Arch Support Is Not From Shoes
Friday, February 23, 2007
Jolie Bookspan, M.Ed, PhD, FAWM
It is commonly taught in gyms, medical schools, aerobics certification programs, and footwear stores all over the US, that shoes or orthotics are necessary to hold your arches in position. "Supportive" shoes change how you move naturally and are hard on your knees. The needed support can come from your own foot muscles. How do you do this?
- Stand up with both feet parallel, pointing straight ahead.
- See if your arch slumps downward, pressing your arches against the floor (left photo). In most cases, there is nothing wrong with your arches, but because you allowed it to slouch.
- If you use the muscles on the outsides of your ankles and legs, you can gently shift your weight more evenly to neutral ankle (right photo) and stand straight. Don't tilt completely to the side or stand on the sides of your feet, just shift enough to lift your arches from the floor.
- Don't yank just from the ankle, causing strain to the next segment. See where the slouch is coming from and make the entire leg positioning healthy.
- Having arch support from your leg and foot muscles is the same as using your upper body muscles to stop neck and shoulder slouching. Are you are slouching right now reading this? Straighten your upper body in healthy manner to remind yourself you can use your own muscles to be healthy.
- If it hurts, it's wrong. Don't force.
Engineered running shoes are not necessary to prevent lower leg pain. Some even add to knee and ankle pain - more in other articles. Support your own feet by holding position using your own muscles, not a shoe 'straight jacket' that lets ankles atrophy and doesn't let toes move, stretch, and straighten.
Orthotics are Different from Shoe Cushions:
- Fast Fitness - Fixing Arches, Knock Knee, and Knee Pain Without Orthotics
- Your Muscles Are Your Orthotics for Arches, Knock Knee, and Knee Pain
- Healthy Toe Stretches and Unhealthy Yoga Ankles
- My web site page Inspiring Patient Stories for a first-hand account of a patient who fixed a lifetime of pain and pronation by stopping the cause - letting ankles and feet sag. By holding healthy positions during your normal day, you can get free, built- in exercise for your feet and ankles, and better health.
- The book, "Fix Your Own Pain Without Drugs or Surgery" for how to have healthy arches and foot support.
It shouldn't hurt, or require commercial products or machinery to just stand up straight.
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Read success stories of these methods and send your own. See if your answers are already here by clicking Fitness FIxer labels, links, archives at right, and Index. Subscribe free, "updates via e-mail" upper right. For personal medical questions - Replies to Medical Questions. Limited Class space for personal feedback. Top students may earn certification, DrBookspan.com/Academy. Get more in Dr. Bookspan's Books.
Read success stories of these methods and send your own. See if your answers are already here by clicking Fitness FIxer labels, links, archives at right, and Index. Subscribe free, "updates via e-mail" upper right. For personal medical questions - Replies to Medical Questions. Limited Class space for personal feedback. Top students may earn certification, DrBookspan.com/Academy. Get more in Dr. Bookspan's Books.
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Photo copyright by Dr. Jolie Bookspan from the book Healthy Martial Arts
Labels: ankle, arches, feet, fix pain, myths, orthotics, pronation, shoes
4 Comments:
At Thursday, March 01, 2007 6:34:00 PM,
Anonymous said…
Dr. Bookspan,
I have your book and find in invaluable.
I am doing my traps and pec stretch. I don't let my feet pronate.
However, the final obstacle that I am having difficulty with is a very tight QL on only one side which is pulling me into a pseudo-scoliosis.
I am doing hip flexor stretches and stretching the tight QL, but I seem to be locked into a tilted stance.
Can standing habitually with your weight on one leg -- a typical "female" stance and always crossing your legs when you sit, both bad habits which I have stopped, contribute to this type of imbalance? I also suspect too much driving / sitting and weak core.
Any thoughts?
At Monday, March 05, 2007 2:45:00 PM,
Jolie Bookspan, M.Ed, PhD, FAWM said…
Kate, excellent work understanding how a tight quadratus lumborum (QL) is a common thing confused for scoliosis, and for astutely calling it pseudo-scoliosis. We can easily fix this.
The quadratus muscle goes from the top of your hip (where you can rest a package or your hand) up your side, usually to your bottom rib and lower spine. The quadratus is called the "hip hiker" because one of the things it does is lift up your hip on that side, or bend you sideways to that side, just as you mention.
My Stretching Smarter book has specific stretches for this. I'm guessing you have the "Fix Your Own Pain" book? Use the Trapezius stretch on page 20 and again on page 125, plus the side hip stretches on pages 173 and 174. The trapezius stretch will help greatly. Do it first thing in the morning and many times during the day. Make sure not to bend forward - stand with your back and the back of your head against a wall while doing the trapezius stretch. I have been meaning to cover this great and often overlooked stretch in the Fitness Fixer blog. Thank you for reminding me.
If you stand bent to that side, as you mention, that will keep the quadratus muscle tight and short. The main thing is to stretch it functionally - that means not standing that way, even if pulled there. By standing straight (upright, not tilted), you should feel a stretch, pulling it into healthier resting length. Start with these three things (trap stretch, side hip stretch, and functional built-in stretch) and let me know. Don't worry. You're doing great.
At Monday, March 05, 2007 3:10:00 PM,
Jolie Bookspan, M.Ed, PhD, FAWM said…
second half of reply to Kate-
The phrase "weak" core is thrown around a lot, meaninglessly. Having muscles will not stop the muscles from being tight. Strengthening does not stop anyone from standing tilted or with bad positioning, and does not stop back pain (regardless of claims in muscle magazines). Plenty of body builders have back pain and terrible posture, regardless of all their muscles, as do all the instructors of aerobics and Pilates and yoga who come to me for back pain. Many non-muscular people stand fine and have no pain or tightness. You can have both - be strong and pain-free. Just remember that one does not cause the other. The claim that strong core will hold you in the right posture that will prevent QL tightness (or any other) is unfounded.
Standing with weight shifted to one side (also covered in the Fix Pain book p 174-5) isn't typically female. Guys slump that way too. If anyone spends most of their time with that hip pushed up to that side, it can probably shorten. Use the functional standing I mentioned in the previous reply and have fun.
At Friday, November 20, 2009 8:25:00 AM,
Unknown said…
Hi, My Chiropractor is telling me I need arch supports not for the inside arches, but for the outside of the foot...between the little toe and heel. I tend to wear out my shoes on the outside edges of my heel. Any thoughts?
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