As the title suggests, I (24F) have come to realize just how much walking there is in Tokyo. As a woman who is over 5months pregnant, I knew this trip would be hard, but I didn’t realize just how hard. I thought maybe a couple km per day would be enough, but was sorely mistaken. Originally husband and I had planned to do around 3-4 different activities or places each day of our trip but we’ve had to limit to 2 most days, 3 on a good one. This normally equates to us being out walking around for around 6+ hours each day and then sometimes going out again for a couple hours at night to explore.
What I didn’t realize when coming here was that I would finally start really feeling pregnant. I’m talking the shortness of breath, extreme swelling in calves and feet, and just tiredness all the time. Before going on this trip I thought I was decently active but now looking back I was basically sedentary in my lifestyle compared to this. I thought we could mostly rely on trains to get us here and there, but even then some places we wanted to visit are a km or so from the train and I forgot to factor in how much we would be walking at those places.
The worst part of it all isn’t even the walking though. I enjoy walking and exploring, but my pregnancy feet and cankles do not care much for it. Each day I come back to my feet swollen so big and in so much pain from my walking shoes restricting them. Sometimes the swelling barely goes down by the next morning and I have to fight to get them on and walk around in pain all day. Before this trip I didn’t really notice the swelling because I guess I spent more time with my feet up, but it’s been so frustrating that it manifested full-force all of a sudden. I was really looking forward to this trip but it’s just been really hard and I feel like all I do is hold my husband back. Today I’m going to go out and try to find a more breathable and loose pair of walking shoes at some point, but if anyone has any suggestions, they’re much appreciated. Sorry for the rant, just feeling upset that I can’t enjoy this trip to the fullest even though it was supposed to be a late honeymoon for us before the baby arrives.
31 comments
Compression socks might help!
On my last two trips to Japan my feet also got really sore and swollen. I laid on the bed with my butt scooched as close to the wall as I could get it and propped my legs up at a a 90 degree angle for like 5-10 minutes every night and I swear it made a huge difference! I’m so sorry that your body isn’t letting you enjoy the trip as you’d hoped
Use a taxi instead of a train if possible.
You’ll just have to comeback! I just got back from a 14 day trip and felt like I just scratched the surface of Japan. Do this trip knowing that you’ll be returning to visit again. My wife and I were doing 35K steps a day and by the 9th day both of our feet were feeling it. We decided to go in for a 30 minute foot massage when we were in Kyoto. I’ll tell you boy was that a hack because it did wonders! She knew what she was doing. After the massage we kept at pace all the way to the end of our trip. Foot massages is something that I haven’t heard mention on this subreddit… that brings you back to life in Japan.
Hi again ( if you remember me from your last post)! Maybe some comfy insoles or sandals (I didnt see alot of people wearing open toe sandals when I was there?) A Parco mall might be able to find some compression socks (Didn’t help me much). We took lots of snack breaks so I could sit and rest between moving through the day. My feet were dead every night I was there (sore muscles the next day). I tried to stretch before going out if I could.
Honestly though give yourself a break. It’s hard to incubate a life. Above all you and your health trumps all other concerns about the vacation. Your spouse would be more concerned about your pushing too hard and far. I offer preggo hugs because it’s not easy knowing how you’ll feel each day. I’d also revise the itinerary-choose the things you want to see the most that day and try to find else something close distance wise. Knock two birds one stone if you can.
I didn’t see alot of massage places being advertised when I was there or maybe I missed them. Worth a try? Or maybe icing your feet?
We severely underestimated the amount of walking as well when we went in 2019.
I always thought I was moderately active, but I really had no idea that we would walk this much. Not pregnant, but here are some small tips that helped me:
– we bought [these](https://www.takaski.com/product/lion-foot-relax-sheet-kyusoku-jikan-ashi-sukkiri-6pcs/) cooling feet strips. They are available at most 7/11 and stores such as Don Quijote.
– unfortunately I injured my ankle, a brace helped a bit with compression. I bought mine at a pharmacy
– Take mid day breaks. Do something small together in the morning, have breakfast together and then go back to rest. It kinda feels weird, but that way my husband could explore on his own, I would rest and we would venture out together again late afternoon/ evening.
– Breathable walking shoes: I highly recommend Asics Gel Lyte III.
Hope this helps and that you are able to enjoy the remainder of the trip. Think of all the things you can do and do not stress about those you cannot do. You can always come back. ❤️
My wife started having early contractions (5 months pregnant) when we went around kyoto which led to her being on bed rest for the last 2 months and the baby was 1 month premature. Be careful and pace yourself! Maybe schedule an activity for yourself and let your husband do activities you do not mind missing. :p
I did 13 days in Japan and walked 134 miles according to my health app. It’s mind boggling.
Ask for extra blankets and pillows from the hotel and elevate your legs when you sleep. If you are wearing sneakers loosen the laces. You may be able to find some help for looking for compression socks at a local pharmacy.
ABC mart will have some nice light weight walking shoes that are inexpensive. I have some that just slip on they are quite roomy and non restrictive.
I can strongly relate to this. Was pregnant during my trip in January but was only 3 or 4 months pregnant. Did get very sore from all the walking but somehow pushed through it. We hired bikes in Kyoto and cycled around town. That was probably the best thing we did for the whole trip. And it was a lot less tiring on my legs somehow (ass hurt like hell after a full day of cycling but you win some you lose some). Can you try that?
I walked up kiyomizudera carrying a sweaty, crying kid who had a fall and scraped his face .
I agree, there is too much walking.
If you can soak your feet in at least 18” of water, the pressure helps alleviate the swelling, but it must be deeper than 18” for there to be enough pressure.
Rent a wheelchair. They’re often available free of charge. Or get walking sticks to distribute load off your feet.
I would go to Sports Authority or similar and get fitted for actual walking sneakers. If you have to size up to men’ sizes, that’s fine too. Sports Authority will also do sort of custom insoles in like 30 min— a friend used that and had a good experience. Get some compression socks there too.
Definitely take lots of breaks. Sit in a cafe and enjoy an iced tea while your husband explores more. It is reasonable to nurse one iced tea for like an hour or so. Grab a notebook, magazine, just soak up the culture. Cafe culture is awesome in Japan and you’ll have a good time.
hey. fellow traveller here
maybe compression socks help. some have said. finding them might be hard but maybe you get lucky. worth a try
but, even if you find them, they can only help with some, and not fix everything
you need to go down a gear, and relax more. this honeymoon holiday was supposed to be great and fun and awesome and not a checkbox ticking chore.
who cares if you sit in the sun and drink tea instead of chasing off to the 5th pokemon caffee or the 30th temple or the 7th “top ten must see buzfeed” lists
that does not mean you should stay in your hotel and not move but. stop pushing further then you are having fun for the sake of fullfilling some arbitrary plan.
go down a gear. only do one thing maybe add a second if you feel like it. take breaks. relax. enjoy being in japan and with your husband. and dont work to feel the great feeling when its all done. yatta. made all the POIs. heres the pictures. instead of doing 1/3rd and actually living it…
(i know I know I am being overly dramatic, but its to drive my point home)
that ALL having said. maybe you even can change the plans a bit. maybe you can find interesting stuff to do which is less walking or more relaxing for the reminder.
and just make a note to come back in a few years for the things oy have missed.
and if you need to “walk”, or rather travel, maybe you can rent bikes or take a taxi. it will cut into your budget, but it will help with the walking
good luck. but more so, take care. kiotsugete
Have you tried thick and soft sole shoes? That helped me a lot during my last trip. I am 260 lbs, and on the 2017 and 2018 trip, I used new balance with an okay sole, but my feet blistered with wounds.
On my last trip 2 weeks ago, I bought skechers d’lux walker. The sole is like 1 1/2 even 2 times thicker than your avg sneakers. That helped a lot and reduce wounds in my feet by only 2. After using that shoes for 2 weeks, my crocs sandal sole felt really hard lol (even though it should be one of the most comfiest sandal).
*They also have the sandal version which is equalizer 6.0
I agree it was too much walking, I usually only do like 2-3K steps a day, and suddenly I did 20-27K a day. Total I did 280K steps in 15 days. My wife’s calf also becoming very solid, it used to be very soft lol
*I also asked my wife to massage my feet (and I massage her feet back after that) and that helps a lot too.
It always amazes me how many people plan too much into their days on the itinerary’s here for this exact reason, even those who are not pregnant. A lot of people seem to translate “Japan has an excellent public transport system” into “the attractions are literally right beside the subway station at the top of an escalator.”
Every night i soaked in a hot bath. Needed it to recover..
It’s also normal for your shoe size to go up a full size or so during pregnancy. So you may have already outgrown your regular size without realizing. Definitely try see if a bigger shoe size works, and also rotate with slip on shoes, like crocs, uggs, etc. so wear your shoes during the day and when you go out for dinner wear the slip ons.
I am not 5 months pregnant and very active and healthy. 2 days into our 14 day trip my ankles and legs were swollen and unhappy. I did thankfully pack compression socks which helped the swelling but MY GOD MY FEET. Nothing except standing and walking for 8+ hours a day will train you for Japan
My last trip in January the day after I landed I walked the most in a whole day in any of my travels. I walked 30 miles within 6 hours. What helped was the onsen/bathhouse that was inside the APA hotel I was staying at. I wasn’t in pain or had any swelling but I think when I soaked in the bath before going to bed helped the next day.
You’re doing so well! I’m not pregnant and my 3-4 places a day became 2-3 at the latter part of my trip. I highly recommend taking 1 or 2 chill days to recuperate. Maybe an onsen day? For me having a bike day in between walking days really helped but I don’t think a 5 month pregnant woman can bike?
On a previous trip, I thought I was kind of active, was working retail so always on my feet. You have no idea how my legs felt after a few days walking in Kyoto. Like muscle pain from walking that much, everything was hurting. That got me to take some rest day as I was no longer willing to walk.
This time I sent on daily walks to get ready. At least my legs did not hurt, but my feet did. The first week was a bit harder but it got better, I guess I am getting used to it.
But yeah, standing all day long and walking 7k to 37k steps daily (my average is 17k) is MUCH more than what I do back home. Yes, there is days I could have walked less and use a bit more subway, but still, when you want to see many things, you just end up walking a lot.
Sorry, I do not have any specific tips, can just say I understand your feeling.
Enjoy it while you can. It all gets more difficult once the baby is born.
Argh being pregnant is the worst!!!!! Don’t worry about slowing your husband down. He will be slowing you down next time you go and he has to carry your remarkably heavy toddler… oh god and napping kids with all that dead weight. Yep. It is what it is!
Feel better! Being pregnant SUCKS. Just do what you can and quit when it stops being fun. Or stay in the hotel and make your husband bring you takeout. You can definitely enjoy the food still.
I’m sorry to hear! I’m also visiting Japan now and around 24 weeks pregnant. What I find helpful is taking mid-day breaks at coffee shops and get priority seatings in trains whenever possible. We didn’t go to any temples this time due to all the walking. Hopefully you are able to find better walking shoes!
Yeah you would really have to walk a lot in Japan in general and tha taxi fare is pretty expensive. We once visited some places and walk for 10 hours straight in Tokyo no kidding. Our only rest was when we ate lunch.
I feel that so hard. I was 19 weeks – walking around San Francisco when that feeling set in. Take it easy on yourself and stay hydrated, fed and take breaks!
Yo, you’re 5 months pregnant. Give yourself a break and just chill at the hotel. Japan isn’t going anywhere
its not just the walking, if u wanna try good restaurants, most of them have a huge line up without a ticketing system, so u just have to stand in place and wait. the amount of time i spent on my feet in japan is ridiculous, every night i come back to the hotel, i just wanna die. so i cant imagine how much worse it would be for a pregnant lady, jesus, ur a trooper!