I have been thinking a lot about feet lately. Mine have felt a little cramped. I’m longing for summer sandals, or at least sockless freedom around the house. I like to cycle, ski, and hike, all activities that require closed-toe, sometimes snug, footwear. My grandmother had bunions so severe that they scared me as a child. I thought that my own genetics might make bunions and hammertoes magically appear one day. Nothing I could do about it: one day I would wake up with feet so twisted, I’d need surgery. So should I just sit around and wait for those lumpy indignities to appear?
NO, actually there are some great ways to give your feet a little TLC at the end of the day and just maybe avoid pain, and hopefully bunion surgery.
We know that barefoot cultures have fewer foot problems per capita than any other population. Hmmm…maybe our feet want to be freer, more out in the open, toes more separated from one another. Vibram Five Finger shoes allow toes to stretch, feel the ground, separate, do what toes are supposed to do. Maybe I should make the leap – if I could just get over how ridiculous they look!
Then there is Yogatoes. Yogatoes are toe stretchers that claim to do a lot of things, including decreasing bunions and hammer toes. Our feet have little muscles deep inside called the foot intrinsic muscles. These muscles work hard! They support our feet and thus, our entire bodies. Yogatoes stretch and relieve these muscles so they can do their job and we can do ours! As I sit at my desk writing, Yogatoes sound pretty good to my sock and shoe clad feet. I stretch other parts of my body, other parts that don’t support me through thousands of steps. Why not my feet?
Have you heard of Yogatoes? Tried them? Do you wear Vibram Five Finger shoes? Do you give your feet any TLC
