As an avid runner, I’m acutely aware of every ache and pain in my body, especially in my legs and feet. I’ve struggled with plantar fasciitis, calf pain, hip pain, ball-of-the-foot pain, toes going numb – the whole gamut!

I had read that wearing shoes around the house is helpful for feet that need the support, but had somehow conned myself out of thinking it would help me. A lot of it was cultural – like, can you imagine an Asian person wearing their shoes around the house? Some of it was also laziness, since my feet were in shoes for the majority of the day anyway and I convinced myself that they need to breathe at home! I had never even been a slippers person before this, for the same reason.

However, when quarantine started, I was in the house a lot. And my shoes lost the support they usually had all day. I stopped running outside and, though I was getting my steps in outdoors, my numbers were nowhere near their pre-quarantine amounts. I was honestly just spending less time on my feet than before, and my physical well-being was not happy about it.

Enter: house sneakers.

It’s extremely corny and I never imagined myself saying this ever in my life, but they were the perfect double whammy: I missed shopping and I saw a sale! I had brand new, clean, out-of-the-box shoes that I could safely wear around the house! It was a win-win!

I’m able to comfortably stand in them when cooking, doing dishes, or working at our makeshift standing desk (read: my laptop, stacked on top of some textbooks, on top of a dresser). I’ve even taken to doing at-home workouts, like weight lifting, in them, and have noticed my performance improving while wearing them, since my balance and form are often better with foot support.

To my fellow Asian people (or, truly, anyone else who never thought they would ever wear shoes inside) – try it! Seriously! As long as you’re diligent about keeping them clean and don’t wear them outside (though I did take a few steps out of my apartment before literally yelping and running back in to change my shoes), they’re a great way to treat your body to some much-needed comfort and (literal) support.