Simple Steps to Foot Pain Relief. Katy Bowman
do I fit more exercise into my busy day when I can barely handle what is currently on my plate? Find those answers here.
CHAPTER 10
Guidelines, Recommendations, and Frequently Asked Questions
What if I don’t have foot pain, but want to prevent it? What if I want to optimize foot development in my friends and family? Does footwear matter during pregnancy, childhood, and my later years? Included here are guidelines on footwear for various ages and stages in life. Come find out what is best for your (or your family’s) feet!
EXERCISES & POSITIONS TO KEEP HEALTHY FEET
APPENDIX
REFERENCES AND ADDITIONAL READING
INDEX
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
An earlier version of this book was published in 2011 as Every Woman’s Guide to Foot Pain Relief: The New Science of Healthy Feet. It’s been translated worldwide and has helped resolve the foot pain of thousands upon thousands of . . . women.
My solutions to foot ailments are simple. Not always easy, but simple. Make slight shifts to your body posture when you’re standing and walking to load your feet in a new way. Identify areas in your foot that aren’t moving well. Do some corrective exercises, and figure out which aspects of a shoe are limiting the strength of your feet. These simple ideas have a profound impact on foot pain, and so it wasn’t long before women relieved of their foot pain were begging me to write a men’s guide to foot pain relief, so they could share it more easily with their male friends and family members.
The thing was, with a few exceptions, all of the information in that earlier version was just as applicable to men as to women. Men suffer from painful foot problems and related ailments too, and I didn’t want them to miss out on what is really a human’s approach to healthier feet, so I’ve created a new version of the book that can reach anyone who needs it.
I’ve also taken advantage of the new version to incorporate some of the research that’s happening around minimalist shoes—it’s been an exciting few years in the world of foot pain. The minimalist shoe “fad” has come and gone, leaving in its wake some die-hard converts to a minimally shod lifestyle, reaping all the amazing benefits of healthy feet—as well as some people with pretty serious foot injuries, injuries that occurred when people jumped too quickly into minimalist shoes without taking time to undo the damage a lifetime of shoes can bring. Many injuries might have been avoided had they considered some of the information and exercises contained in this book.
So this version is for everyone who walks around on two feet and wants to do so pain-free—it’s for every man and woman who wants to make his or her feet healthier and stronger, step by simple step.
As a medical specialist of the foot and ankle, I have encountered complaints from patients suffering with a variety of problems, including corns, hammertoes, bunions, and heel pain. Any podiatrist would tell you that treatments for these conditions include orthotics, injections, padding, medications, and/or changes in shoes.
Patients have also visited me seeking a second opinion after they have been directed to undergo a surgical procedure. The explanation usually given to the patient is that the musculoskeletal problem has become a fixed structural deformity that cannot be corrected.
In spite of the many advances in surgical treatment, we must be aware that these are biomechanical problems, and as such are inherently more dynamic than they may first appear. Realize that the majority of these problems are not congenital, that we have acquired them from a lack of knowledge regarding movement, bad habits, and, many times, poor shoe selection.
In this primer on healthy foot mechanics, Katy Bowman amuses as she informs us about the many things we can do to keep our feet feeling great. She offers simple solutions that you can take advantage of and practice on your own. I have seen positive results among my patients who perform these exercises.
Ms. Bowman’s approach to clinical biomechanics is novel, and it is revolutionary. Her insight into the complex area that is the foot is literally the foundation for total body wellness.
At a time of so much uncertainty regarding the future of health care, and the increasing prevalence of diseases like diabetes and obesity, you can take control of your own health by educating yourself about how your body works.
Simple Steps to Foot Pain Relief is a testament to the effectiveness of a specific exercise protocol to correct lower-leg ailments that are mechanical in nature. Empower yourself with this handbook; some relief may be immediate, and lasting relief may require diligence.
If Ms. Bowman is part of a revolution in how we approach our health, then the new paradigm will support only those interested in taking full responsibility for their own well-being. As the book demonstrates, wellness is out there for those who are willing to work for it.
Ventura, California
There are many milestones along the path to well-maintained feet, and an increasingly common detour is the path to the doctor’s office, pharmacy, or even the operating room to fix an ailment from the ankle down. Far from being neatly confined to your shoes, foot problems actually speak volumes about the future status of your knees and hips, ability to walk for exercise, and ultimately the ability to live your golden years as a mobile and independent person. The foot is involved in virtually every non-sitting activity we do. If we want to stay upright and active—and feel great at the same time—we need to know more about our feet.
Often people will tell me, “I am too old to make any significant improvements in my health,” or, “My feet have been like this for so long, they will never change!” Both of these statements are untrue! The state of your feet right now is simply the reflection of everything you have done up until this moment. Human tissues are dynamic and adapt to the forces that are placed upon them. When these forces change, the tissues change to reflect the different habit. This is true whether it’s a good habit or a bad one!
This book is about how you can fix your own feet. Although human body issues often seem complex—especially to those with little or no anatomical, physiological, or therapeutic training—solutions can be much simpler than they appear. Though not on purpose, this “healing is complex” attitude is frequently reinforced by the entire health care system. As pharmaceutical and technological sciences advance, it makes sense that these advanced treatments would be the first used. After all, the more advanced the treatment, the better it is, right?
In actuality, most ailments do not require expensive treatments, complicated products, or even pharmaceutical intervention. Most musculoskeletal issues—that is, ailments of the bones, ligaments, tendons, and muscles—are usually created by one very simple, easily evaluated, habit: how you move.
The relationship between how you move and how your body feels becomes more and more clear the better one understands how things work in the body. Inconveniently, the human body wasn’t created with an easy-to-use manual for quick troubleshooting when a problem arises. But all hope is not lost. By working backward, any person with the right training in physics and geometry can figure out which joint positions create the most degeneration, which footwear choices can increase pressure on which tissues, and which patterns of gait, or walking, can reduce muscle strength and nerve conduction.
The science of how humans move is called kinesiology. Within kinesiology there are many subfields, including one known as biomechanics.