Professional Chef Shoes
Standing on Your Feet
Professional level clogs are the most comfortable work shoes available. Professional chefs and professional medical personnel are on their feet for long periods of time. The floors are usually made or hard tile for easy clean up. The hard floors and long shifts can be murderous to feet. As people age, their feet get more sensitive to long shifts. People often gain weight as the age and can get foot problems like bunions and plantar fasciitis.
The best way to keep your feet feeling well during a long shift is for the foot to get the proper support and cushioning. A good quality professional clog will mold to the foot. An inexpensive shoe, by comparison, can be completely bended over. A good clog will have sturdiness to the footbed. That is where you get the support. Then, having the foot slowly mold to the foot will make it more comfortable to be worn over time.
Many people learn to live with uncomfortable things. For example, your feet may hurt every day and you may have decided it's not that bad to live with. The mind, in this way, helps you to survive. However, a lot of people realize a huge difference with a good pair of shoes. You may find that some good shoes release a lot of stress and make working a long shift quite a bit easier. Some people wonder how they ever lived without good quality shoes.
Professional Clog Comfort
Without a doubt, a professional clog is more comfortable than other shoes or lower quality clogs. A professional level shoe will be sturdy. You won't be able to bend the shoe on a whim. Professional clogs have real substance to them. You can't just bend them in half.
The footbed is the important part. The arch is stabilized with something really up there right against the arch. Birkenstock has footbeds that cater to a high arch or a lower arch. Then, the heel should be cupped. The toes should be able to grip the footbed for comfort and stability. Finally, the foot should grow into the shoes. The foot should mold to the footbed and get more comfortable over time. Some people will love how their shoes break in and never want to get a new pair unless they absolutely must Some of these high comfort clogs will get thoroughly worn out because customers don't want to give up the comfort and break in a new pair.
The high quality clog should have some bounciness to it. Some of the low quality shoes are a hard piece of rubber and that's it. Or, there may be a thin piece of insole made of an almost microscopic piece of foam. This style of shoe is for cheapness and not for comfort. Professional clogs will have some bounciness to them to keep absorb foot shock. This is a big factor in helping you to become more comfortable.
Professional Clog Gripping Power
Have you ever noticed how slippery a leather sole is? Have you ever worn some Dr. Martins (very durable shoes). They are also quite slippery. In a restaurant, the gripping power is quite important. Water, grease, and food are constantly spilled on the floor. In one night, you might mop the floor 10 times and clean up a huge pile of dishes and walk past the cook station “zillions” of times. A slippery shoe is downright dangerous. That is why a good professional clog will certainly help you. Professional clogs are not only comfortable, but made for the profession you are in. They will grip the floor as good as any shoe. They are made specifically to grip restaurant floors and that makes a difference.
At a Mcdonalds, an employee slipped and tried to catch themselves. The result was that they put their arm down to catch themselves. The only problem is that their arm went straight into the vat of hot cooking oil (true story). That was a huge problem for everyone. It all resulted from a simple slip. The fries are cooked in hot oil there and there is always some that gets on the floor. A good will gripping clog is worth it.
Professional Clog Safety
Suppose that same employee had the job of taking the hot oil our of the vat and taking it outdoors for disposal. Most restaurants have a large vat of used cooking oil outside. As a side note, it can be turned into biodiesel in your garage. Anyway, suppose that employee slipped and put their foot in the steel bucket of oil that was just drained out. Their foot would be burning like crazy. A tightly pair of laced shoes would exacerbate the problem. The time required to get the shoe and sock off would greatly make the burn get more severe.
A professional clog is quite different. The clog can be removed quickly. In addition, many clogs can be worn comfortably without socks. That makes the clog safer.
Another safety factor is dropping sharp objects. You can actually get a steel toed clog, but that isn't usually necessary. Instead the clogs are made pretty sturdy. If you drop a knive on a clog, it will most likely be reflected off because of the sturdiness. Suppose you have an inexpensive pair of shoes, then dropping something on them is more apt to damage the feet. Professional clogs are also built in such a way that they will handle a heavy drop more than tennis shoes. For example, if a chef drops the dough mixer bucket on their toe, the damage would be less with a clog than a regular shoe. In addition, a person wearing a clog can quickly pull their toes out. They aren't as likely to get stuck under something long term.
Professional clogs also have a toe that sticks up higher than other shoes. For example, an indoor soccer shoe is made to keep the toes, low to the ground, to get under the ball. The higher toe box makes it so the toes don't get inadvertently put under things and between things. The taller toe box is safer.
Professional Clog Brands
The brands of professional level are Dansko and Birkenstock. Both companies make a professional clog that works well for industry professionals.
Some chefs and nurses will wear Croc brand clogs. The crocs are lighter in weight. Some people like them for shifts that are shorter or that require a lot of walking.
There are lower quality brands out there. Any of the other brands aren't made for the professional and you will notice the difference in quality.
The only other brand that might be worth considering is the Sanita. Sanita is known as the first clog brand ever. They started out with the full wood clogs. Sanita learned to make great clogs by making them for Dansko. Since then, Dansko and Sanita have split up and Sanita makes the older style Dansko clogs. If you like the older Dansko clogs, then Sanita is an option for you.
In the world of clogs, it is hard to beat Birkenstock. Birkenstock is legendary for comfort and have been making clogs since they first opened in the 1890s. It is only recently Birkenstock has marketed aggressively towards professional chefs and medical personnel. Birkenstock now makes clogs that are for professionals that are safer and more comfortable than every before. Birkenstocks are now the official chef shoe of the food network.
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