Foot pain from walking

I thought I'd post this here since I know there are some pretty experienced walkers on UKY. It could be more of a health issue so definitely mods can move it if needed, but I just wanted to ask for advice and thoughts.

Phoenix is by no means a walking city, and I have had a desk job for the last two years. Because of a busy schedule and some amount of laziness on my part, I rarely went to the gym and I am therefore aware I am most likely very out of shape in terms of physical endurance, etc.

My problem is, during my first two weeks of being in London so far, I have come home every day with feet in such pain that by the time I sit down, they actually throb (PAINFULLY!) for a good 45 minutes to an hour and any walking I do after that leaves my feet feeling as though they're very very very bruised with each step.

I have two good pairs of clarks shoes and a few pairs of crocs (the alice kind, not the big clunky kind), which are wonderful for walking, or so I was told. They all support my high arches well. I definitely can tell the difference from the one day I wore my chuck taylors (which I will NOT be doing anytime soon again!) and from when I wear the crocs or clarks shoes.

Here's what I can't figure out. Am I just a pansy? Will I eventually get used to it?

I see women walking around London in what appear to be incredibly uncomfortable shoes, but don't appear to be in any distress or discomfort. It has gotten to the point for me where my feet hurt so badly by the end of the day that I can't even enjoy the things I'm walking around for (like today at the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace, I was in total misery and only half enjoyed it at all because we had already been walking all day). I keep turning over the following questions: Maybe Londoners hide it well? Maybe their feet don't hurt at all? Maybe they're used to it? Maybe I need some vitamins? Maybe I should be doing a certain kind of exercise (but how would that benefit the bottoms of my feet...)? Maybe I will also get used to it eventually? Maybe I am doing a lot more walking because I am sight-seeing a lot? Maybe I walk funny? Maybe everyones' feet are in pain but they ignore it as a fact of life and I should stop whining?

I just can't figure it out because no one (not even the Americans I have been touristing around with) ever says anything about their feet hurting, so I feel as though I am suffering alone here! Any advice or opinions? Even 800mg ibuprofen isn't helping at this point!

Poor you - sorry to hear that you're suffering.

I don't think you have much to worry about, but I think it's just going to be a case of getting accustomed to walking everyday - the pain will go away eventually, but at the moment your feet just aren't used to walking so much.

After I graduated uni, I went back to work at my full-time summer job and it involved 9 hours a day of standing/walking accompanied by lifting heavy boxes/pushing trollies/receiving deliveries. For the first couple of weeks, I could barely stand, let alone walk, at the end of the day!

It wasn't that I was particularly unfit (although I've only been to the gym 4 times in my entire life, I'd spent the last year at uni walking 2-3 miles a day, up and down big hills), but just that I wasn't used to being on my feet for such a long period at a time. However, after a couple of weeks, once I adjusted to it, my feet stopped hurting and I could work a full day on my feet, no problem - it's been 2 years now and I'm still working full days with no pain .

I get bad foot pain, too, Becky. It's terrible! No matter how much walking I do, I never seem to get accustomed to it or get over the pain. And wearing different styles of shoes doesn't seem to help all that much either, although I have found that I need a slight heel (not a high one). Have you seen a podiatrist? I went to one several years ago and found that a lot of the pain I was getting was because I have much higher than normal arches. So wearing a flat shoe just doesn't cut it for me. There is no way I could do much walking in Crocs, though! Do they really give you good support? I wear mine for popping down the beach, but that's it.

Last week I was in Paris doing a ton of walking. My feet were, as you said, throbbing every day. I used some of that cool foot gel at night and in the morning, and it helped a bit. That and a lot of ibuprofen.

Is yours foot pain or heel pain? Unfortunately, I get both. My podiatrist gave me some really good morning stretches to do to ease the heel pain, and they really do work. If all else fails, rest those dogs on a bag of frozen peas in the evening. It does wonders.

Seeing a podiatrist is probably a good idea. The extensive walking that can come with living in the UK can show up oddities in your feet that you may have got away with in a less active environment. So high arches or bone spurs or whatever can really make things bad. I used to have bone spurs on my heels and had to have insoles made. They realigned everything from my feet up to my hips. But I still get sore feet though I'm not walking much on a daily basis.

Becky, kind of like what ksand24 was saying, it sounds like you aren't used to all the walking & it will probably come along in time.  Also, chary & balmerhon offer a good suggestion to maybe get things checked out by a doc.

Here are some suggestions from me -- which may or may not help you.  Have you thought about getting some proper walking shoes, or even boots?  I'm talking about from an outdoors shop or sporting goods store.  Granted, they aren't going to be fashionable for the London set, but when I do lots of walking (we do long distance country walks) -- I don't want to wear anything but my walking boots.  I am used to the city walking I do around Leeds now, but yes my feet used to hurt in the beginning too.

Medicinally, you could probably take 800 mg ibuprofen (that's a Motrin prescription dose) every 8 hours -- with food on your tummy!  You can also buy here, over the counter, a mild dose of paracetamol (Tylenol) with a bit of codeine in it -- unless you react badly to codeine or paracetamol, then of course don't take it!

When my feet are aching (after long walks), it helps to put them up -- at least level with my body or even higher than my body.  A hot bath also helps, as well as massaging them.

You will get used to it as you build up more walking in time.  However, my feet will still hurt after we've done a good 10-13 mile walk in a day -- but they recover much more quickly nowadays.

When my feet are aching (after long walks), it helps to put them up -- at least level with my body or even higher than my body.  A hot bath also helps, as well as massaging them.

Yes! Lie on the sofa with your feet raised up on a stack of cushions. That helps a lot!

Heat has never worked on mine, though. My podiatrist always recommended a cool foot bath or else ice packs.

I have had some experience with this including clinical posture training. I would see your doctor or an osteopath. They can have a look at the way you walk/stand and see why it's hurting. It shouldn't hurt like you are describing. As for others that have no problems - they will have problems down the road, i promise you! They will start to get lower back pain or pain in their shoulders or necks and wonder why. They won't realise it's their shoes, the way they walk or stand that all stems from your feet! You may need special inserts for your shoes to support your arches, even with clarks, you might need specially made ones for your high arches to give you proper support. Let us know how it goes!

Ah Becky, I so know what you're going through. Jon used to make fun of me the first months of living here because I was so unaccustomed to walking (it's true, Phoenix is not a walking town).

I eventually built up the muscle and I don't get bad foot pain but I still get a soreness that won't go away. It's not painful and it's not annoying, it's only noticable when stretch my feet.

Thank you everyone for your replies. I really do appreciate it. I am hoping that I actually do a bit less walking by the time term starts, because then I will be walking to class, sitting in class (and having a rest), and then walking back home. So far it has been CONSTANT walking with long periods of standing (which seem to hurt my feet far worst that walking does), because of all the sight-seeing.

I'm not really sure how to go about seeing a podiatrist though in the UK. I do have a student visa and will be here for a year and I thought I read somewhere that I can be on the NHS if that is true? I don't know if it is or not. We do have a health center on campus as well, so I will try to check that out. I can say though that I never have problems with my back, hips, or knees, it's always just my darn feet! So hopefully that is a good sign and maybe I am just not used to the walking?

The crocs I have are these and the inside of them do appear to have pretty high arch support, which is what tempted me to buy them. I'm definitely willing to accept the possibility that they're just not enough for my feet.

Where would be a good place to start looking for walking shoes or boots? I'm not worried about looking cute for the Londoners at this point, I just want my functioning feet back! It would actually also be nice to have a good pair of shoes that won't soak through if I misstep into a puddle in the rain! I'm also willing to take one for the team, as you'd say, if they're a bit expensive. At this point it's a health/comfort over price issue for me.

As a student you can use the NHS. Start at your Uni health centre and see what they say. But if it persists, you might consider seeing a podiatrist. Not sure if that's available on the NHS, but you could go private.

As a student you can use the NHS. Start at your Uni health centre and see what they say. But if it persists, you might consider seeing a podiatrist. Not sure if that's available on the NHS, but you could go private.

Oh good, that is what I thought! I will definitely see what they say if the walking shoes just don't cut it. I am hoping that I'm just wearing the wrong sort of shoes. I think I'll take it in steps and eliminate one option at a time to figure out what is going on. Thank you!

The crocs I have are these and the inside of them do appear to have pretty high arch support, which is what tempted me to buy them. I'm definitely willing to accept the possibility that they're just not enough for my feet.

For me, it would be less an issue of arch support with those shoes than it would a plain lack of cushioning. I think if you look for some good walking shoes/boots, you'll be able to find something with more padding inside which will help the soles of your feet from feeling so bruised.

(Cute Crocs, though!) 

I had the same problem when I moved here, despite my best efforts at finding comfy cushy walking shoes. I'm cursed with the high arches too, which definitely makes it more challenging. My feet have adjusted over time, and now I don't have a problem with the everyday sort of walking that I do, and I usually walk home from work (a bit under 2 miles). Another thing I've found to help is rotating shoes--having 3-4 pairs and not wearing the same pair two days in a row.

I have NO idea how the women around here can walk in the sorts of shoes they do. Aside from the foot pain, the pavements are so uneven that I'd break a leg in two minutes flat if I wore three-inch stiletto heels!

I have NO idea how the women around here can walk in the sorts of shoes they do. Aside from the foot pain, the pavements are so uneven that I'd break a leg in two minutes flat if I wore three-inch stiletto heels!

I know! I feel like I didn't get some of the genetic material that allows extended walking in stilettos without pain and utter agony! I can't even walk 3 steps in them, let alone all day and on uneven pavements!

I saw a woman about a week ago wearing 3 inch heels. They were the most ridiculous shoes you've ever seen.

But she had everybody looking at them and you could see what they were thinking "WTF?!". She walked just fine, though. You can tell when someone isn't used to them. They walk funny. Those people always make me laugh, their vanity surpasses their practicality.