Choose Your Shoes Carefully for the FBR Open and Other Outdoor Events

Today's guest blog comes from Karen Mattox, Manager of Communications and Community Relations on the Glendale Campus. She coordinated a media appearance with the local ABC affiliate Channel 15 and one of MWU's podiatry faculty.

The end of January in Scottsdale, Arizona, usually signals the coming of spring. Temperatures can reach 80 degrees, bird chirp in the sunshine, "snowbirds" take up residence from around the country...and the FBR Open hits town! It is the most-attended PGA golf tournament in the country, with throngs of golf fans strolling the beautiful desert TPC-Scottsdale course each day for a week of tournament play, celebrities, parties, and crowds.

After a long day walking the course, however, many FBR Open attendees go home with something more than just fond memories: painful, throbbing feet. To help educate the public about this common problem at outdoor sporting events, MWU's own Gary Friedlander, D.P.M., Director of the MWU Clinic's Podiatric Medicine and Surgery, visited with Kaley O'Kelley from ABC-15 this morning on opening day of the event, live on the Sonoran Living show.

Here are Dr. Friedlander's tips to choose shoes that will keep your feet happy:

Keep to heel heights of 1 inch or less;
Make sure the shank (under the shoe, between the heel and the ball of the foot) is rigid enough to provide support;
Choose shoes that bend only where the foot bends--at the ball of the foot;
Look for a heel counter that is stiff and will provide support;
Keep the toes and top of the foot covered so they are protected in crowds!

He does not recommend any particular shoe brand over another, but there are plenty to choose from, he says, if you follow the above guildelines.

To see the complete interview and Dr. Friedlander's shoe tips, go to:

http://www.abc15.com/sonoranliving

After the interviews were over this morning, we had the pleasure of walking the golf course for a minute to watch the Pro-Am round (where a few lucky amateurs get the chance to play with the pros). It is a beautiful course and a beautiful time to be outside in Arizona--it is obvious why this event is dubbed "the Greatest Show on Grass!" I even learned a thing or two about golf along the way. Luckily, I was wearing low-heeled boots so my feet survived, but I am now inspired to go buy some brightly-colored tennis shoes like Dr. Friedlander's for future events...