0:00
Hey guys, Tony here, physical therapist, and in the Facebook group, Total Knee Replacement Support Group for Kind People
0:07
Susan was asking, quote, I'm working over what kind of shoes to wear when I come home from the hospital
0:13
Would flip-flops be okay? No, they won't. Don't wear flip-flops. What about a slide-on without a heel? Any advice
0:22
Okay, so I love shoes. I love footwear. I went from one extreme to the other
0:26
I used to be the therapist that would create custom molds. I'd create custom orthotics
0:31
I'd do all of this fancy-dancy ysis of the foot and the ankle
0:37
I've kind of changed my ways. I am now more in the world of a minimalist
0:42
I tend to want the foot to move freely as much as possible
0:47
I understand there's orthopedic considerations. I understand there's people that have been in footwear and orthotics their entire life
0:53
I'm not trying to change that. But what I saying is the foot is more like a hand It got lots of little joints lots of little bones It designed to kind of spread and contract and become a hard lever when it needs to and a soft adapter when it
1:07
needs to. And so I just want the foot to be as comfortable as possible. And with that
1:15
the problem with flip-flops is you have that front edge, right? Especially if we're talking
1:20
like a thong where that piece goes between the big toe and the second toe. You've got that flap
1:26
that comes around the front in front of the toes. A lot of times that's real easy
1:30
especially after a knee replacement. You're not getting a lot of like elevation and swing through
1:35
So it's real easy to catch that piece of rubber and flip over the top
1:40
More people have gotten injured wearing like flip-flops and thongs than probably any other kind of footwear
1:46
Now you asked about a slide on open heel. I do like that
1:50
I have changed. I used to be against Crocs. I think Crocs are a great option
1:54
they allow room for the foot to swell they can slide on and off they generally do pretty well if you find that you comfortable in a pair of crocs or something like a croc go ahead and do it The main objective we want is we want to make
2:10
sure that your foot can have enough grip with the ground that it doesn't just slide out from under
2:16
you, but that it doesn't catch the ground when you're trying to walk if you're not getting kind
2:22
of the follow through and the swing pattern that you would normally have. We want something
2:27
that's going to allow the foot to swell both vertically, but then also spread horizontally
2:33
We want something that's easy to get on and off, you know? So there are a, it's actually an Aqua
2:40
Sock, but it's like a neoprene cover, a thin rubber sole. They're really adaptable. I love
2:47
them and they're really cheap. They're like $15. I recommend them to all of my patients. They're on
2:53
Amazon. I'll put the link in the description of this video. It is an affiliate link, so I will
2:57
get a small commission like 20 cents if you buy that But these are truly some of my favorite pieces of footwear You can wear them into the shower So if you are worried about slipping on you know the tile or in the
3:12
tub, they work great for that. If you don't wear them at the hospital, I would not wear anything
3:19
from the hospital into your house. But if you have a pair for your house, you know, it's one of those
3:25
things that you could virtually just keep them on your feet and get in bed. As long as you can
3:31
keep them clean, they work really well. So either Crocs, if you already have a pair or you like
3:36
something like that, these little aqua socks that I'll post in the description below this video
3:43
anything that has a tall and a wide toe box that'll allow your foot to expand as the swelling changes
3:49
is generally going to be your best bet. But the most important thing is you want something that's easy
3:56
because the more you get on your feet, the more you move around without doing too much
4:00
the better your recovery is going to go. So I hope that was helpful. I'll catch you on the next video
