Putting Your Best Foot Forward

Putting your best foot forward as a nurse isn’t always about mindset and how you’re being perceived, although still important. Supporting your feet, which in turn supports your body to actually perform your job is a vital need. Many professionals do spend quite a significant portion of their working hours on their feet and I know from first hand experience that nurses put a lot of miles on their feet and their shoes.

We receive quite a few inquiries from shoe companies to give their products a spin, but something about Lems shoes really piqued our interest both from a company mission and obviously the actual product. Our team at Spire Health are constantly on the go and on their feet and we’re always on the hunt for a shoe that is not only unique in style, but most importantly able to meet the demands that we put on our feet.

Foot support is a priority and we were excited to put Lems through rigorous testing.

So, what stood out for us to want to try this product? Well according to the Lems site:

“We have designed Lems Shoes to mirror the natural shape of the human foot.  Unlike traditional footwear products that squeeze the toes together, our toe area allows for maximum room giving the toes ultimate freedom to wiggle and spread.

Due to the narrowness of shoes in today’s market, most of us have experienced foot deformation whether we know it or not.  Lems Shoes aims to fix the problems traditional shoes have caused by allowing the toes all-day comfort.”

A few of us were able to try the Primal 2 line for both men and women, and we committed to wearing them for a solid three weeks. Initial impressions from everyone including myself was how much room our toes had in the shoes without compromising the feel of a snug fit. Just like any new shoe there’s still a breaking in process, especially as the insert molds to your foot, or in this case I felt as if my foot was molding to the insert in a more ergonomic way.

Another prominent fit and finish of the shoe was that we felt like we weren’t wearing shoes. For the features offered, this is by far the lightest shoe I’ve worn. We were initially concerned that to produce a light shoe one would have to compromise on durability. Well, we ultimately discovered that more material doesn’t necessarily equate to higher quality and longevity.

You too may initially be concerned by this minimalist feel of the shoe. We all want to feel as if we’re standing on pillows, right? Actually what we’ve come to discover is that many shoe manufacturers may in fact mask the build quality of their shoes by adding in this extra cushion, which ultimately will only be able to hold up so long as the structure of the shoe actually breaks down around it. We realized that we just needed to trust in the fact that our feet would actually acclimate to the Lems shoe (the way our feet were supposed to be), and that we would appreciate not feeling fatigued after putting in a few miles each day.

Dialing in all of our smart watches we were able to break down our daily commute on foot at an average of 6.7 miles (each) per day. That’s a lot of hustle, and our feet maintained the stamina in our Lems. The terrain encompassed navigating around the offices, quite a bit of “here and there” around downtown Denver and Boulder, and the occasional rural trek out to see patients in some challenging off-road terrain.

The unique styling of the Lems shoe is certain to start a few conversations about your footwear, and you’ll be sure to stand out (for long periods of time) in the crowd.

Regardless of the terrain, Lems will support you through a variety of uses whether in the clinical setting, around the office, or out and about in urban and rural settings. We’re certain you’ll get quite a bit more mileage without the extra wear and tear on your feet and your body.