Footwear During the Holiday – Fit for Travel

With Thanksgiving fresh in our memories, Christmas is fast approaching.  We hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving meal and spent a little time throughout the month to educate yourself about diabetes.  Dr. Thomajan has written a book to help you learn more about this disease and if you still don’t have it, be sure to get a copy of this free book with this weblink.

We have talked before about wearing the proper footwear for the activity you engage in.  With the fast approaching holidays and New Year, it is a fairly safe bet to assume that most of us will be doing some traveling to be with family and friends.  Whether you travel by car, plane, or train, it is important to wear comfortable and supportive footwear.  A comfortable pair of ‘tennis shoes’ are likely the best option as discussed in the AFAS monthly newsletter. Sign up to receive it here under inquiry type.   

Two things to keep in mind when wearing for comfort are size and lacing. Our bodies are always changing and your foot size is something you should check periodically. If there is not a thumbs width of space between your toes and the tip of your shoe, you need to find a larger size.  Those funny looking devices you stand on at shoe stores, are called Brannock devices, and are made to measure your foot.  As you should stand upright, their use requires a second person and the measurement should be from the heel to the ‘ball’ of your foot.  Make sure whoever measures you does it accurately, or better yet, next time you visit AFAS be sure to have your foot measured properly. Once you have the right shoe size, you may want to consider an alternative lacing pattern.  The ‘normal’ lacing pattern, or what you might see out of the box, is perfectly fine most of the time.  When you are sitting for long periods of time, such as an airplane flight or long car ride, you feet may swell.  Consider lacing your shoes to help better accommodate these changes.  You can find information on lacing patterns here.

Take a moment to sign up for out E-newsletter while you are here and check back with us throughout the month as we talk about different things to keep in mind while you’re traveling this holiday season.  Until next time, keep those feet happy and healthy, Austin!