If you’ve been reading my blog, you know that the past 24 weeks has been challenging, in a myriad of ways. One of the ways has to do with my footwear for this Walk. When I was little, Keds were “in” – your choice of color was white, or white, so at the start of school each year, we’d make the yearly trek to the Walt Whitman Mall in Huntington, NY. First stop – Baker’s Shoes. My mom and I would scan the shoes in the window, give the man the # and size of the one I was interested in and he’d disappear in the back, only to re-appear in a few minutes with two boxes – one in the size I requested, and another in the next half-size up, just in case. That’s when my Dad would spring into action. He’d put the shoe on my foot, have me stand, and then with his thumb, he’d press down on the toe of the shoe to see where my big toe was. It hurt, but no matter. Then, He’d squeeze the sides of the shoe around my foot to see if it fit width-wise, then have me walk away from him, then back towards him. This process would continue ‘til we found the right shoe – size wise, heel height-wise, color-wise. When we left the store, I was smiling with the shoe box under my arm, my mom was smiling ‘cause she could cross another “to-do item” off her list, and my dad was smiling because he had successfully fitted me with another pair of shoes. Big day in our family. Sneakers were always purchased at either Korvettes or Modell’s. Each of the Silva-kids were outfitted with ONE pair of sneakers: they were usually on sale; they were always white (no other choice at that time), and they were usually Keds because the only other kind was the store-brand which had no staying power (per my mom). This pair was to last the entire school year – when dirty, they’d get washed; when scuffed, they’d be “painted” with white shoe paint; when the big toe popped through, then and only then were a new pair purchased.
When I became an adult, I pretty much followed the same routine (although there was that one year when I had two pairs of Reeboks at the same time – one pink, one blue . . .). The best sneakers were the cheapest as far as I was concerned. No matter that the tread was gone on the bottom, the better to dance the twist (have you ever tried to dance like chubby Checker with a well-tractioned pair of sneakers??). Unless that big toe came peeking through, that sneaker was good to go. So, all this to say, it was with much trepidation that I researched my first pair of official, train-for-the-walk, good for your feet, sneakers at Dicks Sporting Goods. I told the salesman (and I use that term lightly-- I have underwear older than this young man) that a good sneaker to me is one that is on sale at Kohl’s for $30 or under. After explaining my hairline fracture issue on my left arch, he pointed me to the Brooks Adrenaline, a snappy looking pair of light blue sneakers. He explained that because it was last year’s model, I could actually save $30.00 on the current model. SOLD! The next day, I discarded my $30 Kohl’s pair of New Balance, and walked five miles in my Brooks -- really; still reeling from the price, but loving how comfortable my feet felt --- maybe there was something to “you get what you pay for.” After several weeks, a second pair was purchased – this time, in pink! In my usual fashion, I waited WAY too long before purchasing a third pair, but given my history with sneaks, i.e. see above, it was difficult to bring myself to split with the bucks required. At the 21 week mark, on a Wednesday, IT happened….the dreaded plantar’s fasciitis struck my right foot! That first morning, I couldn’t put any weight on the heel, at all! The next day, with the aid of a cane (a gag gift to my son for his 21st birthday), I hobbled my way into a specialty sneaker store – after measuring my foot a half dozen ways, watching my walk, and asking many questions about my training, and my treatment of my feet when NOT training, they determined that the sneakers that I had been wearing for the past 21 weeks were not good for my feet, and recommended another Brooks style that would help with my faciitis. I bought it – at that point, I would have bought anything if it brought some relief, and it did, for a week and a half, but now the arch in my left foot was hurting. So, back to another store I went, and after spending over an hour speaking with a “sneaker expert” (who knew?), I left with yet another pair of Brooks, different style, which was supposedly the best of both worlds – more arch support like the first style, softer heel like the second style. I wore them “indoors” for a few days, and they are not comfortable, at all!
So, here we are two days before the big weekend, and if you’re keeping count, I have four pairs of sneakers, three different styles, and my right foot is presently elevated, with ice, and a throbbing pain in the heel. I have no idea which pair I’ll wear, I don’t have a spare pair, and at this point, I don’t really care. It’s even crossed my mind to wear two different sneakers, but I’m told that’ll just throw my body out of whack, and lead to hip problems – OY! The only thing I’m sure of is that, Lord willing, I will be walking this weekend – in which sneaker – the blue, pink, aqua, or neon green? Your guess is as good as mine!
