Pedors Orthopedic Blog

I’m a novice at this I have to admit. I’m all set up and ready to go. My focus will be on all things orthopedic. Mainly relating to the foot and footwear- shoes, inserts, socks, what is good and what is not and how to best look after your feet in general.

The foot has in my opinion always got a bit of a bad rap. “Stinky feet”  “sweaty feet”  “ smelly feet” ““cold feet”   “barking dogs” as well as all the other numerous and even racist derogatory terms associated with feet.

 Well, I’m blogging from this day forward to say stop the madness!!  The foot is one of man-kinds wonders of design and evolution. The foot is the most under-appreciated parts of the body and one of the most important to your overall well being.

 Feet are, you see, fantastic.  An engineering marvel with 26 bones and 33 joints - a biomechanical work of art. Multi-faceted, the foot can perform in many guises in any environment. Demands on the foot to get you where you need to be, are daily.

 Walking and mobility is a critical component of a healthy life-plan. Once you stop moving it’s pretty much a matter of time before your quality of life decreases dramatically.

 So I’m here to say how important it is to look after your precious feet. Look after them and they in turn will look after you.

So to end my first blog I want to recommend as series of simple exercises I found in an article I read recently in the LA Times by Janet Cromley. They can be done at home and without any fancy equipment.

 • The towel curl: This is one of the safest exercises, says podiatrist Dr. Douglas Richie. While sitting with feet flat on the floor, try to grip a small towel by curling the toes over the towel. Even if you are not able to actually grip the towel, the attempt is still good exercise. To exercise the individual toes, try this with marbles or tissues. This exercise strengthens toes and arches.

• The calf raise: In a standing position, raise and lower the heels off the floor while rolling up onto the balls of the feet. Do this while bending the toes into the floor as if standing on tiptoe. A more ambitious variation of the drill is to do it one foot at a time. This exercise strengthens the arch, toes and Achilles tendon. Do not do this if you have a strained arch, as you could strain the arch further.

• The tennis-ball roll: While seated or standing, roll the foot gently over a small ball, such as a tennis ball. This is good for maintaining the arch.

• The toe massage: While sitting with one foot on the opposite knee, massage the ball of the foot, in between each metatarsal. Repeat with the other foot.