Advice for Wearing Heels for Women Over Forty
Posted on December 1, 2015 by Budget Chic
Now that I’m officially into my fifties, I’m finding I have a low tolerate for uncomfortable shoe or hard to wear shoes and I can
no longer subscribe to ‘pain for fashion’s sake. Nah, when my feet start talking to me it could be a early wrap for the evening and my feet have been ‘talking to me’ alot lately. There are even shoes I look at on-line and can just feel the pain I would subjecting myself too if I bought them. I’ve invested in a lot of high heels in my forties (not quite sure what I was thinking about) and though I’m good about moving older styles out of my shoe collection via Ebay, I’m not totally ready to walk away from my 5 inch and up stiletto. I have however decided I could find a happy medium, a compromise. These are some of the things I decided to do in order to still get some use of my over 4 inch heels.
I purchased more heels in a lower heel height (3 inches). The style that are super cute and even trendy are also made in heights lower than 4 inches. I found an amazing pair of on-trend heels from Jessica Simpson in a 3 inch heel. On the days that I want to have a little height but not subject myself to 4 or 5 inch heel, I opt for the lower heels to give my feet a break. You can also find super cute, trendy and classic heels at thrift stores like the Goodwill, Value Village and Clothes Mentor for under $10 dollars. I realized I didn’t have a lot of heels at 4 inches and under so I started buying them at thrift stores on the cheap and now I have a fairly decent collection. heel_article1
I wear a low wedge heel or comfortable cute flats (with inner foot support) 4 days at week at work now. If I’m going out after work, I change into the heels appropriate for what I plan on doing (movies, bar, restaurant, lot of walking, etc). Giving my feet a break during the work day is a good thing. If at anytime dur
ing the day I need to switch it up, I plan ahead and throw a pair of heels in my handbag. The point is I’m not in heels all day long bringing pain and anguish to my feet and creating varicose veins.
Since my feet have been pretty comfortable and supported throughout the work week, I can wear a nice 3 or 4 inch heel on Friday and be super sassy.
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Invest in good shoe insoles. I can’t stress this enough. It’s worth it to purchase good insole to protect your feet. They make insole for open toe sandals, boots and all variation of shoes. They have various types of insole for different kinds of support (arch, ball of feet, heel, etc). You can swap the good ones out and put them in different shoes instead of buying a pair for every shoe. heel_article3
I massage my feet, stretch my leg muscles and soak my feet in Epsom Salt at the end of the work week. Epsom salt is great old remedy and it works for combating any kind of inflammation and swelling. It really is a nice relief for my feet and help to keep them in better good shape. I also get pedicures every two weeks and invest in the extra foot massage when my wallet allows for it. heel_article4
Pick the right heel height for your activity or event. Select the right heel height for what you have planned for the day. If it’s dinner and the movies and you are in car, just walking from the your vehicle to the restaurant and theatre with very little standing or walking, then you can probably rock those 5 inch heels. If you’re
at a concert where you’re standing for the entire show or you’re at a festival doing a great deal of walking, you might want to wear a good sturdy platform heel, wedge heel or opt for a 3 inch heel for comfort and support. Basically wear the shoes that best fit the activity or event and won’t cause you to be dealing with sore feets when you get home. heel_article4
Do Yoga for your feet. My job has a wellness program and fitness center in the building and I’m now taking yoga classes. I think taking yoga overall f
or the entire body is very important to keep your joints and ligament flexible, limber and to keep that blood circulating going, especially for individual over forty. Their are specific routine and poses to strengthen your legs and feet muscles. There are several videos on youtube that can get you started. heel_article5
Supplements can help. I have found that taking collagen and MSM has helped me greatly with any joint or muscle discomfort, also Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth has worked incredibly well in helping relieve inflammation and pain in my ankle that I had for months before taking a tablespoon of DE every day. Supplement can and do work but with anything, please consider any other supplements or medication you may be taking prior to introducing something new into your regime, as some medications and herbs will conflict with each other.
You can still rock those 4 or 5 inch heels ladies but as you get older you probably can’t wear those puppies all day. You have to be selective about when and how to wear them; making sure to give your feet the support or break it needs during the day so you can rock the glam heels for date night or a special event that evening. I hope some of things I’ve done will or can help you to bala
nce out your shoe collection and get a sensible rotating going so that you are not putting undue stress on your feet ladies.
Typical Stuff
I’m a 50 year old hard working mom (now empty nester) that loves fashion, but my purse strings ain’t so flexible! My 24 year old son is college graduate and living his own life, so I got some time on my hands *wink* Now that you got the 5 second rundown; pull up a chair, get that Latte and browse around.
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