Tips for Choosing the Right Pair of School Shoes

In this blog post, we will be discussing some tips on how to choose the right pair of school shoes for your children to make sure they step off on the right foot every single day!

Undoubtedly, the most important gear to having a productive day is a perfectly-fitted pair of shoes. An ill-fitting pair of shoes will hinder your performance and may cause unexpected injuries. 

Look for Shoes Specifically Designed for Comfort

No matter how stylish the shoes are, comfort is key in having a productive day. To ensure this, you need to find a pair of shoes specifically designed for your needs — running, walking, or hiking. Here are a few parts of the shoes to consider:

• Achilles notch: 
  Achilles notch is the U-shaped or V-shaped indentation in the collar of the shoe to lessen the pressure and friction the shoe puts on the Achilles tendon. Find a shoe that has a firm yet soft cushioning to prevent blisters and tears in the heel of the foot. 
• Midsole: 
  The midsole is the “surface” or the “floor” of the shoe. Finding the right cushioning according to your foot type (which we will be discussing later), will help you feel comfortable all day long without straining the soles of your feet. 
• Toe Box:
  Finding an appropriate toe box is crucial because most injuries or discomfort comes from when your toes are squished in the toe box. To check whether your toes have the right amount of space for movement, simply press your fingers on top of the toe box and lift your toes from inside the shoe. There should be sufficient space between your toe and the tip of your shoe. 

The flexibility of the Shoe

Walking in itself is a natural rolling motion of your toes to heel. If your shoes aren’t flexible enough, it will hinder your stride and you will end up with muscle strain or worse, blisters in the Achilles heel. To test a shoe’s flexibility, you can simply twist the shoe in opposite directions. The shoe should be able to twist a little. If it twists into a complete spiral, it’s too flexible for walking longer distances. Bending the shoe will also be a great test to find out its flexibility. The shoe should bend slightly in the midsole, but not until the toe touches the heel.   

Find a Lightweight Shoe 

Nobody wants to be walking around with bricks attached to their feet, do they? Finding a lightweight pair of shoes will allow your feet to breathe and feel dry and comfortable in humid weather because a lightweight pair of shoes are usually made with breathable material. A lightweight pair of shoes will also give your feet the ability to walk naturally without the added weight that may alter your overall posture and movement. When our posture is affected, different types of discomfort may occur like back pain and shoulder pain which may lead to chronic back strain. To avoid this, it is important for your child to maintain and develop good posture since they are young and continually developing their muscles and bones. 

Choose a Shoe with Good Cushioning 

There are a lot of benefits to having a pair of shoes with good cushioning. A cushioning in the shoe is placed between the ball and the heel of the foot. A good cushioning will improve your overall body mechanics and prevent or alleviate back strain and knee injuries that may occur during everyday activities for you and your children like playing in the playground or running errands around town. A good cushioning will also reduce the stress and impact placed on your knees, ankles, and toes during activities like running and jogging.  

Identify Your Arch Type 

Knowing your arch type is important in determining the footwear and insoles that you choose. There are 3 types of arches: high arch, medium arch (normal), and low arch (also known as flat feet). People with high arches are prone to foot pain because of the extra stress on the plantar fascia, the connective tissue that supports the arch. People with high arches unconsciously shift their body weight to the balls of their feet which may lead to bad posture and chronic back pain. On the contrary, people with medium arches face little to no difficulties because the stress and impact placed on the foot disperse evenly to support the weight of the body. People with low arches are prone to the pain in the arch itself because the plantar fascia is stiffer compared to the other two arches. This can cause ankle swelling which may lead to hip and lower back pain.  

If you can’t find the right shoes that fit right for you or your child’s feet, you can always get a custom made insole that can be inserted to any shoe. Many shoes these days are made with insoles that can be removed and replaced. Consulting a doctor would be great if your arches cause you chronic pain and injuries. Doctors will usually conduct a few tests in determining the cause of pain like an FPAW (Foot Progression Angle Walking) test to analyse the stress distribution during a walk, run and jump. 

Summary 

Knowing our needs and type of feet we have is crucial in determining the perfect shoe to ensure a productive and injury-free day. The different parts of shoes to look out for, the weight of the shoe, the cushioning and the insoles designed for our foot type will help us find the right shoe. 

Not only do we specialise in making well-tailored school uniforms we also have shoes available in both our online and retail store. Our shoes feature a non-slip coating on the rubber sole to ensure that your child does not slip in wet surfaces. For primary school children, our shoes feature a velcro fastening to prevent injuries of untied shoelaces but still comfortably fastened around your child’s foot so it doesn’t fly out during recess time! If your child is in secondary school, our shoes have shoelaces to still look sporty and fashionable but still maintaining breathability through the mesh design. Our school shoes are available in both colours black and white.