[pct-l] Feet Swelling

[Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com]

My feet got bigger for several reasons:
1) They became wider. My toes now are visibly separated when before  
they used to be squished together. Having toes separated is normal.  
Squished together is a result of wearing shoes too narrow, much like  
the result of Chinese footbinding, only less severe.

2) They became longer. Not a clue why.

3) They got thicker skin. Thicker skin takes up volume.

4) They got more muscular. Again more volume.

During the hike, as my feet became larger, it was apparent in my  
older shoes wearing out too quickly, in having my little toes on the  
edges feel like they were sticking out too far and being stubbed on  
things, and in finding myself having to wear thinner and thinner  
socks in order to be comfortable.

Numbers 3 and 4 subsided after a few months. Because I refuse to  
squish my feet into too small shoes anymore, numbers 1 and 2 remain.

I suppose if I had bound my feet into stiff boots, my feet would have  
done what feet always do when cramped, which is adapt by folding the  
toes under themselves or forming a bunion. I didn't want that to  
happen because it really hurts. Especially when you have a neuroma  
like I do.

Diane

On Feb 16, 2010, at 3:44 PM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
> Why do hikers feet get so big? It's not because they carry a lot of  
> weight.
> Why are aspiring hikers told to buy shoes that are so much larger  
> than their
> feet? Yes, feet swell, but do we need to let them swell out to the  
> limits of
> the shoe? Does an over-large shoe contribute to blisters and the  
> other foot
> maladies that trouble thru hikers?