your foot. This means your toes and the tiny (intrinsic) muscles under the arch of your foot, are constantly contracting and overworking to hold them on. This can cause fatigue and lead to issues in the feet, knees, hips and back.

It is important to choose a shoe that offers some form of fixation to help keep the shoe fixed to your foot. This can be a velcro strap or buckle that goes “around the ankle”. Having this reduces how hard the intrinsic foot muscles must work and will reduce the risk of your shoes causing foot pain.

Mistake #3 – They choose shoes with an open back and no heel counter

A heel counter is the round backing of the shoe that wraps around your heel. Open back shoes with no heel counter can allow your heel to slip off the shoe, usually to the inside, and you end up walking around with only half your heel on the shoe. This makes your feet work much harder and can lead to tiredness and fatigue.

A shoe with a good heel counter will reduce the workload of your foot throughout the day. It also keeps the heel central on the back of the footwear, can help reduce the foot pronation (collapsing) and can make a world of difference to the overall comfort of the shoe.

I know what you’re thinking – You love your thongs and still want to wear them – what do you do?

Well fortunately there are now much better designed thongs available with increased arch support to replace the old pluggers or Havaianas. Brands like Archies or Orthaheel are designed to contour to the arch of your feet, providing you with support and even pressure distribution through the sole of your foot. They also have thicker heels to increase cushioning and take pressure off the calf muscles, and straps designed to hold the feet on top of the thongs to reduce toe clawing and gripping associated with traditional flat thongs.

We still recommend wearing these styles of shoes for shorter periods of time e.g.: around the house, to the beach or a quick trip to the shops – not for long walks or all day! If you are going to be active on your feet, choose a summer shoe with support, a good fixation method such as a strap, buckle or laces and an enclosed back; and you’ll be well on the way to more comfortable feet this summer.

Now, if your summer shoe choices are limited because you have to wear orthotic inserts, then check out – Foot Mobilisation Therapy. Foot mobilisation therapy is a manual therapy treatment specifically developed to improve your foot function by targeting stiff, mal-aligned, or dysfunctional joints. These techniques focus on improving and restoring the normal range of pain-free joint motion, and when combined with specific exercises to strengthen and stretch the feet, can help people reduce their reliance on orthotic shoe inserts. This can allow you to walk for longer times barefooted and wear more fashionable and open shoes during summer.

If you would like more information about Foot Mobilisation Therapy or the shoe retailers we recommend in Adelaide please send us an email HERE, or call Emma at our Kent Town centre on 8239 0800 or Wendy at our Glenelg centre on 8294 0100, for a friendly chat to see how we can help keep your feet happy this summer.