Our Physical Therapists give their holiday gift giving recommendation on…. shoes!
Shoes that fit over your children’s braces that is. Having a shoe that fits over braces is important because it improves independence by enhancing mobility, reduces stress and fatigue, reduces the likelihood of a fall or an injury and takes the focus off of required mobilization.
- Nike Revolution FlyEase: These shoes have zippers along the back of the heel, which make it easier to get on with a brace. It makes it easier to slide the brace into the back of the shoe. A lot of times it is hard to get the heal of the brace into the shoe and the back of the shoe ends up bending. The zipper gives some extra space, which prevents this.
- Plae: These shoes have proven success with younger kids. They are wide enough to fit smaller braces over them. They also have a cool system where you can switch out the colors/styles of the Velcro strap!
- New Balance FuelCore Reveal: These shoes have a buckle system that can easily be adjusted to allow for a greater width, which is helpful when wearing orthotics that are wide. You can find many examples of these shoes at shoe hero. There is no tongue so it makes the shoe even wider. It also is nice to not worry about tying the shoe.
- Billy Footwear: This converse style shoe is new but seems like the zipper mechanism would make it easier to fit over the brace, similar to the Nike’s referenced above with the only difference being they zipper by the toes instead of around the heel.
- New Balance Wide Shoes: Most of the New Balance shoes in wide or extra wide will fit over braces.
An additional tip would be to bring the braces with you to the store to ensure proper fit. You should remove the shoes normal insole that is in place to allow for a better fit with the braces.
