Your (Sensible, Supportive) Shoes Have Messed Up Your Feet
You've never been one for crazy stilettos. But a nice pair of heels was just part of being professional and looking the part back before you retired. Low, reasonable heels. Good, sturdy hiking boots are just what you wear to go hiking…right?... Read more
And ever since your feet started bothering you, everyone's told you to choose supportive shoes.
You've been trying to do all the right things but somehow your feet still hurt.
And that's because most shoes -- whether your nicest heels, the sensible sandals you take travelling or even your trusty hiking boots -- are TERRIBLE for your feet.
It's not your fault -- you've tried to buy shoes that feel good and look good. But the biggest root cause of all foot problems is that shoe companies are making shoes for fashion, protection and support -- and not for healthy feet.
The truth is, human feet are supposed to be extremely strong and mobile. You can see this from their structure, with 26 bones and 33 joints in each foot. They're supposed to be wider at the toes than at the heel, they're supposed to have a muscular and supportive arch structure and they're supposed to be flat on the ground, not lifted at the heel.
If your shoes have pointy toes, they've been pinching your foot bones together.
If your shoes have any lift at the heel, they've been pitching your whole body weight forward so you're squashing the front of your foot.
And if your shoes have rigid soles, they're stopping your foot muscles from getting strong and flexible.
I'd bet a million dollars that your shoes all have a combination of narrow toes, raised heels, and rigid bottoms. Go check and then come back to find out what you need to do about it.
What You Need
You need to slowly transition to foot-friendly shoes that will let your feet return to a more natural shape and naturally build strength and mobility. And you need to support your transition with gentle exercises that help you build strong, capable feet.
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Your Podiatrist Isn’t Actually Trying To Fix The Root Causes
I'm sorry. Your podiatrist is probably a great guy, who genuinely wants to help you out. Problem is, podiatrists (and way too many physios and doctors and surgeons) are still living in the 1950's when it comes to foot solutions. You know, that era when doctors used recommend smoking cigarettes. Yah. Basically that... Read more
99.9% of podiatrists and other so-called foot specialists are going to tell you that you need orthotics and supportive shoes to fix foot problems. And what happens when you put a complex structure like the human foot into a rigid and unmoving boot made out of orthotics and heavy shoe rubber? You basically get a cast. Like the ones they put on your arm when you break it to stop you from moving. And what happens when you put a body part into a cast? It stops moving. It gets weak. It wastes away. The truth is, when someone's told you to put your feet into orthotics and supportive footwear for years and years, they haven't done you any favors. They've given you a device that might help your symptoms for a while but in the long run makes your feet weaker and stiffer. And they never even addressed the root cause of your foot pain which is almost always…weak, stiff feet. What You Need You need a systematic, step-by-step program to help you regain the strength and suppleness your feet need so they can actually work the way they were supposed to all along. Which will help them heal and feel better along the way.
Read lessYou’ve Been Exercising All Wrong
The truth is, no-one's ever told you that your feet needed to get exercise. Cardio, sure. Weight-bearing exercise, absolutely... Read more
Core strength, all the time. But along the way, everyone kind of forgot about your feet. Well, you're not alone. Feet are actually the most important body part for our whole body movement capacity because they're what connects us to the ground. AND for most of us, they're the weakest, stiffest least-used part because our shoes immobilize our feet. But somehow our entire fitness culture has been ignoring them and focusing on booty-burning, HIIT workouts to help us look good in our bikinis. Which would be fine, except now it's your feet that are paying the price. What You Need You need to make creating strong, sustainable and pain free feet your exercise priority. The bonus? You're going to discover that foot work makes your entire body stronger and helps everything else feel and work better.
Read lessYou’re Drawing In An Ocean Of Exercise
Let me guess: when your feet hurt, it's all too easy to turn to Dr. Google. Suddenly you have a diagnosis and you're getting lost in All. The. Things. First you learned that you need to do more calf raises... Read more
Then you learned that you need to do more calf stretching. Then you read that stretching doesn't actually work. But then someone said that you have to stretch the tops of your feet. Or perhaps you actually need to roll your feet out on a frozen water bottle. But wait, what about those calf raises?! And someone just said you need to work on your hips too. After 87 attempts to figure out what's actually going to help your feet, you're feeling overwhelmed, exhausted and scattered. What kind of equipment do you need? Should you really buy a $200 balance beam? How about a Theragun? How do you know what exercises are going to help your unique body? Stretching, strengthening, or both? How much time will this take? What should you do first? Ugh. Like I said… All. The. Things. And honestly, most of them have a place. But it's in knowing the right sequence these strategies must be executed -- and how to modify them for your unique body with complete confidence --- that allows you to move forward on fixing the root causes of foot issues. What You Need You need confidence to double down on a super clear, "first do this, then do that" exercise program that gives you visible changes and unwavering motivation to keep stacking up the wellness wins.
Read lessSticking To Boring Physio Style Exercises Isn’t Your Thing (You’ve failed before at doing the work)
Maybe you've tried doing foot rehab before. If so, tell me if this sounds familiar. You went to your physio and left with a handful of really boring, repetitive foot exercises that you were supposed to do three times a day, every day... Read more
Then when you tried doing the exercises at home, suddenly you're not sure if you're doing them right. They made perfect sense when your PT was there, but now you're not sure any more. Are they even helping if you're not doing them right? And honestly, it's pretty boring stuff. So maybe you try doing them just once a day instead. Then one day you're busy and you forget them completely. One day becomes two days. Then three. And then a few days later you finally admit to yourself that you're actually NEVER going to do those exercises? You ended up feeling like a failure. Ugh. After all, what you really want to be doing is hiking, exploring, adventuring -- not getting stuck inside doing the same confusing yet boring exercises day in and day out. But your feet still hurt so now you're basically feeling like a couch potato. Building strong, supple, pain-free feet has everything to do with committing to a consistent and progressive practice -- but that doesn't have to make you want to poke your eyes out. Plus, exercises that only focus on your foot pain are missing the most important part: the Big Picture. Your feet affect your whole body but the rest of your body also affects your feet. The good news here is that the work you do to help your feet is also going to give you HUGE benefits for your hips, knees, pelvic floor and even your low back. I didn't go from orthotics, flat feet and plantar fasciitis to walking barefoot on rocky beaches without lots of hard work, but that doesn't mean it has to be dull or confusing. What You Need You need Foot-building strategies that actually work for your real life. Whole body exercises that fix the root causes of foot pain. Approachable support so that you're never left wondering if you're doing it right. And accountability and clarity so that you become the person who Does The Work.
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