A Return from Trail Glove 7 to Normal Shoes

Within the last week I tried to wear shoes that I bought two or three years ago. I tried them on because although I love the Trail Glove 7 shoes I don’t like their durability. I find that they last from four to six months before being worn enough for my heel to hit the ground hard enough to become painful.

In theory I should work on my stride, to change how the foot strikes the ground, and ensure that I have a softer, more gentle foot fall. In practice the shoes feel fine until the soles of the shoes get worn beyond a certain point, and that’s when impacting the ground begins to hurt, especially after walking for an hour and a half or more.

The Issues

During the COVID honeymoon, when it was great for walkers, and hikers to go on two to three hour hikes every day, I took advantage. Over time I noticed that I was wearing through shoes fast so I replaced them regularly.

Worn Inner Heel

I often put my shoes on without untying the shoelaces so the inside of the shoe, where the heel rubs the back of the shoe gets shredded over time, and eventually the plastic is exposed and this provoked blisters. That’s one of the tells that I would need to swap shoes.

Worn Soles

The second tell is worn soles. I walked so much and so far that within months the tread would be gone, and eventually, when the rubber was gone, and my shoes would become wet from beneath if I stepped into a puddle, then it was time, once again to change shoes.

Rubbing the Top of my Foot

I really liked the Merrel Moab Three, or shoes with a similar shoes. They’re good for daily walks and hiking, where you don’t need ankle support. I walked with these for thousands of kilometres over many, many years.

Over time I noticed that the top of my foot, near the toes was rubbing against the inside of the shoe, to the point of risking blisters. Initially I thought that they had changed the design or materials of the shoes, and that was why they were more uncomfortable but now I think the conclusion was wrong.

Plenty of Cycling

This summer I have cycled a lot, especially by my standards. Usually I would cycle 1800km or less and this year I cycled five thousand two hundred and eighty. This isn’t to highlight the cycling, but rather to highlight that my feet were used differently.

I went from a high impact sport like walking and hiking, two to three hours a day, to long bike rides. My feet had time to rest, recover, and I believe, to shrink again. The shoes that felt uncomfortable are now comfortable again

And Finally

I walk a lot, so I like shoes that are cheap and easy to replace. Barefoot shoes are not cheap and easy to replace. They are niche, so I order them online. If I can revert to cheap decathlon shoes, once again, I will be happy.