Week two of Structural Integration is all about the feet. If we are fortunate enough to have use of our feet, take a minute to think about how much work they do for you. From the very beginning they have helped carry us through life. Did you know that one factor of babies being born headfirst is so their feet can aid in pushing them out? And after they are placed on their mother's belly, if left alone, their kicking feet push down on mama's belly, causing her uterus to contract quicker which helps expel the placenta quicker and helps with blood loss.
Yes, our feet do amazing things. But have you ever taken the time to really look at them? Have you studied how they are positioned? Do you notice how you walk? Where do your feet fall when you lay in bed at night? When our feet are not properly aligned it has an impact everywhere else in the body. Yes, issues in the feet can affect your jaw, migraines, neck and more. One of the more noticeable affects is your knees. Our knees are amazing structures and when they are aligned with our feet and hips they can last longer than we live. But misalignment causes wear and tear on all our joints, and unfortunately, our knees often bear the biggest brunt.
So let's take a few minutes and look at out feet. If you are able, take your shoes off and stand up. Close your eyes, take some breaths, wiggle your body around, kick your feet, and settle into a position that feels normal to you. (No peeking, your eyes are closed the whole time.) Once you feel your normal, take a look down at your feet. What do you see? Which number do they look most like? Which one do you think is the ideal alignment?
1: The Pigeon Toe:
The pigeon toe is less common but still happens. When your toes are facing each other this way, it is often because muscles and bones are being pulled medially, or toward the mid-line of your body. You inner thigh muscles are likely tight, causing this pull, which, as you can guess, creates strain on your knees and hips.
2 & 3: Laterally Rotated Right or Left Foot:
This foot position is super common. When you right foot ends up like this you can probably blame driving because we use our right foot to brake and hit the gas. So our right foot gets used to sticking out this way. If it's your left foot (like mine) I tend to think it's because I drive a stick shift AND broke my left foot twice. There are numerous reasons one foot may stick out this way but the point is the same as above: it creates strain on one knee, causing the other to overcompensate, creating distortion in your hips and back and so on.
4: Bilateral Rotation of both feet:
I feel like this the most common one I see. How do you sit at your desk? Do you let your legs flop out to the side? How you sit on the couch? With your legs perfectly in front of you or out to the sides? This is usually an indication of tight hip rotators, which pull your legs into lateral rotation (out to the side). Think about how our knees bend. Only forward and back right? So when you stand and walk with laterally rotated feet, are your knees able to bend the way they were designed? Hardly.
5: The Wide Stance:
Maybe with this position you're thinking, "OK, this one is fine right? I mean, the feet are straight so it's all good!" Sorry to burst your optimistic bubble, but this position is not ideal either. If our feet are standing wider than our hips, they aren't in alignment, simple as that. And once again, you guessed it, strain on the knees and hips, and therefore the whole body.
6: The Straight and Narrow:
Never mind that I take terrible pictures and the feet look a little crooked, but 6 is the way to go. If you were looking at 6 from the front you would see my second toe is in line with my knee, and my knees are in line with my hips. Strain and pressure on my joints would be drastically reduced by not only standing this way but by walking and running this way.
I don't know about you but I really would prefer to not ever need a hip or knee replacement. I am taking steps now, when I'm healthy, to prolong the life of my joints by walking straight, learning about proper alignment, and doing daily exercises to reprogram my brain and muscles to listen when I say and even when I don't say. Are you ready to fix your foundation and help the rest of your body?