Hey, I don´t now if You´re currently following any well formulated mobility program or not, and for the purpose of this blog post it really doesn’t matter.
Just let me point one thing out to You before we´re getting into the meat of this post, ok?
Great, thank You!
I guess You agree with me that most people are happy to find shortcuts for accomplishing things in life and few if any would rather do more work then less to achieve the same result.
Probably You also heard the old saying: ”The only free cheese is in the mouse trap”!
So, where am I going with this?
Very simple, the shortcuts that I´m presenting to You in this blog post (and in the ones coming up… stay tuned) will enhance Your mobility whether You´re are practicing or not. Yet, and this is key, they do not render the same results as following a smart mobility practice.
Please use these tips as an add-on to Your normal practice (and if Your´re currently not following one, please check out https://tapasforlife.teachable.com/p/joint-mobility) and not instead of, or as an excuse to cheat!
Can we agree on that,?
Great, here´s the first shortcut:
Barefoot (flat foot, minimalistic, no-drop) shoes!
We are born with bare feet and evolved for millions of years wearing none, and then, in more recent millennia, just pieces of leather strapped around them for protection agains cold and cuts.
I don´t know if You believe in creation, evolution or both (and I don´t really care either), yet You will probably agree with me that if modern humans suddenly need to cover their feet with some stiff and built-up man made product, then either God or a few million years of evolution did a pretty crappy job preparing us for life on earth. Right?
What really goes on when we incarcerate our feet in a pair of modern shoes (yes, that goes for sneakers as well) is that we totally block the natural movement of out feet.
Each foot contains 26 skeletal bones, each connected to others by ligaments and muscles and surrounded by fascia. These bones are supposed to move and work as a ”spring” to lower the effect of the impact every step we take.
This movement of the foot allows the rest of the body to continue the movement upwards the chain and blocking it leads automatically to dysfunctional mobility not only in joints like knees, hips, spine etc, but also of the fascia that continues weaving around and through every tissue of the body.
Practically this means that if we don´t allow our feet to move in a natural way it can lead to a host of musculoskeletal problems as well as joint issues including premature degeneration.
So why not give it a try next time it´s time for a pair of new shoes?
There are quite a few producers on the market and I just mention some of them here. Just want to say up front that I have no affiliation what so ever with anyone of the companies mentioned. Other than that I´ve used their products for years, continue using them and highly recommend You try them out!
Keep calm and move on!
Mahalo, I appreciate You!
Peace // Claes