Big Foot...Little Foot...True Or False?

Hanfordrose

This may be one of those NVS's, but it is more of a question.

For more than 30 years, my favorite footwear was thongs.

Note: This in no way relates to those undies that disappear between the butt cheeks and covers next to nothing. This isn't about flip flops either. In my mind, flip flops are those plastic shoes that are worn in the public showers to prevent athlete's foot contamination.

At one time, I owned 18 pair of Pure Juice leather thongs in multiple colors to match any outfit that I wore. I loved the freedom that these shoes gave my feet. I could wear them anywhere inside or out. I would have worn them to my wedding, if my Maid of Honor hadn't pitched a fit at that idea and insisted that I wear 'real shoes'. Recently, I have been wearing slippers all day...every day. Even my church shoes are just soft, black slippers to give the elusion of real church shoes. You know...the hard ones with the sensible heel, like the ones that I wore with my dress uniform in the Navy.

Unfortunately, there is a problem associated with wearing footwear that does not bind your feet. Those comfortable, non-confining thongs and slippers allowed my feet to grow bigger and wider with each passing year. My increasing weight added to the problem. I went from a size 8 foot to a size 9 1/2 or even a 10, depending on the footwear style. The few times that I had to wear formal wear/church lady shoes, I was an uncomfortable size 10. Even my last pair of tennis shoes were a size 10. By the way, I still call all canvas shoes 'tennies'. Athletic shoes just doesn't sound like me.

I had no delusions about my 'big feet', when I decided to buy a pair of Danskin tennies in Walmart yesterday. I wanted to find 'my size' in a black pair with the low back, which would allow me to just slip them on and off...like a slipper. Now, all I had to do was find a size 10.

Sadly, there were no 10's; but I did find a pair of 9 1/2's. Oh my goodness! They were huge. I had extra room at the toes and the heel. I actually tried on a size 9, then a size 8 1/2 and finally a size 8. The 8's fit...but just barely; so, I bought the 8 1/2's and hoped they wouldn't stretch.

On the way home from the store, I mentioned to my hubbie that my feet had shrunk with my weght loss. He said, "That isn't possible. Feet don't shrink!"

Well, something is happening to my feet or shoe companies are changing the size numbers on their shoes to make their 'big footed' customers feel better about our plus size feet. I haven't been close to a size 8, since the 1980's.

So...true or false. Do feet shrink or not, when you lose weight?

gettinfitaus

Yup my little sister found this out the hard way hen her collection of 50+ pairs of heels, stilettos, ballet slippers etc etc didn't fit any more.

melindasuefritz

How much weight you'll lose in your feet -- and how that loss will affect your shoe size -- depends on how much weight you lose and, to some extent, your age. Body fat distribution varies between individuals and can change during your lifetime. Feet tend to become larger with age. Weight loss may cause you to lose half a shoe size or even more. Treating yourself to new shoes can be a part of creating your new image at your reduced weight.


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Weight Loss

A combination of a healthy, calorie-restricted diet and vigorous exercise promotes weight loss. Your feet will become less prone to swelling as your body becomes more efficient from exercise and you reduce or eliminate foods that contribute to water retention, such as refined grains and high-sodium foods. Weight loss benefits your feet and all your joints. The many bones and ligaments of your feet won't have to support so much excess weight. Slimming down also reduces the added impact of excess weight with every step you take.

Strategies

Adjusting lace-up shoes to tie them more snugly will help the fit. Lace-up shoes, lace-up boots, shoes with adjustable buckles and sandals tend to be the most accommodating to changes in the size of your feet. Non-slip heel grips can help shoes fit more securely while your weight is in transition; apply these self-adhesive strips inside your shoes, behind where your heels rest. Shock-absorbing and gel-types insoles help take up space left by weight loss in your feet. Variety stores, drug stores and shoe stores carry these products.

Considerations

Working, walking and exercising in poorly fitting shoes increases your risk of injury. Investing in supportive shoes that fit results in less expense and pain over time. The cushioning in athletic shoes breaks down within three to six months, according to the American Council on Exercise.

Expert Advice

Have your feet measured at a shoe store that employees knowledgeable sales people. Correct shoe size involves the length and width of your feet. Try on shoes at the end of the day. Most people experience some swelling in the feet during the day; your shoes will fit best if you buy them when your feet are at their largest.

melindasuefritz

guess it depends on person i didnt get smaller feeet or smaller boobs so

Amy11108

Yes my husband lost 100 lbs and went down shoe sizes and widths

meshashesha2012

i dont buy it. if this were true then people in the past who didnt wear shoes would have humongous feet by the time they died if you followed this logic. plus this same argument would need to also be applied to the hands, right?

your feet grew because os weight gain and age.. as we age, the arch naturally falls a bit so that the feet are flatter and wider

Hanfordrose

i dont buy it. if this were true then people in the past who didnt wear shoes would have humongous feet by the time they died if you followed this logic.

Size 10 was humongous for me. :laugh:

plus this same argument would need to also be applied to the hands, right?

But I didn't put 280+ pounds on top of my hands. Only my feet had to bear that load.

your feet grew because of weight gain and age.. as we age, the arch naturally falls a bit so that the feet are flatter and wider

That's what I thought, but how come my feet seem to be getting small, if not for the loss of fat in my feet?

Hanfordrose

How much weight you'll lose in your feet -- and how that loss will affect your shoe size -- depends on how much weight you lose and, to some extent, your age. Body fat distribution varies between individuals and can change during your lifetime. Feet tend to become larger with age. Weight loss may cause you to lose half a shoe size or even more. Treating yourself to new shoes can be a part of creating your new image at your reduced weight.

Thanks for all the useful information. :flowerforyou:

I am currently spending most of my time in a wheelchair, but I will be get double knee replacement surgeries in the near future. That will involve physical therapy, and I know that I will need at least one pair of good tennies for those workouts. I will probably get my feet properly sized for those shoes.

With about another 50 pounds still to lose, I won't be buying a bunch of shoes, until my final goal weight is closer.

FromHereOnOut

When you gain weight, the extra weight pushes down on your arches and causes them to flatten out and your feet seem longer. It CAN happen that when you lose weight, the arches spring back up and make the feet fit into a smaller size again. This is why pregnant women sometimes go up in shoe size and then back down again after the delivery/loss of pregnancy weight. Happened to me. However, I think sometimes people's arches don't "spring back" into place. If yours did, consider yourself lucky. And of course, this doesn't apply to people who have "flat feet" because their arches are already flattened, so I would doubt that their feet would ever change size drastically.

gracielynn1011

Oh yes they do shrink.

I have shoes that I wore comfortably as little as 6 months ago, that I can walk out of without even untying them. Imagine that when Jillian Michael's is telling you not to stop for any reason.

caribear1984

I'm not sure exactly why this happens, but it absolutely does. I have lost about one shoe size so far. I know a large portion of it for me was water retention due to excess sodium and medication that I no longer have to take. But yes, my feet flop around in my shoes now. I prefer the mary jane-style velcro tennis shoes, and now even though they are cinched tight I sometimes feel like I am going to launch them across the room in kickboxing class.

shellyb17

After I lost 70 lbs, my shoe size went from a 9 to a 7 1/2. Foot shrinkage definitely can happen.

concordancia

I have worn a ten for thirty years, but lately, I have been buying 9.5 and even 9s. I think they are making them larger. Unfortunately, at the same time, they seem to be making the insole smaller my partner has flat feet and has found a few styles that are tight across the top. With my extraordinarily high arches, I rarely try on anything but Mary Janes anymore.

savemama

Yes it's true. My rings and shoes all get tight when I gain weight. I went up a half size in each.

jennifershoo

...shoe companies are changing the size numbers on their shoes to make their 'big footed' customers feel better about our plus size feet.

Probably this. Same as clothes companies making the small sizes cloth bigger.

KatieHall77

I did gain a shoe size in pregnancy, and sadly, even after loss of nearly all the weight, I'm still at a most inconvenient size 11 !
It is horrible being this size because most stores only stock to a 10 in women's. (which I was a 9 or 10 before the baby)
If only my feet could de-compress, or stop retaining water or loose fat, I'd even be willing to resort to "binding" but I doubt that would work.

oldandhealthier

My feet has gotten smaller with weight loss but I have to admit some was from my feet swelling when I was heavier.

kindasortachewy

I wish this would happen for me but I don't see it being so in my case, I've been a size 11 foot since I was 11 years old, then again I am nearly 6 foot tall.

spectralmoon

I wish this would happen for me but I don't see it being so in my case, I've been a size 11 foot since I was 11 years old, then again I am nearly 6 foot tall.

My feet are size 10 and I'm 5'5". I'm jealous of your proportionate 11. :laugh:

DavidC1857

I don't know why my feet are smaller, but I know that my regular Wal-Mart cheapo size 12's are looser. My slippers seem about the same, but they usually start out a bit snug and stretch.

I have a pair of fancy cowboy boots that were given to me 15 or more years ago. I could never wear them for long, because they were too tight and hurt my feet. Now, they fit pretty well. I still don't wear them. I can't walk in them because of the heel and I don't own a horse.

I'm pretty sure I just lost some fat there. I know I lost it pretty much everywhere else.

jeanywren

I have heard of this and I can't wait!!! I have big feet and with orthotics, even bigger shoes. I sure hope it happens to me lol.

TheDoctorDana

At my heaviest, my feet and ankles were so swollen. After losing just 24 pounds the swelling and cankles are gone. So yes, I believe this to be true! Right now I only wear flips and crocs. Can't wait to don some lovely church shoes one day Love your posts OP! They are always so clever :flowerforyou:

emmietoby

yes, they do get smaller. when i was at my higest i wore 9 now that i'm losing wt i can get a size 8. so hang in there !!

thescrumisfun

At my heaviest I wore a 9.5, lost 30 lbs, and I am back into a 9 or 8.5 depending on the style .

amyk0202

This happened to me too. Before I gained weight, I was always a size 7. At my highest weight I was wearing a 9.5-10 wide width. Now I'm back to a 7.5 regular width. I only wear shoes when I go somewhere--never in the house or in my yard. When I do wear shoes, they are always the slip on, low heel open toe kind. I hate shoes.

dessertlover27

Absolutely. I lost 20+lb in a few months. And I don't wear heels normally, maybe once a year for special occasion. When I wore mine out last March, I found out way too late (was already in the car on the way to my party) that they were slipping off my feet. Adjusted to the tightest fit by adjusting the straps but they were still slipping off. When I last wore them before that, it was tight and I was on the last hole of the straps (you know, the holes on the straps like those on belts). Same goes for all my other shoes. I think I lost 2 sizes.

merrileeirene

Very true. I went from size 9 or 91/2 to now 8!!

burnooger

TRUE!! Went down from size 9 to size 8. Had someone say to me yesterday, "You have small feet!"

lioness803

i dont buy it. if this were true then people in the past who didnt wear shoes would have humongous feet by the time they died if you followed this logic. plus this same argument would need to also be applied to the hands, right?

your feet grew because os weight gain and age.. as we age, the arch naturally falls a bit so that the feet are flatter and wider

Actually there is a problem in the foot wear industry of more people needing wide sizes(which can be hard to find!) and it's blamed on people wearing flip flops so much, allowing feet to grow outward...so feet will grow when given the room to.

OP-I've noticed that my shoes fit different since losing weight, so it's definitely possible.

sarahbeth1629

I've noticed this over the last few months. My tennies at the moment are a 4.5 and I've gone from having to have them laced loosely to having to lace them as tightly as I can get them and they're still slipping all over the place. It scares me a little, I've already got fairly "small" feet (4-6 depending on brand and style), at this rate I'll have to start buying kids shoes! My 10 year old wears a 3, I'll be having to steal her shoes soon haha

liv2bfree

very true, use to be size 9 at around 205-210lbs now a size 10 at 253lbs. Don't remember my shoe size being any lower since I have been 200+ since I was 17 (12 yrs ago).