Feet: The Foundation Of Our Body
26 bones.
33 joints.
19 muscles.
100s of ligaments & tendons.
… are in each foot!
There are more of these in the foot than any other part of our body… and we put them in shoes all day!
In the “stretching world,” shoes are considered “coffins for your feet.”
In the “podiatry world,” no one should ever walk without shoes.
I am so excited to be talking to you about feet today!
If you have ever been to any of my Stretch Therapy classes or private sessions, you know that feet are my favorite body part to stretch.
When we start stretching our feet, I can’t wait to look up into the room at my students’ faces. Most of them are in a state of shock at how painful it is at first to even curl their toes under. But that doesn’t bother me because I know what a difference it will make in their lives when they strengthen and lengthen their feet.
I tell them, “Sorry people, but stretching the muscles in your feet will keep you out of the podiatrist’s office and will increase the quality of your life. ” 😊
Some people don’t come to my classes because they don’t want to take their shoes off at all. Seriously, they tell me that!
So let’s talk about shoes…
Shoes restrict blood flow and circulation to our feet. They bind our toes together and over time, our toes are morphed out of shape and lose their ability to balance our body. This results in loss of mobility and creates pain.
Don’t even get me started about high heel shoes! ☹
Socks and shoes are a bad combination…
The fabric in socks dries out our feet as they sweat in shoes, and the elastic restricts even more blood flow and circulation.
All of this causes cracking of the skin, toenail fungus, corns between the toes, bunions, overlapping claw toes, fallen arches and weak muscles that can’t support our body weight without shoes, and more and more issues.
Fact: feet are the first body part that we humans lose function of as we climb in age.
There are 2 reasons for this:
1. Feet are the furthest body part from the heart. As we age, our heart doesn’t pump as hard as in youth, so it is harder for blood flow to get down to our feet.
2. Shoes restrict movement and strengthening of the muscles in the feet. They also restrict blood flow and circulation which is already compromised by the distance from the heart.
When we lose function of our feet, we lose our balance and mobility. Therefore, we lose our independence and quality of life.
Maybe you can understand now why I love to educate my students on how important their feet are to stretch, strengthen, and give attention to.
If you have ever had a foot problem that caused you pain with every step you took, you probably reduced your movement to avoid pain.
When movement slows down or stops, so does circulation and blood flow. We need that blood to flow because it heals our body.
Our muscles act as pumps to circulate blood, oxygen, nutrition, hydration, body fluid, and more throughout the entire body. When we move less, this function slows down the flow process.
Our feet are vital to the movement of our body. More than any other body part, our feet are in constant use. We need them to function highly for use so we can stay active.
Remember: movement is medicine!
If we feel good in our body, we will move more.
If we feel pain in our body, we will move less.
I have my own foot story:
Before Covid, I used to take solo trips to my favorite beach on the planet to work on writing my book. On my last trip, I somehow did something to my foot while unloading my car and carrying things up a long staircase into my condo.
I didn’t pay much attention to it until the next morning when I headed out the door for my sunrise walk on the beach. I couldn’t do it! I didn’t even make it to the street. I couldn’t even ride my bike, which is my favorite thing to do at the beach. I couldn’t walk to the restaurants or shops in the little town.
It was the biggest bummer!
My trip to the beach was a completely different experience because of my foot issue and pain. It kept me from doing all the things I loved to do.
On the bright side, I got a lot of writing done though and a lot of stretching. 😊
Seriously, this was when I decided to learn more about feet and how to stretch them and strengthen them. Hopefully my experience can help you!
I am serious…
At least 80 – 90% of my students have some type of foot issues. Some of them know it, and some of them don’t know until they take off their shoes and start to stretch their feet.
So many cannot bend their toes without major pain and some can’t bend their toes because they are “stuck” and won’t move!
There are more benefits to waking up our feet than just mobility and balance….
There are pressure points in the bottom of our feet that have meridians that correlate with every organ and body part in our body.
This is known as reflexology!
This is why, if we take care of our feet — our whole body feels good. 😊
In Asian culture, shoes are removed before entering homes. I used to think it was just a custom or a courtesy. I now know that it is also how they care for their feet.
Think about it…
If we wake up in the morning and put our feet in slippers, then our feet are in shoes all day until we go to bed at night. Then we do the same thing everyday for years and years. The muscles in our feet get no use and become weak and atrophied. If we don’t use them, we lose them.
I am not saying that we should not wear shoes. We need shoes to get around our daily lives. I am saying to take time to take them off and give your feet a break!
Without muscle movement, blood flow slows down.
RIGOR MORTIS! ☹
This is what one of my stretch workshop instructors called what happens to our feet as we age.
That means that the muscles in our feet die from restriction of shoes and no use.
He is also the one who called shoes “coffins for your feet.”
So, when you take off your shoes and the muscles in your feet are weak from no use, it is painful to walk on weak feet.
I have a student who confessed to me on her first visit that she could not walk barefoot on her hardwood floors without excruciating pain! I am proud to announce that she now walks just fine on her floors with no pain. 😊 I am serious!
We have to strengthen and lengthen our feet, people!!
We need to wake them up, give them attention, and get blood flow and circulation to them!
We need to keep our feet working for us and not against us!
Or, we get orthotics and better, more expensive shoes that restrict the muscles in our feet from moving even less. Then when these stop doing the trick, we get better orthotics and even more expensive shoes… It’s a cycle that doesn't work people!
It’s not too late…
KICK YOUR FEET OUT OF YOUR SHOES AND GIVE THEM FREEDOM AND NEW LIFE. 😊
4 Stretches for Your Feet:
Here are a few ways to stretch and open up your feet and allow them to function for you rather than against you:
1. Rise Ups:
Stand next to a stable surface that you can hold onto for balance.
Separate your feet 5-6 inches apart.
Lift heels off the floor and rise into the ball of your feet and lower.
Do 2 x 10 reps of these stretches per day.
2. Toe Bends:
While standing as above…
Bend top of toes of one foot on floor and use a little pressure to press.
Roll back to the ball of the foot and press.
Go back and forth 4-5 times.
3. Toe Crunches:
While seated or standing, bend your toes under like you are picking up something off the floor with them and release.
Do 2 x 10 reps of these stretches per day.
4. Feet Up:
Lying on your back on the floor…
Rest your legs over a chair, sofa, ottoman with knees over hips.
Circle your feet around in both directions and point and flex them.
Your feet above your heart will bring lots of blood flow and circulation to your feet and help the healing process.
And lastly…
Put lotion on your feet!
Before you put your shoes and socks on in the morning, rub lotion all over your feet, toes, heels, ankles. Go in between each toe and separate them. The rubbing action will bring attention to them and much needed blood flow. It will also keep feet from drying out and cracking from sweating in shoes.
My favorite is Palmer’s Coconut Oil Body Lotion. Oh my goodness… it is amazing! Lather it all over your body and especially your feet! My body craves it. You will love it.
So let’s start taking care of our feet, people!