Advertisement
Flip flips, thongs, sandals, whatever you call them, everyone has them.
They’re a summer staple. You take them to the beach, or a public shower at a campsite, and soon enough, you’re letting your feet see the sun every day.
But it’s no problem, right? They’re just sandals, it’s not like they’re high heels. And some pairs are crazy cheap!
Sure, they’re not as bad as high heels. But they’re still pretty bad for your feet.
Ideally, when you’re walking around, you should be able to roll through the heel of your foot all the way to the ball, allowing your whole foot to evenly absorb your weight.
Flip-flops, and other sandals that don’t safely strap in your foot, force you to curl your toes down onto the shoe in order to keep it on. This stiffens your foot, making it unable to roll all the way through like it should.
Advertisement
This constant tension on your heel means you’re more likely to get runner’s heel, and in extreme cases, could cause you to get flat-footed or develop knee pain.
So what’s the solution?
At a distance up to 10 blocks or so, flip-flops aren’t going to hurt your feet that much. Walking down to the beach or hanging out around a campfire won’t kill your feet or knees.
But if you love sandals too much to give them up for longer distances, try some stiffer sandals that wrap around the whole foot. This will give your feet more support for longer distances and won’t make your foot do that extra work.
And hey, if you spend even $10 more on your summer sandal, you can wear them for two summers, instead of just one!
How often do you wear flip-flops during the summer?
Photo Copyright © 2008 bermilabs/Flickr
