I did it.
I had a new experience in that I bought my first pair of orthopedic shoes. I bought purple ones, because if there is anything women my age love, it is everything purple.
To be fair, it lacked the rush of scoring tickets to a Tom Petty tribute band or a nice pedicure but, at least, it didn’t make me as pouty as having to get bi-focals did.
I wrote a brief post a month ago about taking an improv class. I have two classes left. I’m not sure what I was expecting the class to be like, but it wasn’t this. It has been amazing. I love the people, the class is fun, and I can feel myself loosening up my expectations of myself. I think I’m going to keep going and take all the classes.
The downside is my feet.
Fucking hell, I cannot be on my feet that long. So, I did the thing. I cracked my knuckles and commenced to research old lady shoes. I don’t like researching things because it’s mostly boring. I did learn that orthopedic shoes can be very expensive. And there are a lot of choices.
So, I used science and picked the cheapest pair with the highest rating on Amazon.
Me: I bought orthopedic shoes.
Randy, who loves to research and would have been happy to research for me: Where did you get them?
Me: Amazon.
Randy: When will they get here?
Me: I don’t know. It was kind of a long shipping date. Probably 2 weeks.
Randy: Do you know their origin?
Me: Like their back story?
Randy:…
Me: No.
Randy: They’re probably coming from China. Why did you pick those?
I explained my method.
Randy: They’re your feet.
I did at least switch up my shoes with ones I already had for the next classes and it was better, but by the end of the class, my feet and back are pretty squidgy.
Then, they came! My purple old lady orthopedic shoes.
I am not going to lie, they were lighter weight than I expected. A little stiff. But still, they would save my feet. They had 4 out of 5 stars!
Cincinnati Improv offered a work shop with Luke Null, who was on SNL between 2017 – 2018. I decided to take his workshop this past Saturday. What a perfect time to try out new shoes! At an event where you will be on your feet for 3 hours.
There were more people in the workshop than in my 101 class and everyone else in the workshop had gone through the entire improv program. Some of them had acting gigs. I was older than all of them.
I have never wanted to run away from a group of people more in my entire life. And I could have, because I wore my super fast orthopedic shoes.
Turns out, I could hold my own. Everyone was kind and generous. Everyone laughed. I haven’t watched SNL in years, so I wasn’t familiar with Luke, but he was engaging and made the afternoon a lot of fun.
Also, my orthopedic shoes, not only didn’t make my feet feel wonderful, they actively hurt me. I felt new twinges in my back and hips. The balls of both feet swelled up. And they wouldn’t stay tied.
I don’t know how much one should pay for a good pair of orthopedic shoes, but I can tell you that it is definitely more than $59.99.
I have always had flat feet, bones where normal people don’t have bones, and now growing a boob-sized set of bunions. So the only things I can wear are loafers and/or moccasins. No real support but at least they’re comfortable. I haven’t tried standing for 3 hours, but I’m sure there’s no shoes on earth that wouldn’t hurt after a while. If you know any Nurses, they probably have the best footware around. (Or some of those billion dollar sneakers).
Happy you’re getting enjoyment out of these classes as well as experience!
Haha, I should ask my sister. She works in a hospital.
You might try arch support insoles called Superfeet. They work for me, and I’m older than you are. You can get them online at http://www.superfeet.com.
Thank you!!
I have 59 year old feet with bunions. I got myself a pair of On Cloudrunner shoes. They come in wide (if needed – I needed). They have a wide toe-box and are designed to absorb impact from hard running, so I’ve found them to be the best, long-lasting shoe for standing/walking.
Awesome. Looking them up now.
Go to a running store.
I tried the inserts from my chiropractor which helps but were not cheap. Now ai get Hoka and my feet are so much happier. You will pay about $150 but they will put discontinued colors on sale.
And most running shoes do run a bit narrow so don’t be surprised to get wide.
Thank you!!!
Good orthopedic shoes can be expensive, I should wear them but I don’t
There are a lot of things I should be doing. Or not doing. haha.
Yay! Michelle posted again! I had purple laces on my last pair of shoes, but not as bright as your new shoes.
Two days before my last Rilo Kiley concert, I went and bought a new pair of work shoes, as my old ones were too ratty to even wear to a show. The new shoes were nice and strong and heavy and I threw the old ones away on my way out of the store. At the time I was on my feet for ten to thirteen hours straight at work.
Two weeks later I had a stroke. In the rehab hospital, Sandra, my PT who taught me how to walk again, kept asking if I had any lighter shoes. I had to tell her that I didn’t, and she had to teach me how to walk anyway. She made this sort of heavy paper strap to wrap around my left shoe so she could slide it forward when I needed to take a step and couldn’t.
After I got discharged, I went to Target and bought the cheapest sneakers they had ($20 on sale) and they lasted me three years.
I have been tempted to buy some shoes on Amazon, but this last time we went to the shopping center in Oakhurst and I got some cheap shoes on sale for $35.
I’m glad you are enjoying the improv classes. They sound fun.
Yes! I actually posted. I’m still digging myself out of a fairly prolonged anxiety/depression episode.
I purchased a pair of shoes w/arch supports from the Good Feet store. I think they were around $250 & only lasted for 6 months. Since I work in housekeeping at a hospital now, I find it cheaper to use insoles & arch supports in the children’s shoes I buy from Target.
That’s a good idea!
I know nothing about feet in spite of having had a pair all my life. And I once went to a podiatrist named Dr. Payne and I couldn’t understand how anyone could say his name without laughing. I didn’t make any jokes about his name, though, because he was about a hundred and fifty and I figured he’d already heard anything I could come up with.
Anyway I hope you find some shoes that help because improv is one of the great joys of life, although they should let you sit down once in a while.
Haha. I mean, we DO sit some of the time. Just not enough.
Xero shoes. Changed my life. I had such bad plantar fasciitis in both feet that I cried in the morning when I got up, and couldn’t walk to the bathroom. Was walking with a cane. I was about 59 and that’s too young for that nonsense. Got a $200 pair of Hoka ortho shoes. Felt grand. My feet got worse. My brother told me about the idea that our feet get no exercise, so the weak muscles are compensated by the tendons tightening up. Said I needed to wear barefoot shoes. They’d cured his foot pain in one year. I tried them. Now I own something like 8 pairs of Xero and rarely wear anything else (trail running is an exception). It takes four months or so before your feet will get stronger, but they will.
Thank you!!!!