step forward orthotics

[Taol]

Www.stepforward.com

I came across this a while ago. It is a concept for a sole that is meant to strenghten your feet by using them?
They claim that normal podo therapists adjust the soles to the feet which gives support and are meant to rebalance the bones and spine but do nothin to contribute to actual strengthening and healing the feet.
Well they do give optional exercises like rolling up a towel with your toes but I dont think that kind of exercise alone works.

Has anyone got experience with this? There are some user reviews but it is hard to say weather they are made up by someone or not.

Also I tried to look up on scientific research but so far nothing.

 

[Taol]

Www.alznerrdmt.com/home_page.php

Found this while researching on the person whom the idea stems from. Interesting page on reflexology and deep tissue massage in relation to foot problems and such.

Course is in Canada if anyone is interested.

 

[Taol]

I was looking around and found information about barefoot (or minimal) running. I found this very interesting as I was just clicking through random things related to feet and how one stands on them.

Here are some video's:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQYmBHSJsAs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e11BujbfC7U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jrnj-7YKZE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jio7DK15Q1E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F90D418SFZI

What I've heard listening to all these videos.. well..
The point is, the extra padding and softness in shoes meant to help catch and prevent injuries are meant for people whom use the heel-strike technique when running. This does not do much for your feet whatsoever (it was also mentioned that it might have consequences further up your body like your knees having them act like a shockbreaker instead of your foot). Nothing for the strength and might even make excisting injuries worse (you may not yet know its an injury or problem).

https://www.plutosport.nl/media/catalog ... pers_7.jpg

If you have any of these things and you walk on them regularly this might not be the best idea. Why? If you have a problem with your feet, like flat feet or too high an arch your weight will not be distributed on the heelbone properly while standing. (weight does not go straight down, it goes to the side the bone is tilted) which if placed on a soft ground could make the angle worse and make it even harder for your foot to control what can result in even worse foot problems.. which then can turn up through your whole body (knees, hips, spine, etc).

The "shoe" in the picture does not support or 'lock' your foot in place.
Now if you were standing on a hard surface, it won't move underneath your feet, it is solid floor, you have control over your feet. The foot won't sink in or fall over as much as it does with the example shown because well it has nowhere to dent in and disrupt the natural shape of the foot.


Needless to say high heels are a killer for feet. Many ladies have problems with their big toes and front of their feet hurting. Needless to say this is in general not too good for the feet, neither is it for the spine or anything of that nature in long term.


Now minimalist or barefoot shoes (like vibram fivefingers or freet shoes) say that the foot must be leveled, meaning, an even amount of shoe dept between toes and heels. Also being so close to the ground gives you feedback on what you are walking on. How you place your feet and that kind of stuff.
Now some may be very scared as to stepping on nails or anything.. but you'd know when you step on them as well that it seems kind of unwise to not know where you are walking anyway.. If you visit vibrams website = eu.vibram.com/en you can look for information about their shoes there. They are made to withstand puncture and the like, making them safe for walking on rough objects, like glass, sharp stones, etc.

Walking on such shoes requires a different way of walking (or running - if you do your research you'll find this too) in which you first put down the front or front/mid of your foot before you place your heel on the ground. If you run, this could act like some sort of spring. It is actually said for some animals that they store energy in parts of their feet or legs for running or jumping (like hares for example). I think this works kind of the same.
Also (classical) ballet dancers are taught to roll down their feet when they land. This is to prevent any injuries when moving and jumping around. Which makes sense since this practice places a lot of strain on the foot, especially using pointes.

Running like this is said to strenghten the foot and ankles.

I was not sure weather someone mentioned anything about this topic before, but since I did come across it I figured oh well what the heck why not type a bit on about it. Then I read on about scoliosis (an older post in this group) and how that is a disbalance in how the energy is used/distributed by the body. Very interesting. Makes me wonder if diseases really do start on the astral.


I might make a picture which shows what I meant or tried to explain earlier in the post about the soft for your feet shoes.


In short: Running shoes/soft soled shoes = weaker feet = unbalanced legs = spine that is not straight and other problems.
A spine that is not straight does not send signals through the nervous system as effectively as when it was straight. This is true for scoliosis and can cause organs to function less than 100%. Can be found when you look into chiropracy.


And this is just for fun (mostly):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAHdzGp2bFs

 

[Voice of Enki [JG]]

This is very informative Taol! 

It's interesting, but I always run by stepping with my toes first, then rolling the foot, then springing forward.
It actually creates more forward momentum as each step pushes the energy forwards and the kinetic energy, instead of dissolving and smashing into the knee with a heel strike step will instead be retained and keep building up, continiously pushing you forward. 

When stepping with the toes first it seems the brunt of the force is taken by the tendons in the feet and the Calves, which are made to take the shock, while the knees aren't made to be our natural shck breakers, only pressure from a certain angle is recieved well by the knees, but a heel strike run put's all the pressure on the knee cap instead, which is not good for the knee at all.. 

Also I noticed that all regular shoes have higher heels than toes, all of them. This shortens the calves as well and makes them much less flexible, which is very bad for your mobility and also posture as the foot will try to balance out the posture by becomming flatter or otherwise arched or whatever. Atleast, this is my conclusion as a non expert in the field. 


A good way to learn how to properly step and also stretch your calves that I personally noticed (but I don't know if this is healthy for the foot in case there are already problems) is to walk or run uphill without wearing shoes. As this forces you to step toes first and as a result will stress the calves, which stretches them and stregntens them, but I do think you need to be carefull with this as instead of stretching the calves you might end up stressing the achiles tendon instead since the body always tries to adjust it's posture according to muscle imbalances instead of correct those imbalances by placing extra pressure on said muscles to fix the posture (Don't know why the body does this, always bothers me as it most of the time just makes a problem worse when it overcompensates....). 

For those with access to a threadmill, running at a slight incline of 5 degrees is already plenty to make your calves feel it really well, especially if they are tight. 

Also the soles of your feet will very quickly adjust to walking barefoot and become much tougher to the point you won't immedietly puncture your skin when stepping on a nail or a small piece of glass. 

For years I used to go barefoot only, even in the city, but I don't recommend it as it is unsanitary there and you never know what you might step in.. 

Also, since running long distances was booring to me, I used to have a kick scooter designed for long distance use. It had slightly bigger weels than the regular kids things and went very fast (easily out speeding bicycles when you got it going a bit). 

I went barefoot with this on the astfalt, which made my feet much stronger and tougher and it's great exercise when you go fast with it. Just went 12 kicks with one foot and then switched to the other and alternated like this. 

You automatically roll the feet with this thing and it stimulates a pretty natural walking motion while also strengthening the other leg you are standing on as you are kind of doing a half piston squat and holding that position. When you keep the back straight well you will also train your arms and shoulders as that is where most of the pressure is held. After doing this for 5 kilometers my arms used to be more tired than my legs. 

The kick scooter I had could go upwards of 30 kilometers per hour if you got it going and was made as a substitute for bicycles that could be used to commute, it was also extremely light weight, only 5 kilograms and could be folded very small so that you could carry it very comfortably after you arrive at your destination. 

Basically an even easier to use version of a folded bicycle. 

Sounds like I'm advertizing it lol, but really I recommend anyone who needs to commute short distances daily or often to use it if they can, as it's so easy to use and better exercise than a bicycle over distances of 1-10 kilometers. 

 

[Taol]

Thanks! Honestly I am no expert either but if something makes sense i am very likely to believe it.