Trainers

I love shoes. I have loads of them and still don’t think I spend enough time on this hobby. Trainers (sneakers) – I can take or leave them. They are a necessity for the gym and getting to and from yoga. If I have a quiet weekend doing not a lot they may be the only thing on my feet. Other than that – they don’t really grab my attention. So trainer shopping yesterday was really fun.

Lifestyle, gym or running?

Seriously? Why not start a shopping experience with a lot of deep questions about how much I use my trainers and what for? What if it is a mix of things? Does that mean I need to buy more than one pair?

I get the ‘lifestyle’ choice but can they not just name it for what it is…trainers that look good with jeans and dresses and are crap for going to the gym in. Ok I now see why they name them ‘lifestyle’.

My problem with the ones you buy just for wearing out is that they always have something wrong with them that makes them uncomfortable. You start with really high expectations of how comfy they look until they slap you with a blister. Usually they rub my heels. Defeats the purpose really, I would be better in 5 inch heels.

I just need them for the gym!

And walking to and from my yoga studio. And possibly on a weekend nipping to the shops in my joggies. Maybe I should start liking trainers more. I like men in good trainers if that counts :-).

Having found a shop that sells the bloody things I just looked at the best ones I could find. As in the ones I thought would look the nicest, would not make my 4 1/2 to 5 (uk size) feet look mahooosive, would be ok for the gym, and the odd (a rarity almost) run.

All this meant was that, since I thought my current trainers were the nicest looking trainers I have ever bought, I was looking to see if there was something pretty much the same. No of course there wasn’t. I bought my current ones in a Nike store in Bangkok 2 years ago. Since I have mainly been doing yoga they have lasted the distance. But they are a bit haggart now and I have rejoined a gym to add a bit of a mix again to my fitness so I needed a fresh pair.

Anyway…I found some. I am not overly enamoured with them but they look ok I guess and they are comfy. Thats them at the top. My favourite pair…thats them below. To be honest though even with both of them….they are trainers – I can take or leave them.

I Never Fall Over in High Heels

I never fall over in high heels. Stiletto type heels. Any other kind of heeled boot or shoe though is a different matter entirely. Actually to add to that. Bare feet and balancing (yoga) usually leads to me falling over. But with a good 4 -7 inch pair of heels – never!

Wearing heels

I have always preferred a stiletto or thin enough type of heel to any other. So even when buying a pair of boots I go for a nicely shaped heel (only I know what I mean by that), even if it is squared, rather than an awful big clunky thing. Clunky heels look perfectly fine on a lot of people but I am short (ish) and my feet, size UK 4 to 4.5, do not adapt well to clunkiness.

I have loads. Shoes with heels. Not in an Imelda Marcos type way. But still enough that there are some I hardly ever wear. From ridiculously expensive, to pretty expensive, to dirt cheap. My favourite ones are my range of Sam Edelman pointed with a stiletto heel. So comfy! The heel is only 3.75inches. Not an affiliate at all, just a buyer of them when one of my favourite shoe shops in Edinburgh get them in stock.

Other shoes will sometimes do

I don’t always wear heels though. Most of the time I do, but as my job involves walking at times I generally wear a kitten (ish) heel to work. No point in ruining my good ones. Otherwise I love a good loafer (very hard to find just the right ones) and I spend a lot of time in my trainers. So it isn’t like I am always in teeteringly high heels. I guess I am saying I like them but am not always in them.

In Edinburgh due to the millions [exaggeration] of hills and the fact that I walk to most places, it is often more comfortable to wear an ankle or knee length boot. So I have plenty of them too.

Getting around in heels

There are lots of roads with cobbles in Edinburgh. However I have had years of practice with crossing these roads and have it down to a fine art. If you are unlucky they will trip you up no matter what shoes you are wearing. I know it is odd – but I find that I don’t fall when wearing heels. Maybe it is because I concentrate more on my walking. It might also be because I don’t walk as fast as seemingly everyone else in Edinburgh (refer to previous post on this). Either way, or a combination of both, when out in heels I can get around. That is until the balls of my feet start to hurt. Taxi’s are a great way of coping with sore feet.

Lunch, Wine and Falling over

Last Saturday I went out to lunch. As it involved a walk up a hill I settled on an ankle boot (nice heel) with jeans rather than a pair of great heels. This all went well and even after a few glasses of wine I made it home in one piece to prepare for a few drinks at my flat with friends that evening.

My preparations were going well (ankle boots still on) and I decided on a few cut roses from the garden. Out I tottered, over a few innocuous looking slabs, and promptly crashed to the ground on my hands and knees. Since there are at least 8 sets of flat windows looking over the garden I slithered back to the doorway to inspect myself. Thankfully no hole in jeans but ouch it bloody hurt! So in case this looked really odd, should someone be looking out the window at that exact moment, I got up and, with a confident stride, got to that bloody rose bush and cut 4 beautifully red roses and some greenery for my vase.

Back in my flat and the state of me became apparent. My hands were bleeding and my knees were scraped quite badly. Imagine a five year old, all scraped and looking like their world is ending. Yep I looked exactly the same.

Dusted off, scrapes washed and sat back down with a recovery glass (yes another) of wine I only had one bloody thought. “I should have worn my stilettos!!”

Photo by Apostolos Vamvouras on Unsplash