The Foot with Mission Valley Physical Therapy

A year ago, I started this series that corresponds with the Zodiac calendar. I started with an article on headaches and worked down the body through the neck, shoulders, chest, heart, core, back, pelvis, hips, knee, and ankle. This month is the last month in the series. I end with our foundation – the foot.  

There are thirty-three joints in one human foot. When you put your foot into a boot or tight shoe, you are effectively depriving all of those joints of movement. Over time, you could lose the strength and mobility of your foot. Or, even worse, the bones of the foot will adapt to the shoes that you regularly wear. This could give your foot a different shape all together that remains even after the shoes come off. If you wear shoes with a small toe box for example, your toes will squish together to fit in. Bunions could develop and toes start to resemble stiff claws. 

As much as possible, I want to let my feet express themselves to the fullest. I want all thirty-three of those joints to move in all different ways. I walk around barefoot in the house, in my yard, and to the mailbox. It is possible to work up to spending much more time barefoot. Some people have feet that even handle barefoot running.  I don’t think that is bad for your feet if you have allowed them time to develop enough strength to handle such a task. I also don’t think that we all have to aspire to barefoot running to have healthy feet. 

I think of shoes as wonderful tooIs. I always want the right tool for any job. Just as I would never try to hang up a painting with a jack hammer, I would not walk on the neighborhood trail in stiff boots that go over my ankles. That is too much support and deprives my foot and ankle of fulfilling their potential. I also wouldn’t try to break up concrete with a tac hammer, nor would I wear sandals while carrying a thirty-pound pack over a shale covered slope. I need the right tool -boots – for this task or I risk injury and falling. 

Let your foot be a foot. They won’t get stronger in a prison of orthotics, thick soles, tough or tight boxes where the toes can’t wiggle at all. Any foot exercises you do for a few minutes per day are futile compared to all of the hours that your feet could spend in the least restrictive environment possible. Simply allow your feet to do what feet are meant to do.