If you are suffering from foot pain, then the first thing you have to do is to check if you are well supported in your current pair of shoes. Too many people keep walking around for way too long with severe foot pain conditions, when this is totally unnecessary. The fact of the matter is that us human beings are a strange species, with all sorts of weird shortcomings that we need to manage and/or offset in various ways. Have you ever considered the fact that it’s ridiculous for humans to lose hair, lose eyesight, gain fat in their teens and it only ever gets worse as time goes on? It’s a ridiculous situation.
But guess what… most of our feet aren’t suitable for walking on. It’s like the madness never ends. We’re such a helpless species that we require insoles in order to be able to just have a proper gait in our walk. We can whine about it as long as we like, but that’s not going to change the fact that we absolutely have to have good foot support. If we don’t, we will suffer the consequences. Having an incorrect stance can cause all sorts of problems to build up. Your ankles will suffer and as a result your knees will suffer. As a result of that, your whole body posture wil suffer. Keep this up for long enough, and you’re looking at a problem that’s only going to get worse and will never go away.
So get good arch support for all your footwear. And if you’ve got footwear such as flip flops, then you won’t be able to buy insoles for that. So make sure the flip flops have good inbuilt arch support in and of themselves!
And how does arch support relieve your foot problems, you ask? Let me walk you through a number of ways in which this works.
1. Pronation / Supination Protection
Pronation is what occurs when your feet turn inward too much. When you are walking around with pronation, then that will loosen your joints and it will flatten out your feet. This, in turn, can cause your entire body to start becoming imbalanced, which will cause your gait to suffer from this.
Supination is when your feet turn outwards too much, which causes joints to not absorb shocks properly, because they are too darn rigid.
When you are wearing arch supports, this will promote correct movements and motions of your feet.
2. Shock Absorption
If you’re a grown up, then chances are you will weigh anywhere from 100 lbs to 200 lbs, or maybe even more, if you’re a tad bit on the overweight side. This weight comes down on your feet with every single step you take, whether you are walking, running or jogging, or whatever.
Proper arch supports gives you good absorption for these shocks. Shoes normally come with stock insoles, but these usually are not able to hold a candle to third party insoles, which are almost always of much higher quality. Arch supports have a certain amount of flexibility and are designed to disperse the kinetic energy from shocks all over your fet, so that not one single area of your feet is every stressed too much.
3. Added Stability
Your feet are the foundation of your body. If you want your whole body to have good posture, then you better make sure that you are standing on a firm foundation. Arch supports will help you achieve this goal, since this is what they have been designed to do.
Arch supports will relieve any pressure on your metatarsal bones, that you might endure during your daily activities. By keeping the metatarsal bones in a proper position, you can be sure to be standing up strongly, proudly, firmly and tall… and enjoy a good posture.
4. Better Alignment & Balance
If the weight of your body is not equally balanced on your feet, then this can lead to uncomfortable sensations, or even pain. The balanced weight distribution that is realized by a good pair of insoles, will distribute your body weight evenly throughout your feet. This lessens the pressur eon your ankles, knees, hips and back. You’ll last longer because of it!
5. Arch Supports Gives You… Arch Support
A lot of people have flat feet, or low arches as they are called. If you have this condition, then you really can’t afford to walk without arch support. Walk around on flat feet long enough, and you can get sensatations of pain, inflammation, etc.
Arch supports will lock your feet down into a healthy position and keep them there. Did you know you actually have 4 arches (or 3, depending on how you look at it)? They all require support and they are as follows:
- Inner longitudinal arch
- Outer longitudinal arch
- Transverse arch
- Metatarsal arch
Conclusion
Good arch support is essential in all your footwear, whether it be work boots, hiking shoes, flip flops or even your house slippers. Don’t skimp on the arch support. Spend a few extra dollars on good arch support after you’ve purchased your new shoes. You won’t regret it.
