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Healthy living: If the shoe fits buy it

Ron Irwin

By now you know that the road to much better health is to first purge your excess weight and then maintain proper weight and excellent health through much more movement and a commitment to eating less but more nutritious foods. The foundation of all significant movement is walking. True, many people also enjoy jogging and running, but that can never be your constant state of motion and both jogging and running are merely an exaggerated form of walking. All of it involves your feet and therefore it is extremely important that you properly protect your feet with good quality and properly fitting footwear.

The best running shoe is not typically also the best walking shoe. Also even if you focus only on walking your style of walking, how much you walk and where you plan on doing most of your walking, will dictate which shoes are best for your particular needs.

The easiest way to make sure you get the right shoe and the proper fit is to go to a good sporting goods store and get some professional assistance. REI is a high-end well-regarded national chain, but there are others.

shoesIf you would rather do it yourself and maybe save a few dollars by shopping on the internet consider these general guidelines: if you plan on doing most of you walking in a casual manner in an urban environment pretty much any good quality walking or running shoe will work. But if you plan on hiking on dirt paths or scale rocks or maybe climb Mount Everest you will need a boot or shoe designed for that purpose.

When it comes to fit the shoes should be snug but never tight and with wiggle room for your toes. They also need to provide at least some cushioning and they should also be waterproof. Your walking and hiking footwear also must provide good support and not be so heavy as to present a detriment to your purpose. All of this is best accomplished by trying on various options at a brick and mortar store, at least the first time around.

And don’t go simply for the lowest price. A poorly made or ill-fitting shoe can cause all manner of discomfort and potential injuries including blistering. Getting injured is just too much to pay for a relatively cheap price. Also buy high quality comfortable socks to further enhance comfort and protection. Clearly when it comes to safe, fun, pleasant and meaningful walking, hiking, jogging or running, fit and quality matter most and flip flops are simply not allowed.

Also know that even a good quality shoe will last for about 500 miles of walking. hat may seem like a lot but if you get like me and routinely walk more than 10 miles every day that means new shoes are required about every other month. In the price range I typically buy in of about $80.00 that works out to about sixteen cents a mile. That doesn’t seem like too big a price for far better health and longer life.

Tell your walking tale and win a book

Lose-Live-CoverYes indeed walk for health and also for joy and then share your walking experience to inspire others. Please write and email your favorite walking experience to me at: [email protected]. Where did you walk, what did you see, how long was your walk and anything else you want to reveal. Please include a few photos with your email. Submissions will be accepted now though November 10th 2016 and the winner will receive a free copy of Lose Live the ultimate guide to good health and weight loss.  Your story will also appear in this publication. Together we can feel great and begin to win the war on obesity and ill health.

You can, at any time, get your very own copy of my true and real guide to effective and permanent weight loss, Lose Live available at lulu.com, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. Just be sure to keep checking in right here for regular updates. And if you have a question or comment for me please send your email to: [email protected]

Copyright © 2016 Ron Irwin

Photos by Ron Irwin unless otherwise noted

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