The Anatomy of the Foot
The anatomy of the human foot consist of 26 bones. These bones are in a healthy alignment so that they can each perform their specific job. The bones are positioned into arches. Together with ligaments, tendons and muscles there are four arches. Two of these arches run lengthwise, and two run crosswise in the foot.
What Causes the Arches to Fall
Due to the many stresses the foot encounters including repetitive trauma, obesity, pregnancy, improper footwear, walking on uneven terrain your foot may lose it's healthy alignment and arches over time. In other words the 26 bones misaligned, placing increased stress on the muscles, ligaments, nerves, and tissues of the foot, causing pain and symptoms.
What can be done for these fallen arches?
The arches will need to be strengthened. There are several rehabilitation type exercises you can do at home to strengthen the arches. Let's review these one at a time.
The first thing to do is a simple toe raise. You want to stand with your feet about shoulder width apart. You are going to raise your heel in the air shifting your weight to the balls and toes of your feet. You want to hold to a count of 5 seconds then lower your heel. Start with 5 repetitions and build to 10. Then add a second and third set as you build endurance. This should be done everyday while building those arches.
The next is a little bit trickier but still pretty simple. I call these heel circles. Lift your heels off the ground about an inch and begin to do circular motions with your heals for 10 repetitions then do another 10 in the opposite direction. You are going to want to build to three sets.
The third exercise I call the stork because you stand on one leg like a stork. Do this close to a wall incase you need to grab it for balance but the objective is to not hold on to anything. When you lift your leg bring it high enough so your thigh is parallel to the ground. You can extend your arms to the side initially until your balance improves but the goal is to keep hands at your sides. Hold for 30 seconds each foot and repeat 5 times on each foot. You should also perform this one each day. At first you will likely be wobbly due to weak tendons, muscles and joints but you will soon improve.
To help support the arches while you are strengthening them you can wear orthotics in your shoes. These are arch supports that slip into your shoes that will force the arch into a more normal position. You can buy generic type ones from a drug or shoe store as well as get a custom made pair from a chiropractor. The custom ones will be better because they are made for your foot by taking a mold then sent to a lab to be produced.
How to Restore the Normal Alignment of the Bones?
The best way to restore the arches to their normal position is to get back the normal healthy alignment of the bones. Remember we talked about the reason the arches fell in the first place was the mis-alignment of the bones. Nothing will restore this alignment except very specific adjustments to the bones. This is performed by a Hand and Foot Chiropractor. A general chiropractor may be able to help although a hand foot chiropractor has many hours of specific training in adjusting the foot and ankle area. This will improve the motion, strength, and flexibility, and help to improve these arches of your feet for good.
If you are suffering from foot or ankle pain and would like to learn more then visit the blog of Melbourne chiropractor Stephen Canuel D.C. better know as the Hand and Foot Chiropractor at http://westmelbournechiropractor.net/ In addition to the spine a Hand and Foot Chiropractor treats the tiny bones in the hands and feet foot for conditions such as carpal tunnel or plantar fasciitis.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Stephen_H_Canuel/1404514
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