FEATURE
On Seeking the Perfect Solemate
By Meryl Green
Photographed by Brett C Vermilyea
A modern dancer, feet unprotected by pretty pink ballet slippers, by hot tap or cool jazz shoes, seriously abuses her feet throughout her career. It comes with the territory.
Allowing the toes to spread wide in support of an aesthetic which embraced rooting deeply into the ground and pushing firmly skyward, our founding mothers sought the more natural look and feel of earth beneath their feet. But the bare foot was problematic while stamping and turning on hard floors.
Since I’ve studied, performed and taught modern dance for fifty-something years now, I blame my crummy feet on my beloved dancing. Yet the older I get, the more similar foot complaints I hear from my friends – dancers and non-dancers alike.
We catch ourselves echoing our grandparents’ cry, “My feet are killing me!” How could such pretty young things have ended up with frightful feet? Reluctantly, we admit the obvious: We’re grandparents ourselves now and the acquisition of bigger, misshapen, bumpy, tingly, torturous feet seems to be the price nature charges for getting to know and love our grandchildren.
Podiatrists diagnose our nasty salad of gripes: Achilles tendonitis, calluses, claw toes, plantar fascitis, heel spurs, fallen arches, hammer toes, Morton’s toes, Morton’s neuroma, overlapping toes, flat feet, bunions, arthritis, neuropathy, metatarsalgia. Uch.
I for one have been unwilling to accept the challenge of feet gone bad sitting down. I still need to do my daily strengthening and stretching. I need to dance, teach, race walk, practice yoga, shop, cook, clean, play with my granddaughter. All this activity leaves me forever in search of the ultimate comfort.
Don’t get me wrong. I long to own a beautiful pair of shoes – narrow, stylish, built to flirt beneath a swishy skirt. But I’m no longer foolish enough to hope for anything more than comfort, which is elusive to say the least.
In an orthotic-less shoe, I need plenty of room in the toe box, a firm, narrow heel, a built-in longitudinal arch, a slight rise under the metatarsal arch, and an outer heel that’s higher than a “flat” but lower than a “heel.” My feet also require lightness, breathability, easy on/off apparatus, and a style and color attractive enough to keep stray dogs from attacking. For shoes that will contain my orthotics, you may even catch me snooping around the men’s department.
The following is a sad but true story of a crazed shoe shopper on the prowl.
An hour spent in a discount sneaker store resulted in a purchase I thought I could live with. After a few days of testing on the rugs at home, I found them “too hard”. Imagining how much harder they’d be on the street, I took them back.
A few days later, unable to pretend that my trusty but very old orthotics were currently helping me, I decided it was time for a new pair of walking shoes. With some new technology I’d read about, I figured I could bypass orthotics altogether with a pair of “all-terrain” shoes. This time the shopping lasted a mere forty-five minutes. But after trying on the shoes for a week and a half at home, I returned them. Too narrow in the toe box, and the heel slipped ever so slightly.
On the day I returned the second pair of shoes, I bought white sneakers in the women’s running shoe department after multiple try-ons and an hour and fifteen minutes of advice from the patient salesman. The sneakers made me feel like I was walking on the proverbial cloud.
Just as I was about to the leave the store, however, I spotted a pair of black “all-terrains” in the men’s department. Since black shoes coordinate best with urban attire, and call less attention to the telltale homeliness of orthopedically sound shoes, I’m rarely able to leave shoe stores with any other color. Following an uncharacteristically quick try-on, I returned the white running shoes and bought the more fashionable black ones.
Two days at home and, no surprise by now, back the black ones went. Too heavy. Finally I returned to the original discount store where I bought (and wore out over time) a nice pair of black, light, soft, wide-toed and narrow-heeled walking shoes.
Here are a few lessons I’ve learned through lots of trial and error about finding what I and others with tricky feet seek:
* Remember that you live in New York City when shoe shopping Unlike our suburban counterparts, we New Yorkers often take pleasure and pride in getting to our destinations on foot. Consequently, don’t forget to wear shoes that will get you comfortably there and back.
* If it really hurts, go to a podiatrist or an orthopedist first During my hard dancing days, I had a serious case of painful plantar fascitis and heel spurs. Dr. Ken Meisler’s comprehensive treatment plan included icing, taping, stretching, anti-inflammatory drugs, physical therapy and custom-made orthotics (pricey and not included in my health coverage) which aligned my foot properly inside every shoe. Once the painful inflammation was under control, the orthotics kept a recurrence at bay. They also helped to prevent secondary problems in other joints.
* An orthotics update If your feet look and/or feel funky, or you’re suffering from diabetes or another disease that affects circulation, you may still require custom orthotics. Orthotics generally cost about $450, with a possible $150 “casting fee”. Find professionals who will waive that fee, as casting is an integral part of the custom-made process.
But if your feet are simply demanding gratitude and respect for having lugged you around for a long while, off-the-shelf orthotics in women’s and men’s shoe sizes that target several foot complaints might do the trick. Or, if you’re tired of wrestling reluctant hunks of plastic or leather in and out of shoes, try on shoes which can achieve the same results orthotics do in athletic, orthopedic, or even some general shoes stores.
* Be an ever-vigilant shoe shopper You never know when you’ll strike gold. Keep looking. Browsing in a David Z. last June, I spotted a line of sandals (particularly difficult to find because you can’t hide orthotics inside without looking inexcusably desperate) that seemed right up my alley. Wide front, narrow heel, contoured for superior comfort and support, curious rubber toe protector, not too flat, fun colors, even vaguely attractive in a funky sort of way.
After trying on as many “Keens” as I thought I could without sending the salesperson home early, I thanked him and went home myself to “think about it”. There I logged on to Zappos.com, an online shoe store that has EVERYTHING, and browsed the entire line.
I ordered a pair of Keens from Zappo’s because they had the color, size and style I thought I wanted – no shipping or handling costs – and sent them back a few days later because of a size and style glitch. I hightailed it back to David Z. where I bought Keens in the correct size and style, and …
What a hit!
I wore the sandals comfortably through November, and almost every time I was out walking people of every age, size, and color would comment: “Excuse me, ma’am, but can you tell me where you got those sandals? They look so comfortable, but cute! I need those.”
My daughter, and her friend who often stayed home to avoid chronic foot pain on the harsh streets of Brooklyn, tried them on my recommendation. Neither of them has worn other footwear since. My daughter has two pair now, while her friend is suddenly out and about, delighting in her four different styles.
* Be prepared to be a little less than chic below the ankle.
Most truly comfortable shoes are not pretty, so an invitation to a wedding used to send me into a tailspin. What used to be my favorite life passage became pitifully tainted with anxiety and conflict. These days, however, I just wear the damn ugly shoes and have the time of my life. If I’m wanted by the fashion police, I’ll never know because I’ll be too busy dancing.
* Find a full service shoe store for most of your shoe shopping. I’ve been a registered customer at Eneslow on Broadway for many years. They carry a full complement of shoes that are built to feel good. Their salespeople, trained pedorthists, always measure my feet, listen patiently to my problems, stick with me until I decide on a pair of shoes – or not – and adjust purchases so they fit perfectly. These salespeople have even fixed my orthotics and encouraged me to sacrifice glamour for the worthy pursuit of comfort.
If you’re looking for “high fashion shoes for problem feet”, Yorke Fashion Comfort Centre on 55th Street offers transferable custom orthotics and shoes with built-in orthotics. Since their “comfort with style” shoes carry a price tag of between $350 and $400 and I’m not very fashionable according to 55th Street standards, I haven’t tried Yorke’s European-made footwear. Comfortable shoes with their low heels and cushioned support structures aren’t cheap, but I am. So I’ve made it my business to know what my feet need and hunt down proper accommodations for less in regular or discount stores.
* And a word about proper socks: Those key accessories that join in holy matrimony with the comfortable shoe, socks can make or break our standing pleasure (I could be wrong, but I believe I saw an impressive woman conducting the Juilliard Symphony Orchestra recently, dressed in a deconstructed tuxedo and socks, period.). Give me an exceptional pair of socks on top of a plush carpet and I’d never think of shoes again. But New York feet need protection. For a comparatively cheap thrill, treat yourself to a few pair of padded athletic socks with room in all the right places.
Despite my eccentric, decision-challenged shoe shopping style, I know one thing for sure: the best shoes are no shoes, and nothing can beat taking off even my favorite pair the second I get home. Clogs or a thick pair of socks work until it’s time to sit and ultimately recline. Then, ahhhhh, feet are up, I’m not on them, and all is well.
THE STORES
Paragon Sports: 867 Broadway @ 18th St., (800)961-3030, paragonsports.com: shoes built to soothe, great socks, ready-made orthotics, knowledgeable salespeople.
Eneslow: 924Broadway @ 21st St., (212) 477-2300, Eneslow.com. “The Foot Comfort Center” has a huge selection of shoes that care, custom and ready-made orthotics, other inside-shoe paraphernalia, highly trained (pedorthists) salespeople.
David Z Inc.: 9 downtown stores, (212) 274-9044, Davidz.com: many comfortable shoes with a cool, downtown look.
Modell’s Sporting Goods: Modells.com (check website for information on multiple stores in all 5 boroughs): athletic shoes at discounted prices.
Yorke Fashion Comfort Center: 140 E. 55th St., (800)746-3397, fashioncomfortshoes.com: custom and ready-made orthotics and European shoes for the fashion/comfort-conscious dresser upper.
Zappo’s: zappos.com: huge online shoe store with everything, free shipping and returning, 1 – 2 day delivery. Shoes are categorized and displayed individually, 12 or 99 to a page. View shoes from different directions and read complete description of each. Fabulous footwear shopping without foot wear and tear.
I-Roc: (207) 717-4950, iroc.com: new rocking-sole shoe available only online for New Yorkers, concept worth checking out for the intrepid shoe comfort seeker.
Phase 4 Orthotics: (323) 938-8975, phase4orthotics.com: one of many online ready-made orthotics vendors with information about who needs orthotics.
Harry’s Shoes: Broadway & 83rd St., (800) 442-7797. Harrys-shoes.com: all the big names in comfortable footware including Timberland, New Balance, Keen, Clarks, Mephisto, Merrell, Dansko, others.
Tip Top Shoes: 155 W. 72nd St. (800) WALKING. Tiptopshoes.com: lots of choices plus comfy shoes for the grandkids.
Kenneth Meisler, DPM: 35 E. 84th St., (212) 628-4444: podiatrist.
