foot health and wellbeing; how to care for you feet post lockdown

photo by Paul Tyreman on Unsplash

painful feet are a real handbreak. they can result in the end of a hike, an embarrassing barefoot walk in a public place, and even the hailing of a cab home during a night out (remember those?). 

 

but due to the pandemic it seems our feet have gotten a little, well, soft; we've spent loads of restorative time on our couches over the last year, and not enough time in shoes it seems.

 

podiatrists have noticed that our feet have started to reshape from the amount of time we have spent either barefoot or in less restrictive shoes. but don't go putting on your heels just yet. 

 

as we start to change up our daily routine, spending more time on our feet and in shoes again, we will need to slowly strengthen up our feet again to avoid painful tootsies when out and about. 

 

we spoke to foot expert and co-founder of My Foot Function, Gourgen Gevorgyan, who gave us 4 tips for helping us ease our feet back into action. 

 

1. exercise barefoot

photo by Nagniné on Unsplash

 

if you do low-impact activities such as strength training, yoga, pilates or walking shorter distances, doing these barefoot for progressively longer periods will greatly help you maintain and build stronger and more resilient feet.

 

just be mindful not to do too much too soon, especially if you’re coming out of the lockdown ‘hibernation’ period, as this could lead to foot cramps. just like the rest of our body, the muscles, tendons and joints in our feet take time to adapt to higher loads and movement.

 

 

2. do toe-ga

photo from myfootfunction.com

 

after a busy day of work and play you may really notice how progressively sore your feet have become. make sure to give your feet some love with foot exercises. educational platforms such as My Foot Function offer free exercises and advice on what to do. 

 

or, if you don’t have time for foot-specific exercises, go for walks outside in shoes that free your feet. a plimsole or mule, for example.

 

3. spend more time on variable terrain (or in slippers)

 

now this was an interesting one.

 

the surfaces we usually walk on at home are often very predictable; flat and symmetrical, this provides us with stability and efficiency in movement. however, spending too much time on surfaces that are too predictable doesn’t challenge you in a way that is necessary for us to be able to maintain a healthy body. 

 

our body has evolved for movement through constantly variable terrain, hence why our feet are so malleable!

 

restrictive shoes have a similar effect on the foot, ultimately reducing its capacity to create an even and broad surface area for distributing your body weight over these surfaces (we go into detail below why this is so important). 

 

if you are spending long hours walking, standing and running on hard, even surfaces, or wearing restrictive shoes, make sure to give your feet a break. 

 

investing in a good pair of comfortable shoes (like slippers) is key. mahabis are comfortable like a slipper, but have a sneaker-like sole, so they can be worn outside too. they might be a good option to help you transition safely back into more restrictive shoes. you can check out our range here. 

 

 

4. listen to your body

 

symptoms of foot dysfunction do not always manifest in the feet, but in fact more often higher up in the body. 

 

if you feel aches in your knees, hips or back, this is commonly due to spending too many hours on your feet in improper footwear. 

 

 Gourgen reminded us that;

 

“every step you take is about x1,25 your body weight, so if you’re taking 10,000 steps per day in bad shoes, that’s over 1000 tonnes through your feet for the average weighing person! 

with an increased heel height the loads in your knees can increase by 20% or more - that’s an additional 200 tonnes of force. over time this leads to increased wear & tear of the joints and can develop into chronic pain.”

 

and that's why you'll only ever catch us in slippers in the office.