Distribution and marketing workers, teachers, nurses, cashiers, servers, mothers, runners and anyone else who has spent a great deal of time on their feet, know the toll it can take on your body. You would do anything to soothe that aching, tender feeling in your feet, after a long day on them. Standing on your feet without rest for long periods of time, can lead to a wide variety of issues, especially if your posture is incorrect, and your shoes provide inadequate support. Standing incorrectly can cause foot, ankle, and back pain, as well as overall alignment issues. You need to save your feet because you deserve to feel, move, and live your best all day.

Proper Support

A common cause of foot and heel pain is Plantar Fasciitis, which can be caused by excessive standing in ill-fitting or unsupportive shoes. Plantar Fasciitis (PF) is the stabbing pain you feel under the soft part of your foot and around your heel.

Heel spurs can develop if PF is left untreated. Additionally, PF pain can cause inactivity, leading to lower quality of life and diminished health. Your body will also alter your gait to adjust to the pain you are experiencing, which can potentially lead to additional alignment related issues in your body.

How can I fix it? Healing PF takes time, but proper arch support is key in relieving pain and assisting the process. Custom arch support is extremely effective in distributing pressure to your feet more evenly.

Stretch it Out

There are set foot stretches to aid in stretching out the feet and alleviating the pain. Regularly practicing yoga can help you to gain and maintain better posture, as well as loosen and strengthen muscles throughout your body.

Get Rid of the Flip Flops

Turns out the world’s most popular footwear is horrible for your body. Flip flops are flimsy, flat, and provide no support to your feet. This lack of support can cause a great deal of pain; that’s why when you’re travelling to another country through these huge airports, or walking extremely long on holiday, your feet are aching by the end of the day. Continued lack of support, like what you experience with flip flops, can lead to inflammation of the plantar fascia, cause plantar fasciitis. If left untreated, this will cause a great deal of pain.

In addition to lack of support, wearing ill-fitting flops causes “toe scrunching” in an attempt to keep them on your foot better, which can trigger tendonitis. Poor fit can also cause a change in your natural stride, which often leads to ankle, knee, hip or back issues. Make sure you choose a pair of sandals that fit properly and provide adequate support.

Here’s a basic checklist for your next pair:

• Size: Your sandals should fit you properly. Your toes and heels should be fully on footbed, with nothing hanging over any edge.
• Flop: Your sandals should only bend at the ball of the foot. Bending in the middle of the footbed means a flimsy shoe, aka poor support.
• Proper Support: A sandal with custom arch support will go a long way in preventing the aforementioned problems, that come with flat flip flops.

Take a Circulation Break

If you spend a majority of your day on your feet, and/or in a stationary position, taking posture breaks are important to promote circulation. Varying your position during the day can help ease the strain of repetition on your foot muscles. Circulatory sluggishness, caused by gravity can make you feel tired, cause headaches, strain in your back muscles, and even negatively impact your mood. There are simple circulation exercises you can do.

Epsom Salts Soak 

Epsom salts is a natural anti-inflammatory that can aid in treating muscle aches. These soaks are great for soothing aches and pains. Fill up a foot bath or shallow bucket with warm water and some epsom salt. Add a couple drops of an essential oil of your choice, and soak your feet.

Check your Posture

Poor posture can have a dramatic effect on your muscles and ligaments. It can lead to pain and injury in your heels, knees, back, feet, and even difficulty with digestion and breathing. Bad posture is typically caused, and made worse by, an imbalance in strength and tension within your muscles. The muscles in your feet play a huge role in this. For example, tight calf muscles, paired with weak plantar fascia, can wreak havoc on your gait and foot posture (the alignment of the foot itself). This poor posture is a vicious cycle, causing the body (which naturally leans slightly forward), to tilt further forward or backward. It also adds additional strain to your feet and heels, making plantar fasciitis and posture worse.

It’s possible to improve your posture and reduce pain from the ground up, by improving the overall alignment of your feet; correcting your gait; and allowing your body to align and move the way it was meant to. Using custom insoles in your shoes helps to distribute pressure and loading across the entire foot, reduce ankle rotation and keep you aligned from the ground up.

Massage

Therapeutic massage is a great way to relax and loosen the muscles in your feet. Schedule a few sessions of these to aid in improving the body.

Your feet mirror your general health . . . cherish them!