No! Not old feet!

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My feet looked like this yesterday!

My mother had old feet. When I was a child I thought my mother was old. All parents were old. Some were ancient. She wasn’t ancient, just old. She liked to go barefoot (a gene her daughter did not inherit even as a child). Going barefoot takes a toll on feet.

She had thick toenails and the big toes were yellowish. She needed a hacksaw to trim them. There were corns and she always wore those corn pads. Always. Even holidays. I don’t ever remember her putting polish on them although she did polish her fingernails. I never wanted my mom’s feet.

My feet were smaller and whiter, so very white. They stay white when you wear sneakers or shoes all the time. My nails were normal and I didn’t have bunions jutting out to make them look distorted. I liked my feet. A dab of polish and some peep toe heels and they were happy. (Gosh, I wish I could wear heels again!)

My goal is not to look like this!

Yesterday I woke up and somehow magically overnight my feet got old. I don’t have the nail fungus that makes them thick and yellow but the nails themselves are cupping and not lying flat. I have callouses that need work. I may need her hacksaw. I am convinced that those intergalactic invaders that come and insert probes into people came and stole my feet leaving me with cadaver feet.

Or…it could be my fault. Because of the pandemic I wasn’t going anywhere or doing anything so I didn’t take care of my feet. No polish, rare utilitarian trims, tucked inside walking shoes most of the time. They weren’t feeling the love and I’m paying the price.

This isn’t the first time I noticed aging overnight. With the absence of the gym my upper arms deflated into a flabby mess. Fortunately I’m thin so they don’t flap enough for take-off but there is enough to get some velocity going.

I’d kill to be able to wear these again without breaking my neck!

Aging is not for sissies or vain people. Do they even make peep toe walking shoes? Looks like my afternoon is booked!

75 thoughts on “No! Not old feet!”

  1. I was instructed early on by my former cross country coach to make “toga” (toe yoga) a part of my stretching routine! I hardly stretch anything else anymore but I always take time to stretch my arches by lifting my big toes and keeping the others flat to the ground, and then lifting the others and pressing the big toe down. Sounds weird but might keep foot pain away as it gradually strengthens muscles.

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  2. For the better part of twenty years I cycled to work. End result – my legs look twenty years younger than the rest of me – which isn’t such a bad thing, until you realise people rarely see a guys legs. Meanwhile, three daughters, and two cats have added twenty years to my face lol

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  3. My mom was a fashion maven and always looked sooo great with her skirts/blouses/sweaters in gorgeous colors. She was short, but I never once saw her in heels. And yet… as she aged she got bunions and a horrible hammertoe that eventually had to be surgicized. So, perhaps it’s not just high heels. It’s age. I’ve been a runner all my life (until I hit my mid-fifties) and stopped wearing heels at the age of 45 or so. NOT good for running feet. Or, walking feet. Or any feet at all. My guy used to kind of smirk at my (relatively small) bunion, until he got two much larger ones himself. :-0

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    • I developed my bunion in middle age during a period where I was standing 9 hours a day. I wore sneakers but that didn’t ward it off. My feet are good now except for their “no heels” rule. It’s a challenge finding attractive low shoes for special events. Fortunately almost everything in our area is casual so I can usually get away with sandals for dress up.

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  4. The joy of walking and the agony of de feet. We may enjoy and benefit from our walking regimens but our feet pay the price. My feet often wonder what happened to the nice, high-heeled pumps or thin flats they once slipped into and one day they will ask why they are only encased in moccasins or mukluks in the house and wide, heavy walking shoes outside. 🙂 But our feet and ourselves are happier, that’s for sure.

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    • I’d love a pair like the red patent in the photo but at this point in my life, I’m too unsteady. My feet wouldn’t be happy. There are some older folks (like Nancy Pelosi in her 80s) who can still wear spikes. Sadly my feet said no many years ago.

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  5. I know just how you feel. My young feet were pretty. My old feet are not. I was thin when young, and now though not fat, I am shall we say, plump. And my arms! If I wasn’t so plump, I could pump my arms and fly away with the flab flapping like angel wings.

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  6. I had forgotten about corn pads! Mom had a pile of them.
    Do you remember those cooly and wildly popular Dr Scholls wooden slides? I was always falling off of them.
    Sometimes I think shoes were invented to cover up old feet…but it’s getting hot here now. My feet/old broken toe/ankles can’t take too much time in flip-flops. Keen does make comfy supportive sandals and summer shoes…with dog and aging cat who leaves “presents”, I’m less likely to go barefoot these days. (Guess it’s time to dig out the old Teva water sport sandals for walking the dog..good arch support – and protective bumper HAHA)

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    • I remember the wooden slides. My feet were too narrow but they were hard! Hairballs between the toes is the worst. I speak from experience and it’s a reminder to me why I put my slippers on at 3 a.m. to take my potty break. Sneakers today and sandals too are so much more comfortable than the shoes when we were young. No wonder our feet are old. Nothing worse than an 80 lb. dog’s paw landing on your foot. Yeow!

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  9. Oh Kate, your description of your upper arms is priceless, and describes mine too! I’m lucky I have nice feet and I hope they stay that way, as I hate seeing ugly feet in sandals. I think pedicures (I was gifted one once) are a waste of money when you can buy a $5 bottle of nail polish and do it yourself.

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  10. The description of your Mom’s feet were my Mom’s feet. I do not like to go barefoot, never have. I have a couple of pairs of Vionic sandals that I use as indoor shoes. And then I am in sandals or flip flops all year long outside. Tile is cold on bare feet! I did not wear high heels ever. I couldn’t carry that off… I wobbled. I think my feet were my best feature… Hahaha! And I like my feet now… I don’t do toe paint. I liked this post Kate and smiled all through it and the comments 🙂

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  13. We can only do so much to stave off age, but maybe you’ll be lucky and have only semi-old feet! Prior to the pandemic I had a monthly pedicure that made my toes so happy. It’s now been 15 months…not a pretty sight!

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    • I haven’t had a pedicure in years. I’ve been doing my own and the pandemic was an opportunity to slide. Since I started my walking routine two years ago, I wear sneakers most of the time because I like to take the any opportunity to walk without switching shoes. That’s really when I started to slack off on painting them pretty colors.

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  14. A pedicure can do wonders, Kate. A regular schedule of pedicures even better! And I have seen (even owned) peep toe flats. They are out there but kinda rare. I am so happy that bunions don’t run in my family. My late husband’s family was plagued by them and they really deformed their feet. He didn’t get the bunion gene…instead he died early from cancer, as did his bunion-less mother. I think he would have preferred having bunions and living longer instead.

    Deb

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    • My mother had a slight bunion. I have friends who have really distorted feet from them. I had a slight one that only showed up in my fifties and I had it surgically fixed. It helped with the discomfort too. With bunions, shoes don’t always fit right and there is pain.

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      • They look very painful, and the foot distortion in my in-laws’ family is pretty horrific…even leading to crossed-over toes. I don’t understand why those afflicted didn’t seek out surgical intervention before things got that bad.

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        • Back in the old days, bunion surgery was a big deal. People feared it. My surgery was not. I had some swelling off and on for several months but I did not have a lot of pain and I was walking (in a boot for a month) quickly.

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  18. My feet grew during the pandemic! For over a year, I worked from home and when it came time to return to the office many of my dress shoes were too small. My toes were popping through the ends. Since I hate to shoe shop, except for sandals, I wasn’t happy.

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  19. I am grateful not to have deformed feet and don’t pamper them with pedicures. Clear polish and lotion are about it. I hate those old age spots on my arms and bruise easily that seem to take forever to go away. With the pandemic I haven’t gone out much – no reason to get dressed up. And a mask just ruins any look. No, aging is not for sissies.

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    • Last fall, after not seeing anyone, we had closing on our new house. I thought I’d put on makeup and lipstick. I put mask on. No one could see it and it all rubbed off on the mask. That was the last time I got gussied up!

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  20. I don’t think I am vain, but I must have my pedicures. She has a razor to cut off all the thick skin on my feet. I have never been able to wear heels like that as I am a klutz. 🙂

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  21. You want to wear heels again? I gave up on them decades ago and feel much younger because of it. Of course if you can find some peep toe walking shoes, you’ll be set. No doubt they’ll make you look like a chick in your 20s while allowing you to walk like a woman in her 70s. 🙄

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  22. I hate feet, always have, even mine. They’re not bad though, and I rarely suffer from corns. I do have the start of arthritis though. That hurts as it’s already affecting other bits of me, but I can still walk miles if I’m wearing comfy trainers.

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  25. I’m grateful that my feet and legs are still capable of going for nice long walks on the beach and around the hood . . . no heels required! And most of the time, there are no complaints. 😀

    You and are are so different. I’m barefoot (or in sandals, flip flops) every chance I can get ~> one of the reasons for moving to Florida was the extended flip flop season! I always hated wearing high heels. In court, I wore pumps with 1/2″ – 1″ heels. The rest of the time ~> no heels.

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    • I have always had a fascination with shoes. Had I lived in a different era, I would have been a shoe designer. Even now when I wear sneakers every day, I have close to 10 pair to chose from. I don’t like the feel of barefoot at all. I even use slippers to go from the bedroom to the bathroom. Can’t explain it. My mom was like you and she didn’t understand where I got that from. Maybe my dad. I never saw him barefoot

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  26. So funny, I was thinking the other day about how when I was a kid I was kind of horrified by adult bodies. Cracked heels, hair everywhere, etc. Like, being in the change room at the swimming pool would fill me with horror! Seems so silly now, but I guess when you’re a kid everything is horrifying and old. Today I’m 46 and “mid to late forties” seemed old back then, seems downright youthful now 🙂
    BTW I came to your blog via Ally Bean’s! She’s got the best commenters!

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    • Yes, I love Ally. She taught me about twaddle and flapdoodle! I have sparse hair on my arms and legs but was noticing the other day that it’s growing longer. May be able to braid is this keeps up! 🙂

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  27. I had my hair cut today for the first time since Christmas. I came home and my always honest husband said it looked like a pensioner’s cut. I know I am being sensible but we quite liked the shoulder length look. Sometimes it is difficult to grow up.

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    • I don’t like growing up at all except for not caring what people think. I don’t like the lack of endless energy or boundless curiosity. I have some of both but not like I did. I still have longer hair. My hair has cowlicks so when I have them cut short, they are a lot more work. I will get a haircut in May. I try to go every 4 to 5 months.

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  28. I’ve had old lady feet for years complete with bunions……I hate them but I don’t want to have surgery on my feet at this point in my life. Nails are OK but thicker than they used to be though so FUN (not) to trim. I’d go get a pedicure but my feet embarrass me and have made me uncomfortable for YEARS. Podiatrists have told me part of the issue is I DID wear high heel shoes for most of my working life – with pointed toes squishing my feet into an unnatural position. I haven’t worn heels in YEARS although I do have some “low heels” for dress up if needed. Sigh….it’s always something. People tell me I don’t look my age but they haven’t seen my feet!!! LOL

    Hugs, Pam

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    • You and I will both keep our feet properly shoed so no one is the wiser. I did have a bunion and had surgery about 12 to 15 years ago. It helped with the discomfort but I can’t comfortably wear heels. I will wear a 1-1/2″ heel for weddings and funerals. Nope, maybe not even for funerals. No one there looks at your feet anyway.

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  29. I just complained to my doctor yesterday, “These spots on my arms take 3 weeks to disappear. Must be one of the meds.” Turns out they are age spots from thin skin! Long sleeves might help but time is the culprit.

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      • I was thinking the other day, as I stared at myself in a baggy sack of ugly flowers (aka a dress), that at some point I started to value comfort more than style and now my entire wardrobe is just the sort of clothing I would have cringed at in my youth. I would not even consider the pain of putting high heels to be worth it. My feet hurt every day of my thirties because I wore heels.

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        • I’ve switched over to comfort too. My pants are a lot more comfortable than they used to be but they make them different today. More give in the fabric. My sneakers have great support too. Since I’m small to start with, I don’t wear oversized clothes. It looks like I’m wearing someone else’s clothes but I also don’t do the tight stuff either. Even my exercise pants look like regular pants rather than those skin tight ones that are so popular.

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