My foot pain issue is much better. The agony of da feet all started when an old injury flared up. My hip rotation became really ‘off’ which resulted in my tendons being strained and out of whack and this created a problem in my right arch, which decided to fall.
First I replaced the athletic shoes. I ended up with Merrill trail running shoes, which are too stiff for running but they had removable insoles so I was able to create better support inside them and wear them as boots. My search for normal running shoes would have driven an in person shoe salesperson daffy. Thankfully there is Zappos. I will not say how many shoes were delivered that I tried on and tested for arch support and heel comfort, because there were so many! Paraphrasing the old Breck Hair Shampoo commercial (hey, I am in marketing!!), “Only her UPS guy knows for sure!”
What I fell in love with is not only the fun, retro look, okay, and the green in it, but the shoe provided both stability and support and cushioning. As soon as my foot went into it and I stood up, I knew that I wouldn’t need to use additional insoles. So, a pair of Merrill shoes and these fun Pearl Izumi’s later, I started my search for a pair of shoes I could wear with nicer slacks. I first did a search on shoes with removable insoles that were not athletic. EGADS! The shoes looked orthopedic and, well, grandmotherly in that most aged way of looking. I even ordered a few, hoping that they would look better in person. Nope! Worse yet, none of them were all that comfortable, even when I swapped my insoles into the shoe.
Okay, so they don’t look like the height of fashion but they also aren’t sneakers. With a pair of black dress socks, I can wear these with black slacks and undoubtedly out stand anyone else except a Pearl Izumi Sneaker wearer. The shoe has excellent shock absorption and cushioning, has a velcro strap that makes getting into and out of them incredibly easier, and in this case I have to say the in-person view is far better than the photographic one. Apparently the comfort factor is fast being discovered, because when I looked for another black pair (I am assuming my feet will not continue to grow longer!) my size was gone!! The shoes, if you order them, tend to run a bit small so ordering up half a size would be the way to go. Also, when you see the shoe in person, it looks less casual than in this photo.
Thanks to their user reviews, I found a pair of clogs (my old ones finally bit the dust) by Ugg. What caught my eye was the operative word, “excellent arch supports.” They also came with a pair of wool inserts for those really cold days.
Last, but not least, I have to give props to Zappos, which is a shoe store extraordinaire. Their CEO, Tony Hsieuh, is of the 30 something or other generation and he’s built an incredible consumer product company based on customer service, while shaking up what customer service should be. I used to think of Nordstrom when I thought of excellent customer service; now I think of Zappos. I had to call them about a shipment issue, and the voicemail that greeted me was actually fun. Tony began the voicemail, introduced Serena Williams and they both did the prompt instructions. By the time I got to a customer service person I had already enjoyed myself a bit with the novelty employed.
But back to the store. Not only do they make online purchasing and returning easy, with free shipping and free shipping returns, but their service and selection no doubt allowed me to assess and find the right shoes for me within a couple of weeks versus many, many trips to many different types of shoe stores. Online they provide a facility for customer input, which is helpful since some shoes do run smaller, or larger, or have lousy arch support or heel cushioning. For each shoe, they provide multiple views so you can see everything from the top, bottom side and back and more. With next day shipping, customer service par excellence and a great selection, buying shoes that fit for a particular need is much easier thanks to Zappos.
