Melbourne Podiatry Clinic

How can I check if my shoes are the correct size?

Pre-marathon checklist

One of the many great things about the rise of COVID-19 has been the large increase in people of all ages and abilities of fitness undertaking more physical activity than perhaps they may have done previously in 2019 prior to COVID. The sudden increase in activity can bring an increased risk of injuries and one of the simplest ways you can help reduce your risk of certain lower limb injuries is to ensure your footwear is the correct size in both length and width.

Today our podiatrist Tristan is going to go through how to ensure you have the correct fit for your shoes!

If you can, always go to a respected footwear store where they will either have you walk/run on a treadmill with a camera or on the shop floor and then choose the appropriate footwear for you whilst ensuring the correct fit.

Fit:

Length: 

  • Always allow for at least a thumb width of room from the end of your longest toe to the end of the shoe. This generally equates to 1-1.5cm. 
  • This will reduce the likelihood of your toes hitting the end of the shoe (especially when going downhill) and therefore reducing any trauma that may occur such as bruising of the nails from repetitive trauma.

 

Width:

  • I can’t stress enough how important having enough width in the shoe is!
  • Observe: see how your foot sits in the shoe standing- have a look to see if you can see your foot bulging at the sides, if it looks like it’s over the sides of the sole of the shoe
  • Feel: if it feels tight then it is likely to be too narrow for your feet
  • Touch: run your thumb over the top of the shoe, if there’s a lot of bunching of the material then it is most likely too wide, if it runs smoothly then it is most likely appropriate or if feels tight then it is likely too narrow for you.

The benefits of shoes are that they come in many different sizes and widths. Below is a table that goes through the different widths of footwear for both men and women.

WidthMenWomen
NarrowB2A
StandardDB
Wide2ED
Extra wide4E2E

 

If you are unsure of how your footwear is fitting or if you feel it may be contributing to an issue you’re having then the team at Melbourne Podiatry Clinic can offer as one of our many services to conduct a footwear assessment to ensure you have the right fitting footwear for your feet!

By Tristan MacHutchison – Podiatrist at Melbourne Podiatry Clinic

 

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