Now that you know what kind of foot type you have, the next step is finding a shoe that fits your personal biomechanics. You want to get the right shoe for the intended activity. The overall size should be right; you want the toe to heel fit to be right, and it should also be the right width. If the shoe doesn’t fit well in any of these areas, it might not be right for you. You might injure yourself and end up getting a sore foot.
The following are some tips shared by the Orthotic Shop: things to consider when buying shoes to ensure you get a proper fit:
Heel to Toe
Ideally, the size should accommodate the longest toe, with about 7 mm or about the width of the pinky finger, between the end of the shoe and the longest toe.
Arch Length (Heel to Ball)
This is one of the most overlooked aspects, but it’s really important to ensure that the widest part of your foot lines up with the wider part of the shoe or the “flex point”.
Heel Fit
The hard part that holds the heel, known as the heel counter, is usually made in different back curves and widths. If the heel slips even after you have laced the shoe properly, you should consider trying out an alternative style.
Width
This largely depends on your overall comfort. If the shoe is too narrow, the toes might go numb. If it’s too wide, your foot won’t be secure enough.
Socks
When fitting shoes, you should ensure that you wear the kind of socks that you will be wearing. Work, dress, and athletic socks can all be of different thicknesses and might result in a different fit. When purchasing shoes, you should go towards the end of the day, when your feet have already become a bit swollen from the day’s activity. This will let you get a better fit.
Heel Height
Your heel’s height – the offset between your forefoot and your heel – in activity shoes will range from zero to 12 mm. Shoe manufacturers are now starting to offer lower heel heights to ensure that you strike less on the heel and much more at the middle of the foot. For those with plantar fasciitis, you should consider elevating your heel a little to lower the pull coming from the Achilles tendon and alleviate some pressure off the heel.
A heel height of between 10mm and 12mm is recommended, as it helps keep the heel a bit elevated. Lower heel heights might be more appropriate if you’re experiencing forefoot pain, such as osteoarthritis of the big toe or Morton’s neuroma.
But things get a little trickier. You probably love your barefoot shoes, and you might not be willing to give them up. This is ok, you can keep wearing them. But you probably get the point that everyone is different and what works for you might not work for the next person. There are cases where people have benefited from barefoot shoes. There are even more cases where people have developed stress fractures from wearing barefoot shoes. However, barefoot shoes are not recommended if you have foot pain.
Get the Right Kind of Footwear
When you go to buy footwear at a shoe store, you can use your knowledge of your arch type to tell the shoe category you fit into best. You’ll probably belong in one of the following categories: stable neutral, cushioning, motion control, or stability.
Cushioning Shoes: These are meant to offer adequate cushioning and some bit of support. This is great for someone who normal type of foot to a higher arched foot and is a little more supinator.
Stable Neutral: These still have a lot of cushioning, but they offer a bit more support for the inner part of your foot. For those with a low-arched or normal-arched foot, you might be better off in a stable neutral shoe.
Stability: These have moderate amounts of stability and a bit of cushioning. Stability shoes provide more support on the inner part of the shoe. The material is 10 to 15 percent stiffer on the inner part of the shoe. It’s designed to resist pronation.
Motion Control
These have firm support on both the inner and outer parts of the shoe. Motion control shoes are typically filled in on the bottom. They are the stiffest shoes you can get, meaning that they are among the heaviest shoes you’ll find in the market. The shoes can provide so much support that you overcorrect the posture of your foot, which could lead to new and different injuries. Most people don’t need motion-control shoes. In case you think you do, consult with a foot specialist or visit a specialist shoe store first.
A Word of Caution About Minimalist Running Shoes
These have recently become popular, especially after barefoot running was trending. Now that the advantages of running barefoot have become more controversial, minimalist running shoes have become less popular, mainly because they don’t have much cushioning. They also have thinner midsoles, meaning you’re overall closer to the ground.
Minimalist shoes are also super flexible, and if you’re a big pronator, the shoe should let you continue pronating. If you’re a super supinator, it will let you continue supinating. The shoe is mainly meant to be a layer between your foot and the ground to offer some protection from the running surface and the elements.
In case you’re shopping in a big store that has a big wall of shoes, the salesperson might help you narrow down to a few choices, but this could be a hit or miss. While some of the bigger shoe stores teach their workers the myriad of benefits and features of the different shoes, most don’t train them on how to individually match a customer’s foot type to the suitable footwear. This is why it might be a better idea to go to a smaller specialty store, where salespeople have a lot more expertise.
What to Look for When Buying Supportive Footwear
Pick the shoe by the toe and heel and try wringing it out like a wet towel. If you can twist it easily such that the top is now the bottom, it’s most likely a cushioning shoe, not a motion control or stability shoe.
Hold the shoe at the forefoot and heel and then flex it back and forth. If it can only flex at the toe but not at the arch, it most likely has motion control or stability characteristics. If you can flex it back and forth and it bends right at the arch, it’s likely a cushioning shoe.
Feel the midsole, which is the cushy part of the shoe. If it has a firm bar on the inner part or the outer part by the heel, then the shoe has motion control or stability characteristics. If the shoe has the same density all the way around, and you don’t feel any firm posts or plastic bars, it’s more of a cushioning shoe.