Recently, I have developed a keen interest in the health of my feet. A little bit of big toe pain has been enough for me to seek comfier foot wear. I also spend much of my time bare foot as a yoga teacher and looking at my feet, I have noted the differences between the two.
It is my right foot that has the trouble, a bunion starting to form and interestingly my right hip hurts too and can keep me awake at night. I have put much of this down to aging and spending a lot of time in ballet shoes.
So, I started to dig deep on the interwebs researching what I could do to correct this issue and avoid increasing foot discomfort plus a possible operation one day. I discovered the bare foot movement - who knew! A whole group of advocates walking and running in bare foot shoes and zero drop shoes. There are also interesting things called toe separators.
I listened to a few podcasts that were very informative and persuasive. The best two are:
Peter Attia MD, who in a mammoth 2 1/2 hour video/podcast interviews foot specialist Courtney Colney on foot health who states that;
“Toe weakness is the single biggest predictor of falls when we age.” —Courtney Conley
You can read the show notes here and watch the whole episode here. The more I read and the more I listened, I became convinced of the evidence. Our feet had not only been made to look like a shoe, but its natural state is much wider with the toes spread and the arch lifted. I also discovered that dysfunction in the foot can lead to dysfunction higher up the legs and into the lower back and hips.
Next I listened to Dr Rangan Chatterjee's interview with Galahad Clark. Clark is descended from the Clark shoe dynasty and has developed the most incredible range of bare foot shoes.
Chatterjee has an excellent podcast called Feel Better, Live More.
I listened to Clark with a somewhat discerning ear, after all, he is in the business of selling shoes.
The episode, called Galahad Clark and the importance of barefoot shoes was even more convincing as he cautions against launching into running with bare foot trainers straight away and slowly moving towards a life in a zero drop shoe. In fact, Clark comes up with a 4 part plan to implement before buying new shoes.
Walk before you run. Gradually, walk in bare foot shoes, a little every day.
Wear shoes as little as possible. Indoors, in the garden...any opportunity. This will help to reawaken you feet.
Toega - foot exercised. Scrunch your toes, roll your feet on a fascia ball, move your big toes.
Move more. The more you squat and balance on one leg, the more flexibility you get in your feet, ankles and hips.
I now am the proud owner of one pair of bare foot shoes. It is a fascinating change. In one short walk I noticed that my knee and glute on my left leg ached slightly. On the next walk, I noticed that I am walking more centred on my heels, especially my right one. I am wearing my toe separators every day. I am hoping for very clear results; less hip pain and a correction of the beginnings of a bunion.
Fingers crossed!
Lisa
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