A Stable Grounding
You will get more from your exercise session and more enjoyment from a walk if you have faith in your feet.
Fear of falling is a real worry for some people; it’s not just the pain caused by the fall but the worry about the recovery time afterwards and losing their independence.
Picking up an injury from a fall is really frustrating for runners, sportspeople or even the daily dog walkers. A simple ankle sprain can take weeks to heal, which is unthinkable if you are someone who exercises daily.
You can strengthen weak foot and ankle muscles with a series of daily exercises
-Tiptoe raises. A great one to do whilst you are brushing your teeth. Slowly raise up on tiptoes and slowly down again. Try and do 20; you can do both feet at the same time or alternate feet.
-Towel scrunch. When you are sitting on a chair, feet flat on the floor, place a towel under your toes and use your toes to scrunch up the towel. The towel will slowly be gathered up under your foot. Work up from 1 length of the towel to 3 lengths of the towel.
-Spikey ball roll. You might need to buy a spikey ball; if you suffer from heel pain, I usually recommend you get one. Stay sitting with your feet flat on the floor. Place the spikey ball under your foot and slowly move it around the base of your foot; try and keep it under control. Do this for 5 minutes on each foot.
-Towel stretch. You will need your legs straight for this one. Stay sitting and put your leg out in front of you (if you have a footstool, put your foot in there). Point your toes up and loop a hand towel around your toes. Use the towel to gently pull your toes back towards you. You should feel a stretch down the base of your foot and your calf. This stretch is quite tricky; if you can manage 10 seconds, you are doing well, try and increase the number of seconds each day.
Let me know how you do with these exercises; I also have more for those who would like to further develop their foot strength.
Even with a strong base, accidents do happen. This is why I invested in Galileo, my M5 laser treatment machine. His treatment isn’t magic; it’s science. His laser stimulates your own body’s healing process to repair the damage. It reduces swelling and accelerates healing, meaning you get back to your activity quicker.
I hate to think of any of my community who is experiencing foot pain unnecessarily or is stuck indoors because of a foot problem. I’m in Bank Chambers, in Langport, give me a call for an appointment.
