BACK TO WORK

The good news about wearing closed shoes is that your feet have less chance of developing cracked heels, a slight heel should provide more comfort for your feet when walking, and the upper offers more support to your feet than you think.

There has been an increase in foot discomfort since we’ve been working at home wearing slip-slops, slippers or going barefoot more often. In addition to this, slopping around in flat slip-ons with little or no support does most walking postures no favours.

But now, heading back to the office, it’s time to slip your feet into work shoes and turn every office day into a happy comfortable one.

When choosing work shoes, there is no sense in compromising style for comfort, so consider the following.

Choose a shoe that takes on the shape of your feet – and not your feet taking the shape of the shoe. More importantly, make sure the width of the shoe will accommodate the widest part of your foot. The front of the shoe should taper and become narrower only from the widest part of your foot going forward. Consider a rounded toe or square toe for more comfort.

Trick the eye with interesting uppers. Even if you need to wear only black or navy shoes, a patent leather or different textured insert, or the way the stitching is done on top of the shoe, often adds style to the shoe while still providing comfort to your feet.

Make sure there are no stitching or seams on the inside upper of the shoe that could irritate your feet.

Heels give you height, define your calves and complement your outfits. However, you need to choose them depending on the amount of standing and running around you’ll be doing during the day. #dressfortheactivity

A block heel – which has a larger surface in contact with the ground – will accommodate more of your body weight compared to a thin stiletto heel which accommodates very little and pushes all your weight on to the front of the foot. Use lower or bigger heels for when running around, and keep your higher, daintier heels for when you’ll be sitting most of the day. A wedge heel is often the answer as it gives you height while still distributing your weight evenly across your feet.

A shoe with a rubber sole will absorb more of the shock and provide cushioning, while an accommodating soft innersole will also add to your feet’s comfort.

When travelling to a business meeting wear a sensible, comfortable shoe, then slip into your stylish work shoes once at the office or meeting. Always keep a sensible shoe in your car to wear when going to the shops or you need to do a lot of walking. *

WITH MORE FEET HEADING BACK TO THE OFFICE, IT’S TIME FOR THE SLIP-SLOPS AND SLIPPERS TO MAKE WAY FOR SMARTER SHOES WRITES PODIATRIST NELFRIE KEMP

FOR MORE INFO Nelfrie Kemp: www.nelfriekemp.co.za; @nelfriekemp; W@nelfriekemp