all posts post new thread

Other/Mixed Strong Feet Don't Need Orthotics

Other strength modalities (e.g., Clubs), mixed strength modalities (e.g., combined kettlebell and barbell), other goals (flexibility)
Status
Closed Thread. (Continue Discussion of This Topic by Starting a New Thread.)
Good stuff.
I run on vibrams and people always ask me how that's possible without getting hurt.
Then I tell them about the marvelous structure the human foot/leg actually is
 
I, for one, can back this up. I'd been having a terrible time with plantar fasciitis, and my doc kept pushing for either steroid injections or surgery. I did take him up on a very basic (i.e., not custom) orthotic and a brace for wearing during sleep. The orthotic meant I had to wear sneakers or other shoes all day long, from stepping out of bed until going back to bed, plus sleeping in the brace every night. The only time I didn't have shoes on was during my training--I had learned barefoot and to me wearing shoes was a change that might make me feel less stable. I kept thinking that humans weren't born wearing shoes, but I'd probably been ruining my feet with high heels and pointy toes for so long that I guess I let myself believe that more shoes might solve the problem.

Not long after, a friend lent me a book about addressing chronic pain without meds or surgery, and the suggestions were for mechanical changes (for plantar fasciitis this meant focusing on the ways I stand and walk, adjusting the way my foot strikes as I step, etc.) and for increasing mobility and stability. After reading that I got rid of the orthotic and brace and started focusing on mobility and strength in my feet and calves, and increased awareness during my training, like making sure to be really rooting into the floor during swings, presses, etc.

I have been orthotic-free, brace-free, and pain-free for more than a year. I never even bothered going back to the podiatrist--he probably thinks the orthotic and brace fixed me right up.
 
Status
Closed Thread. (Continue Discussion of This Topic by Starting a New Thread.)
Back
Top Bottom