BIG FEET NEED HELP

[kristina]

Anyone out there with wide feet (mine are an 8 1/2) have any luck with finding a good aerobic shoe, maybe special order from someplace? I have horrible troubles finding good shoes for me--I have a wide wide foot with a moderate to low arch. Cannot wear Rika, period. lately the Reebock line is OK, but still not great. I buy the inserts, wear the shock resistant socks.. replace the shoes every 4-6 months because I am hard on them...
I spend more money on my feet than my clothes. **sigh**
It is so hard to work out so hard and always have aching feet taking away from enjoying the workout. (Note, I have different running shoes and those are OK)
Thanks for any help you can offer. :)

I have big feet....9-1/2, and currently am wearing Reebok Cross trainers for aerobics and kickboxing. Since crosstrainers seem to work, why don't you try to get fitted with men's shoes, since you would have an easier time finding wider shoes in a man's shoe. They look the same as women's, so no one needs to know. That would seem to me to be the fastest and cheapest solution to your problem.

I've been buying shoes in the men's department for years. Let me know what you end up doing to solve your problem.

[kristina]

Thanks for the idea...I will give it a try next trip and let you know! :-cool

I have never worn crosstrainers, will have to check out if any have good lateral support? One time about 4 years ago I went for a flight in step class when we were doing full back turns over (helicopters) because by ankle just kindof gave out and flopped in my shoe and the rest of me kept going. I sprained my ankle badly (and my pride even worse) and the Doc told me to be sure forever after to make sure I had really good lateral supports in my shoes. Or, in my terms, dork protection. :-rollen

[PamelaP]

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Sep-30-00 AT 05:50PM (Est)[/font][p]Kristina -- as the owner of HUGE feet (11WW!), I can certainly relate! I've had wonderful luck with the New Balance line. Although their larger/wider sizes are not always available at retail stores, there are many places online that have them: Athlete's Foot, D!ck's Sporting Goods (dsports.com), The Sports Authority, etc. Try going to www.deal-finder.com and click on "Sports" to see what online coupons are currently being offered. I just ordered a new pair of NB 608s from Sports Chalet earlier today, with $10 off. Good luck!

PS: I can't believe this software edited out the word D!ck's! Hopefully my attempt at an alternative spelling will work!

[kristina]

What a great website! Thanks for the tip. (the rest of this message is censored...ha ha!)

[wendyloo]

I was just about to suggest New Balance, too. They are good!
Wendy (8 wide)

[murph]

NEW BALANCE, MY SAVIORS!! Try Road runner sports shoes at roadrunner.com. They offer all kinds of sports shoes. i have never had shoes that fit this well.

[kristina]

I don't know how to look up profiles, Honeybunch...hope you had a notify on this..
I found a place in my town called Good Feet that does custom made inserts called "the alzner effect."
Cost about $65 but SO worth it. My feet are a whole new person, and the inserts can be worn in any shoe and last for about a year. They correct any balance problem and bring the foot to "perfect" alignment. WOW. Great thing.

[DebbieH]

If there is a picture of a girl's face (ICON) above the poster's message, you can click on it and it will give you that person's profile. When you finish reading it, just click the "back" button to return. Hope this helps. Your-Friend-In-Fitness, DebbieH :-)

I wear a 9 1/2 and while the ball of my foot is really wide, the heel is pretty narrow, so men's shoes won't cut it. I also have pretty high arches. I have yet to find strictly aerobic shoes that are comfortable. I have found both Nike and Addidas crosstrainers that are wonderful.
My best advice is to check out someplace like Oshmans. The one here has the world's WORST salespeople. This is good, because all of the shoes are on the floor (no one has to go to the back to get them), so you can try on, jump around, jog in place, do ricochets, whatever, and no one will bother you.
Of course, because I'm so disgusted with the sales people, if the pair I like aren't on MAJOR sale, I go across the mall-hall and buy them at Lady Footlocker :-)