So to help curtail our more fashion-y instincts (and explain to us what the hell we should be looking for in a walking shoe) we tapped Dr. Paulina Piekarska, a foot and ankle surgeon at Hartford HealthCare Connecticut Orthopedic Institute at St. Vincent’s Medical Center, to weigh in. Dr. Piekarska proved to be a font of information, so we figured we’d pass along a few of her insights here, where you can reference them the next time you need a pair of shoes expressly for hoofing it. Happy walking.
What makes for a good walking shoe?
“In general, you want to look for stability, particularly when it comes to the sole of the shoe,” Dr. Piekarska says. “I know there was a trend years ago to make ultra-flexible, minimalist shoes that mimic barefoot walking [editor’s note: the doctor is right!] but the potential long-term implications of walking unsupported are pain, and at worst, deformity.”
How do you know if a sole is up to snuff?
Unlike your style, the soles of your shoes should be rigid. “You want torsional strength, meaning you should not be able to take your shoe and twist it or bend it in the middle,” Dr. Piekarska notes.
Is cushioning really that important?
Short answer: It depends. Long answer: “Cushioning helps to attenuate or minimize ground forces,” Dr. Piekarska says, “but when a shoe is too soft, it can compromise stability.” In other words, if you feel like your foot is “sinking” into the shoe, you might end up overexerting yourself. Those overly-cushy kicks demand more energy and muscle strength to keep your foot stable while you run or walk. A happy medium is a better bet.
What’s the deal with all this toe box chatter?
“When you have a wide feet, bunions, hammertoes, or spurring, you want to go with shoes that have a mesh toe box,” Dr. Piekarska says. “An accommodative toe box is less likely to rub on any bony prominences and cause redness, irritation, pain, or blisters.” As you might expect, shoes with leather uppers take longer to deform and can “disrupt your walking regimen as your feet recover”. Which is exactly why the leather shoes we included above have wider toe boxes, so when you need to ditch the meshy stuff, your dogs won’t howl the whole day through.
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