Confessions, part one
June 10th, 2008 
I’m one of those people who wear runners with (nearly) everything.
Running shoes are practical. Sure, flats are cute. But they kill your feet and leave you (me) limping after a day in the city. Sure, heels are sexy. But they’re impractical to wear for day-to-day use.
Can a girl not win?
As a general rule of thumb, if where I’m going involves walking from more than just the car to the destination, I forgo the four inch heels for running shoes. Because I mean, seriously. I’m a practical girl. I wouldn’t walk ten blocks in heels unless true love and a million dollars were waiting for me at the end.
You can imagine how thrilled my future husband will be when he finds out I pick practical over fashionable more often than I pick fashionable over practical. Like any other smart aging woman looking to snatch someone in hopes of not spending the rest of what remains of her life alone, I wont tell him right away—In fact, I think I’ll wear my favorite pair of cowboy boots on our first date just to throw him off. It’s just the kind of thing that screams, city girl in cowboy boots! CITY GIRL IN COWBOY BOOTS! … And if that doesn’t make a statement against impracticality, I don’t know what does.
And it’s not like being practical is always easy on the wallet, either. With exception to a couple evening dresses and maybe one suit, my runners are the most expensive apparel I own. (They were also, much to my dismay, the most expensive pair in the store.) So I wear them everywhere, because guess what? By early next year, I will need another pair. And you can be sure I’m getting my money’s worth.
So I wear my running shoes everywhere. I wear them to the grocery store, I wear them when I walk the dog. I wear them when I go to casual meetings, I wear them to lunch with acquaintances. I wear them the mall, I wear them when I go downtown. I wear them when I go out for dinner, and if I did the whole “lets go on dates” thing, I’d probably wear them there too.
It drives my best friend crazy. I don’t wear them when I see her.
That’s what we call true love.
I wear ballet flats. They are the most comfortable for me, and oh-so-light! I can see where you’re coming from with the sneakers. Although I hardly wear them, when I DO have to have alternate footwear, I pick light sneakers. :)
June 10th, 2008 at 4:35 pmI’m the same! Running shoes are the way to go; comfortable and convenient. I wear leather shoes for work and boots for those rare dress-up occasions.
June 10th, 2008 at 4:50 pmI wear ballet flats, Vans, and Converse. All three are equally comfortable for me, and comfort>everything.
June 10th, 2008 at 5:25 pmI actually very rarely wear my sneakers…and generally only when I’m engaged in some kind of athletic activity like talking long walks! When it comes to walking in shopping centres and the like though, I do tend to wear ballet flats, as it makes it easier to slip on and off when I’m trying on clothes. ;)
June 10th, 2008 at 5:25 pmI love my running shoes ;)
I wear ballet flats with nicer outfits and classy outings. Wearing heels is a at a mum for me, but I love them too!
June 10th, 2008 at 6:37 pmI completely agree with you. The most expensive pair of shoes I own are a pair of Nike’s that I bought a few months ago…and I wear them everywhere! Along with jeans and t-shirts most of the time. I’m more for wearing comfortable clothes than stylish ones, so you know, that’s just how I roll.
June 10th, 2008 at 7:53 pmAhhh … I do love a good pair of comfortable running shoes. Especially since I have unusually shaped feet that HATE heels, flats, sandals, basically any footwear except runners.
Except I seem to love to torture my feet, because I own dozens of incredibly cute, incredibly impractical, incredibly uncomfortable shoes. And I often do end up walking ten blocks in them, LOL. For example - bar to pizza place. At that point in time, it does feel like true love and a million dollars are waiting for me there, LOL.
June 10th, 2008 at 10:38 pmI never wear mine unless I’m running. Or doing some kind of physical activity wherein heels would just not be appropriate. I have a shoe fetish coupled with short height and that definitely results in buying impossibly high heels that take more than a little getting used to. :P However one day I shall fall on my face and break several limbs so perhaps it isn’t such a good idea after all.
June 11th, 2008 at 1:08 amI love flats, like Aisling =]
June 11th, 2008 at 7:24 amTrainers always seem to give me blisters.
I used to do the same thing, but now I wear flip-flops and flats in warmer weather and boots in the winter. I only wear running shoes when I’m actually running or when I’m going to be walking for several hours. I don’t like heels since I don’t need to be any taller. :P
June 11th, 2008 at 8:59 amEverything is a long walk in the city, so I’m on the practical side with shoes, too. But I can’t stand [traditional] runners because the soles are so thick, I can’t feel the ground. So I took it back to the 60s with Tigers, nice and flat.
June 11th, 2008 at 9:17 amI don’t wear running shoes. :P I wear a pair of four-year-old red high-top Converse. They really need to be replaced, though.
June 11th, 2008 at 9:24 amI always pitied those girls that you see running in heels (what are they doing running in heels anyway?) - their feet must hurt like the dickens. I tried wearing heels once but they pinch your feet so badly. I never knew how girls could go all with them on.
June 11th, 2008 at 11:21 amWell, I’m the same way, but I only wear them when I’m going to work (the gym) or anything else that isn’t going to work to H&M, dinner, meeting with friends etc. Shopping for groceries and the like is always done in my Nike Shox.
I don’t find ballerina flats comfortable at all, I need my running shoes.
I do however think that comfort has a lot to do with the type of heel you’re wearing. I’ve never had problems with boots with chunky square heels, so I’d recommend those. The chunkier the heel, the more comfortable it is for me, though I love, love, love stillettos…
June 11th, 2008 at 1:36 pmI wear a few items with practically everything:
- Crocs
- Victoria’s Secret PINK “Peace Love Pink” hooded sweatshirt
- black Lululemon Groove pants
And I don’t feel guilty.
June 11th, 2008 at 7:37 pmI religiouslly wear three pairs of Sketcher tennis shoes. I have each pair in black, brown, and white. I wear the white ones to work and the black and brown pairs are for when I want to be comfortable. I am SO not above going to bars with those shoes on either. I am more for comfort.
June 11th, 2008 at 10:59 pmI’m a major fan of hard soled moccasins. Pretty, comfy, and natural. Yum! Plus, they hide really well under black pants so that I still look polished and professional at work, if only slightly.
June 12th, 2008 at 12:42 pmI go for flats since they are so easy to slip on and go. I walk everywhere in flats and I’ve not had too many problems with pain or poor wear. But if the weather’s bad, I go for some heavy boot/shoes (think docs, but not quite). I usually only wear walking shoes when I’m at the gym, out walking the dog, or hiking because like you said they are expensive, ha.
June 12th, 2008 at 10:05 pmjust out of curiosity chanel… do you wear them running?
June 13th, 2008 at 6:46 pmaww man, i wish i could get away with it but i’m at a point in my life where i just can’t anymore. anyway, thanks for taking a stand for women being comfortable!! we can always use more of that.
June 13th, 2008 at 10:33 pmI’m a flats person myself, but yes, if I’m in a situation where sneakers are appropriate, I’d definitely wear them. I can’t stand having sore feet!
June 14th, 2008 at 5:32 amCoaching = my foot heaven.
June 14th, 2008 at 9:01 pmI’m not especially fashionable, but I hate running shoes. I don’t even own a pair. Now, I wear flats a lot, but I used to wear small heels. I wore heels everywhere… I’d wear them for hours. I’d run through the subway with them. I’d walk around the city with them. Luckily, they never real hurt my feet.
June 15th, 2008 at 3:14 am