Walking shoes

Walking shoes and boots (often referred to as hiking boots) generally feature most of the desired properties of an orthopedic and even a diabetic shoe.

They are however much more rigid in structure and construction and are not suitable for general "inactive"wear, i.e. they are an activity-baesd shoe designed with a heavy and prolonged use in mind.

These shoes tend to have a start price of 70 – 80 US dollars (40 - 50 pounds Stirling) and are designed to take some of the stress and work away from the feet during prolonged walking, particularly on uneven or rough terrain. Naturally they are also designed to be comfortable over a long period of time.

These shoes feature a number of important design elements and, whilst they are not cheap, they usually last for many years despite receiving pretty rough treatment.

Design features

Walking and hiking shoes tend to have very firm and comparatively inflexible soles.

The toe box is normally moulded and protective in design, and the part of the shoe that runs from the heel to the collar (at the back) incorporating the counter is firm and un-flexing. This gives this kind of footwear a restrictive feel if worn during inactivity, however once serious walking is brought into the equation they become very comfortable and supportive.

In addition to the structural and supportive design elements of a good walking shoe, waterproof-ness and breath-ability are extremely important.

Most hiking footwear has an outer (i.e. the vamp, tongue etc) that is made from either leather or a waterproof and breathable material like Gortex (see below).

Traditionally leather has been the material of choice for hiking boots, however materials that breathe and allow moisture to be rapidly taken away from the body (known as wiking) are considered to be superior.

These material prevent the feet from becoming too hot and damp and offer breath-ability properties that cannot be equalled by leather alone.

Good hiking shoes should have long and well padded tongues and they tend to have external eyelets (for the laces) so that there are no pressure points within the shoe. The collar and counter of most walking shoes will be higher than those of a typical shoe, however personal preference will determine whether they sit above or below the ankle.

Gortex

Gortex is a brand name for a material that was developed to be both waterproof and breathable. It is a popular material for outdoor clothing and footwear.

There are a number of similar (Gortex like) products in the market offering comparable performance to Gortex.

In all cases the properties of the end product are achieved by bonding two or three layers of high performance material together to create a human clothing barrier that repels water, but allows the passage of water vapour. This means that water cannot get in, but water vapour (from sweat) can get out.

In layman’s terms this is achieved by ensuring that the fabric has a pore size that is smaller than that of a water molecule, but bigger than that of a water vapour molecule.