I am three weeks/about 150 km into a new pair of shoes now, and finally they and my feet seem to be coming towards a lasting peace (shoes softened and feet callused in slightly new places).
As this always happens with new shoes for me (at least I am a guy and get away with always wearing the same shoes) I wonder how it is for people (esp. of the female persuasion) who have numerous pairs of shoes and match them with their wardrobe, so that most of those pairs never really get broken in.
Do they have particularly tough feet? Do they take care to walk as little as possible? Or do they suffer heroically?
The rule that I’ve always heard and tried to follow is that you should never have to “break in” shoes. They should be comfortable from the get-go.
You said that you’re about 150 km into your shoes, so does that mean that you’re using running shoes? I can’t tell because then you started talking about matching them with outfits. If that’s the case, then I’m sure it’s different for running shoes than for women’s “outfit” shoes.
If a modern dress, casual or athletic shoe requires more than brief period of adjustment you are either getting sized wrong, or you have very unusual feet. The largest problem is in men with slightly wide or pigeon toed feet (needing a wide) refusing to get wider shoes because the wide shoe is not in stock or or sale, and admittedly wides are often much harder to get than mediums.
After a week or more you can often effectively “stretch” a mis-fitting shoe to size but this can compromise the construction integrity of the shoe over time. Cowboy boots are an exception to this as they often fit very snug and need to be fought with to get the best fit.
Note “D” is not wide it is a men’s medium. You need to go E to EE if you’re taking a week or more to “break in” your shoe. Stop trying to cram you foot in too small shoes and most of the problems go away.
I recently bought a pair of shoes online; when I tried them on they were a bit snug around my toes, and after wearing them for a few hours I decided that I should have gotten them a half size larger. I called to be sure there would be no problem exchanging them and sent them back. I was telling a friend about this and she said that if they were leather shoes they should have stretched to fit better as I wore them. I agree with astro, though; shoes should be comfortable when you first start wearing them.
And I do need to buy wide shoes; why is it that some shoe stores refuse to stock them? I went to one where the only shoes they carried in wide sizes were athletic shoes. When I asked one of the clerks about this I was told that they didn’t get enough call for them. :rolleyes:
Small shoe stores (esp) in malls only carry a limited stock and clerks will often seek to sell you what’s on hand vs get the right shoe. I’ve found brand specific outlet store often have the best selection of wides for a given size.
Also one thing you can try is simply going up a size. I can wear a 13 EE or 14 D equally comfortably, and the 14 actually looks more symmetrical on my feet. This trick only works for lace ups as loafers and other slip ons will sometimes slip off if there’s extra back-front room.
No, they’re normal everyday shoes - the 150 km was only to indicate what amount of wear was involved. It seems the soles get run down with me after no more that 2000 km - even with relatively thick soles. Then I’ll have to buy a new pair
I always try on a lot of different pairs until I find a comfortable fit. It’s not as if the shoes hurt from the get-go (which would indicate they’re the wrong size or shape). Only after a day’s worth of walking or two my feet begin to get raw spots, which get callused after two or three weeks.
I used to wear shoes not designed for human feet. The trick would usually be to put band-aids or band-aid tape on the spots I suspected sores or blisters might appear. Another method was talcum powder on feet and inside the shoe.
I wear one of two pairs of leather boots all winter long. I treat them with WD 40 right out of the box. This is mostly for waterproofing. But it also makes the leather very nice and soft and comfy.
As a chick with a full rack of shoes ranging from steel-toed workboots to four-inch heels, the answer is – like other people here – I don’t buy shoes that need to be broken in. I used to, when I got all my shoes on sale at Payless. Now I budget the money to buy quality shoes from brands I’ve heard of, made from quality materials, and if they’re uncomfortable to stand around in at the store I don’t get them.
Life is way too short to wear uncomfortable shoes.
I have a spoon trick. Heat a spoon over a flame (gently!), then use it to push and stretch the leather in the places where it needs to “give”. It helps a surprising amount.
I think you are underestimating peoples willingness to wear uncomfortable shoes. Especially women’s dress shoes, that won’t be worn for much walking. Many cheap women’s shoes have glorified cardboard for a sole. They aren’t designed to walk around in much. They are designed to look cute and match this month’s purse.
I’ve known women, who after years of wearing business dress shoes have toes that are permanently smooshed together into a point, huge cracks in the heels of their feet from wearing open backed shoes in the winter, and have pain wearing non-heeled shoes because the muscles in the backs of their legs have stretched to match 4" heels.
