Feet 101:

It seems to me that when people get injured i see a slew of the same type of injury or body part. This summer I have been lucky enough to have a bunch of feet to see at work! I am happy to report that my pregnancy nose has survived most of the stinky ones!

Feet are often injured because they have to compensate for the weak or tight hips, dysfunctional knees and tight IT bands. It’s common for someone with foot pain to find the cause further up the chain, but you can still do a lot to keep your feet healthy and pain-free. Here are some tips:

Stretch: The gastroc and soleus muscles in the back of your leg often try and do everyone’s job. Keep them quiet and happy. See the runner stretches below. They're so easy, you can even do them in line at the grocery store. 

Get your roll on: The plantar fascia at the bottom of your foot may get tight. Rolling on a tennis ball can often relieve tension and you get a free foot massage at the same time.

Learn a party trick: Then wow your friends by picking up bottle caps with your feet and dropping them in a jar. Strengthening the feet can help fix common problems like flat arches and heel pain. Next time you have to pick up after your kids do it with your toes!

Hide your Achilles heel: Strong calves can help prevent tendinopathies. If you cannot do 25 calf raises with no issues on one foot, it is probably time to work on that. To challenge the range of motion, you can always hang off a step.