I wear New Balance trail running shoes when I hike. The first 5-10 days is pretty painful because of bruises on the bottom of my feet. To head this off, I start toughing up my feet about a month before my hike. Walk barefoot on a gravel driveway everyday, couple of hundred feet for starters and build your way up to a half mile or so. Your feet will really appreciate once your out on the trail.
bowlegs
why don’t you get light weight hiking boots and you won’t have to this self torture manuver on your poor feet and
your ankles would appreciate it too when you step on that
root you did’t see? really get with the times!
cutty
My wife kept giving me hell for wearing her heels. Had to stop doing that. Oh, use a set of Dr. Scholl’s inserts for the first week or two on the trail. That helps with the bruising.
bowlegs
Running shoes work well for many hikers. Replacing the inserts can add additional protection. Superfeet worked best for me. I switched from running shoes to a Garmont hiking shoe which had a plastic sheath in the sole for extra protection and a Vibram sole which made them slip less on rocks. The Garmont shoe with superfeet worked well for me. It made a huge difference. Every hiker needs to determine what works for them.
Steady On
Don’t drink the Kool-Aid! Hiking boots do not prevent ankle twists any more so than trail runners. Sprains are the result of minute plane displacements. Nothing short of a plastic ski boot will stop that. Keep on trucking in the low-tops!
Matt