6 Gems: If I could only have one (supportive) sneaker.

By subscriber request - I tried SO. MANY. PAIRS.

Did you know I sold shoes at Ralph Lauren once? And was the first creative director at M.Gemi, the shoe brand? I know a lot about shoes.

But this was funny. My loyal subscriber friend who shall remain nameless, actually “pitched me” as if I were a reporter again. I don’t think of myself that way — I think of subscriber requests as part of what I do (one that I love and look forward to). But this friend has a foot injury, and instead of just asking me to address supportive sneakers that you could wear across multiple situations, she was like “and you know, people will want to read it, for travel! What’s the one sneaker you need!”

No need to sell me, I’m on it. And the great thing about this tight knit, really genuine community we have going here is that if it interests you, I know it’s going to interest us all. Not only because of upcoming vacations. But also because our feet hurt (FU, “fat pad atrophy”). And also because a surprising number of my friends have had recent foot injuries. I have theories: a) We’re walking in shoes we shouldn’t be wearing in the first place. b) That additional 1/2 a skinny spicy marg. Stop at 1. c) That time I tripped on my own too-large shopping bag. Are they making these things stiffer? It seems that way.

At some point (maybe soon) you’re going to want to wear a sneaker. And if that time is going to be while traveling (or for budget purposes), you’re probably going to only want one. If you’re traveling it’s the one you’re in at the airport (we’re not going running on vacation, are we? I tried running the day after the election because I wanted to pound something; the pavement idea didn’t work out). That “one” sneaker will have to do some heavy lifting.

If I were telling you what sneaker to pack in a suitcase (without a budget) that would be easy enough - a Prada Collapse (yes there are dark colors too). It’s the thinnest, lightest thing in life. I find it uber comfy. BUT, it’s not SUPPORTIVE. Same with the Tibi Seth (psst: for max wearability, go tan and use the tan shoelace). Both are a light little thing you can walk miles in, slot in a side pocket, but you can’t put an orthopedic insert in them or anything. This is a different assignment. Ok?

Ok.

First up, if you’re working on mindful shopping, all the images are here and you can read this on Airplane Mode. (I’ll wait!) And if you’re doing that, I suggest this project: Go through your closet trying on all your shoes and coming to terms with the ones that hurt. It’s ok to be who you are. Sell them. No need to buy anything. Pausing there is good.

Now here are my findings.