Sometimes you just have to love being a blogger, this day was one of them. I was invited, along with a select group of other female health and beauty bloggers, to learn all about a much neglected part of us ... our feet.
Now I know as business woman tottering around in heels and as an avid fitness fanatic that my poor feet go through the mill more than most but I never stopped to give them the TLC they deserved. I feel after what I learnt on this day I will do.
We were invited to attend Office shoes store in central London and kindly given a voucher to purchase a lovely pair of shoes each (there was a point to this, it wasn't just shoes for shoes sake). Now those of you who follow me on twitter will recall a couple of weeks ago I went over on my ankle while running, so at the event I was still restricted to flats. This meant even trying on heels was out. Being forced out of your comfort zone is always something I encourage and I have so many heels already, so I began scouting for flats. I am one of those people who goes out of my way not to be in with the most popular trends; I have never watched or read Harry Potter, I do not own a Mac and I have never worn Converse. However, now I live in London and travel on the tube a lot, the idea of some comfy shoes did appeal. Office had some really different styles to the ones I'd seen everyone else in so I went for these. I am actually really chuffed with them.
Shoes chosen we were then chauffeured to the Charlotte Street Hotel, a beautiful venue behind Oxford Street in central London. We were treated to an amazing three course meal.
Then on to the more serious reason about why we were gathered there. Our long suffering feet. The event was wonderfully hosted by Gina Akers and we learnt some staggering feet facts. A selection of the most shocking were;
•Flip flops are worse for feet than high feels
•The weight women apply to their feet over one day is equivalent to 100 tones
•One quarter of all bones in our bodies are in our feet
•On average we walk 115,000 miles in a life time, that's 4 times around the earth.
A realisation was dawning on me that although I pride myself in taking care of my body and indulging in all things health, I had been neglecting my poor feet. I simply hadn't ever given it much thought.
I have to confess to feeling a little bit smug at choosing one of the most sensible pairs of shoes in the room and part of me wonders whether my subconscious lawyer connected the dots that this would somehow be a good move as the essence of the day was foot health. I do have to reiterate a tip of theirs: Varying your shoe height between high, mid and a flat heel is the best for our feet.
The sponsor of the event was Odor-eaters Slim Soles. These are 'thin soft and discreet insoles specifically designed for women', if you didn't already know that. Its not something I have ever used before but you wouldn't even know they were in the shoe they are so thin. I know this is an issue many people suffer from so with an RRP of £4.00 a pair it seems an obvious choice.
The event was great, not only for the reasons above but I attended with a blogger friend of mine Mitra Wicks, she is launching a women's magazine for London soon (http://elatemagazine.com/) and she's a supporter of all things female. I also met some lovely female bloggers and actually got the opportunity to chat to them. I don't focus on my blogging as much as I should do as I am so busy with law, business and life but these are women who make a career out of blogging. Hats off to them, that's their business and they are doing what the love! It fits my 'women can have it all' ethos very well. Twitter: @theellenextdoor @Rachel_hosie @sabrinalovesyou and @thecocoachelsea to name a few.
Now for the bit that you can take away and hopefully learn from Top Tips for Super Summer Feet:
•Exfoliate- If you're luck enough to be on the beach this summer then take a chance to walk on the and barefoot. Sand is a brilliant exfoliate and wet sand is really cooling. Running barefoot on the sand is also great exercise. When not luck enough to be at the beach, at home use a foot scrub or exfoliant in the bath or shower.
•Move your feet- yes your actual feet, make gentle rotations of your ankle and flex point your toes to help avoid muscle fatigue. If your feet swell in the summer take the opportunity to elevate them when you can.
•Polish- Always separate toes when applying polish. When painting toes start with your little one and work your way in. If you cant keep your feet still use a wall to stead them. Try clipping a clothes peg tightly to the nail polish lid to give you a longer reach.
•Perfect- For last toe polish push back the cuticles first and file the free edge. To avoid ingrowing toenails always clip straight across. Imperfections will be far less noticeable if you opt for a glittery or shimmery shade.
•Massage- Massing your feet is great for easing aches and pains and relieving tension, apply cream to your feet then massage in and enjoy the overall sense of wellbeing.
We were also given a pair of Oder-eaters for the shoes and a cute manicure set. It included a pumice stone. Finally, one good habit I was already in. A tip I got off my mum actually. A quick rub over the bottom of your feet while in the bath leaves them feeling very smooth. Much better than expensive pedicure gadgets that I have bought over the years and the best bit is you can pick one up for as little as one pound. The baby blue nail polish in the set rally appealed as a fresh alternative summer look.
We were asked throughout the day if we liked our feet, I pondered a little but the answer (although I didn't say it out loud) was yes. It's a part of my body I don't have any issues with. Having said that I am not a massive feet fan in general but now my toes look prettier with the new polish, here's a pic of them too. Let's hope this isn't an overshare.
Overall a thoroughly pleasant day, I learnt something. That should always be a benchmark for a good day! I will add these tips to my general health regime and my feet will be getting regular TLC from now on as a thank you for all the amazing places they take me!