…ay is through orthotics. Once they clean up their diet, they can ditch the orthotics too. Orthotics and “Arch Supports” Don’t Support Your Arch Many people wear orthotics or various types of “arch supports” because they have either flat feet or pain in their arch. Flat feet are normal in a toddler; as they get older the tendons in the foot strengthen and tighten to form the medial longitudinal arch, often by the age of three. Some never fully deve…
Search Results for: orthotics
A Case For Orthotics?
…re made correctly then yes – absolutely. There are many different types of orthotics as well as ways orthotics are made today so some of this success is going to be dependent on the skill and knowledge of the prescriber. Also, other therapies employed at the time the orthotics are prescribed often help with symptoms. Some prescribers, such as chiropractors, may adjust the bones of the ankle and foot before fitting the patient for an orthotic. This…
Do Not Wear Orthotics! 10 Reasons Not to Wear Orthotics
…r elevator lifts, so you settle for the several millimeters advantage from orthotics. You read online somewhere that the new carbon graphite orthotics are lighter and more aerodynamic than those “old wooden models.” You’re almost sure you saw a cheetah wearing a set of tree-bark orthotics on some Animal Planet show and since they’re the fastest animal in the world… Orthotics were found in the fossil record 5,000,000 years ago. (For triathletes) Wo…
Orthotics – Supportive Beds For Your Feet to Grow Weak In
…lot of support, and aren’t too rigid (stiff). Remember, your orthotic is supporting some dysfunction. Always. Read a lot more about the Sock Doc take on orthotics – here. * Check out the new article (April 2013): “A Case For Orthotics“…
Sock Doc Podcast With Endurance Planet: Ditch Your Orthotics and Find Your Flexibility
…thotics are unnecessary Fix your feet & body, don’t add artificial support Orthotics are just a band-aid for underlying issues Sure, orthotics can improve joint mechanics and nervous system function, but more so they are doing more harm than good They mess with mechanoreceptors, sensory receptors that respond to mechanical stimuli, such as pressure and pain Orthotics are actually controlling undesirable motion–they stabilize but they don’t correct…
Educate Yourself to Recover From and Prevent Any Injury
…a few days or weeks. Very rarely. Some doctors believe in the necessity of orthotics with specific injuries and for their “aging population”. None of this changes the fact that while orthotics may provide some relief they aren’t healing the problem or figuring out why the person is unable to function without such support. Instead of relying on orthotics, figure out the source of the problem so you can move unassisted again, regardless of age. Find…
Healthy People = Barefoot People
…l shoes and a minimalist shoe/barefoot if you have pain. If you’re wearing orthotics, talk to your prescribing doctor about getting out of them so you can walk naturally again and not support your dysfunction. If that doctor doesn’t think that’s possible for you to rehab your feet in such a way then personally I’d find another doc, unless your situation truly warrants a supportive device (very rare). If you’ve been wearing supportive shoes with or…
Truly BAREFOOT
…l shoes and a minimalist shoe/barefoot if you have pain. If you’re wearing orthotics, talk to your prescribing doctor about weaning out of them so you can walk naturally again and not support your dysfunction – that’s essentially what orthotics do. If your doctor doesn’t think that it’s possible for you to rehab your feet in such a way, then personally I’d find another doc, unless your situation truly warrants a supportive device (which is very ra…
Sock Doc: Treatment & Prevention of Achilles Tendonitis
…if your feet are strong from wearing the proper footwear, and not wearing orthotics and walking barefoot often, you’re going to probably never end up with an injury like Achilles tendinitis, or a pump bump, or a retrocalcaneal bursitis, or a heel spur, or a bone spur, whatever you want to call it, and your feet are going to feel very strong and you’re going to have strong calves and lower legs and great balance. The other thing is, other than no…
Sock Doc: Treatment & Prevention of Plantar Fasciitis
…your body that you might not make the association with, but hey it’s from orthotics. Think low to the ground. Think no orthotics. Go barefoot as much as possible. If you’ve been wearing the orthotics for a long time start to take them out a half hour a day, an hour a day, two hours a day, more and more until you can walk barefoot. If you can walk barefoot your feet are strong. So you’re going barefoot, you’re doing the towels exercises. Pick up t…
Overpronation Is Really Not Your Problem
…muscle imbalances in the lower leg is wearing over-supportive shoes and/or orthotics, as mentioned previously. Trying to control pronation and supination directly will only disrupt normal gait, balance, proprioception, and muscle response resulting in a new injury somewhere down the line. Correcting these muscle imbalances can be as simple as transitioning out of your orthotics or non-minimalist shoes to minimalist shoes and walking barefoot as mu…
Sock Doc: Natural Treatment & Prevention of Piriformis Syndrome, Low Back Pain, & Sciatica
…some false supportive device. So you’re going barefoot and not wearing any orthotics or trying to wean yourself off those orthotics and wearing minimalist type shoes whenever you can. Of course, you’re not stretching these things because whenever you stretch a muscle that’s been injured or strained, you’re further elongating those muscles and you’re not going to feel it. We don’t stretch our psoas muscles, we definitely don’t stretch our piriformi…
Foot Injuries On FLOW
…r hip or your lower back, and you’re not making the connection between the orthotics and the gait change, in other words, how you move about with that device that you’ve been wearing for so long at the same time, while your foot muscles are actually becoming more and more fatigued, because they’re being supported. It’s actually impossible to support your arch with arch supports, which many orthotics contain, because you can’t support an arch by pu…
About Sock Doc
…ing at that foot and addressing only that foot. Typically remedies such as orthotics, anti-inflammatory medications, and certain therapies are prescribed, such as stretching. Despite the lack of evidence that any of these therapies adequately address the true problem (of the foot), this is still the way things are done in mainstream medical offices. Stretching may provide temporary relief to plantar fasciitis, an NSAID might reduce pain and inflam…
Lose Your Shoes
…foot or in low-drop shoes until the discomfort subsides. If you’re wearing orthotics, talk to your prescribing doctor about getting out of them so you can walk naturally again and not support your dysfunction. If that doctor doesn’t think that’s possible for you to rehab your feet in such a way then personally I’d find another doc, unless your situation truly warrants a supportive device (very rare). If you’ve been wearing supportive shoes with or…
Preventing and Healing Stress Fractures & Stress Reactions
…hock naturally will no longer be working correctly. Orthotics and Footwear Orthotics typically cause similar problems, as do arch supports and shoes that lift the heel too far off the ground and put excess stress on the mid and forefoot. This type of footwear disrupts normal gait, causing muscle imbalances and dispersing stress to isolated areas that is not meant to handle such a load. Eventually the area breaks down – literally. For most, wearing…
Sock Doc’s “Weekly Tip” Archive
…r body. If you really think you’re that special “exception” and truly need orthotics then maybe you’ll benefit from a wheelchair one day too when more of your body breaks down. Your thigh bone isn’t just connected to your hip bone but it’s also connected to your foot bones, your rib bones, your skull bones, and even your hand bones. If you, your doc, or therapist doesn’t realize this then you’ll never heal your injury and perform to your best abil…
Sock Doc Video: Treatment & Prevention of ITB Syndrome
…ke I’ve always preached. Stay away from those orthotics. The more you wear orthotics, the more you’re going to fatigue your feet, throw off your gait, and eventually end up with a problem. It could be an iliotibial band problem. It could be planar fasciitis. It could be a shoulder muscle problem from the way that you’re throwing your gait off. Think minimalist shoes, too. She wears Nike Frees 3.0. Pretty good minimalist shoes. Lots of others out t…
Sock Doc: Treatment & Prevention of Shin Splints
…can to strengthen your feet. That also means as you know no orthotics. So orthotics are going to support dysfunction of your feet. They might make you feel better while you’re in them because it’s supporting the muscle and imbalances in there, but they’re not going to correct anything. And often over time a new injury will result that you might not associate with your orthotic use. It could be in the other leg, it could be even in your upper arm…
Sock Doc Podcast With PaleoRunner
…Check out my most recent podcast with Aaron Olson at PaleoRunner.org. I discuss stretching (well, not stretching), orthotics (umm, not using orthotics), minimalist/barefoot running, injury treatment and prevention, and a bunch of other great info. http://cdn.paleorunner.org/pod/pr52-injury-prevention-dr-steve-gangemi.mp3?ptm_source=feed&ptm_context=mp3&ptm_file=pr52-injury-prevention-dr-steve-gangemi.mp3…
Plantar Fasciitis: The Pain You’ve Got That Doesn’t Even Really Exist
…ove using your feet. Just a guess on my part. So go get you a nice pair of orthotics (I’d recommend spending at least $499 on a pair, plus doctor visit), and put them in some super supportive shoes with at least a 24mm stack height – these will also make you look taller, helping you to make more friends. Of course, it’s just the opposite here on SockDoc where plantar fasciitis natural treatments prevail. Orthotics will only, at best, temporarily “…
Running Pronation & Overpronation
…f another problem and is often associated with various injuries. Shoes and orthotics will not truly correct your overpronation. In this video, I explain how overpronation is a symptom indicating that the tibialis posterior muscle is functioning improperly. An improperly functioning tibialis posterior muscle can relate to many lower-leg issues such as shin splints, plantar fasciitis, Morton’s Neuroma, a flat foot or a high foot arch. To help the ti…
Sock Doc: Foot Pain & Foot Injuries – Natural Treatment & Prevention
…l methods like to treat these things locally with corticosteroid shots and orthotics and that sort of stuff. But they’re really not addressing the problem if they do that. It’s about the balance of your foot and correcting these natural pronation, supination imbalances that you may have resulting in any other problem. Which also includes top of foot pain. A lot of people have pain on the top of their foot. They think it’s because their shoes are t…
Shin Splints Treatment, Prevention, and Video – Save the Frozen Veges for Dinner
…ion-control shoes that don’t allow their foot muscles to behave naturally. Orthotics can also be the cause of shin splints – or later prescribed for the problem only to further alter body mechanics and cause a gait dysfunction. The foot, ankle, and lower leg muscles, tendons, and ligaments fatigue and muscle compensation begins when orthotics and non-minimalist shoes are worn. Some muscles work too hard to compensate, while others don’t work enoug…
The Least of Your Concerns: Arch Height, Weight, and Length
…the arch. So they are prescribed support devices such as arch supports and orthotics which unfortunately do nothing to actually strengthen the arch but rather “support” the middle of the arch resulting in further weakening of the arch and other areas of the foot. There are two types of flat feet, rigid flat feet (RFF) and flexible flat feet (FFF). An individual with RFF has no arch at any time – weight or non-weight bearing. RFF is usually caused…
Running Injury Treatment & Prevention: The Soleus & Achilles
…ies due to a poorly functioning soleus. Stretch it? No. How about ice? No. Orthotics or thicker shoes? Of course not. Check out the video, heal up, and run. Video Transcript Cool. Here I am live feed, sweet. All right, tonight I wanted to talk about injury treatment prevention. That’s a big part of my sock-doc site, obviously. One of the big limiting factors of athletes improving is they get injured. You’re training well, you’re living well, every…
This Is Why You’re Still Injured
…range of motion) – not just pain-free. Of course if you’re having to wear orthotics or take NSAIDs because of your injury and that’s how you’re getting by then you haven’t corrected anything; you’re just some moments away from the next injury waiting to pop up. Wrong Footwear, Poor Economy, Your Form Sucks Some people like to say that the reason runners are so easily injured is that because running is such a repetitious activity. If you’re having…
Achilles Tendonitis
…t as much as you can to strengthen your feet, lower legs, and entire body. Orthotics? – not a good idea either. They support the foot and lower leg dysfunction. Excess anaerobic training will soon stress the adrenal glands too much and often result in an injury. Read about exercising aerobically and building a solid aerobic base on the Sock Doc site. And too much emotional stress can result in injury too. Do you work 60+ hrs a week and are under a…
Sock Doc Training Part IV: The Sock Doc Training Formula
…stress, and physical stress (past unresolved injuries, improper footwear, orthotics, and yes, even harmful [static] stretching habits) all impact the nervous system causing imbalances in the sympathetic and parasympathetic system which in turn results in patterns of muscle imbalances. It’s these muscle imbalances that cause injures, either locally or elsewhere in your body – especially if they affect how you move (your gait). So yes, you could be…
Sock Doc Podcast With Endurance Planet: Genetic Tests and The Pros and Cons To Discovering Your DNA
…Injury and biomechanical questions: Help for patellar tendonitis. Ramping up intensity and/or volume too quick is often the fast track to injury, take the time to heal and utilize a practitioner who will provide hands on help. Should someone with a leg length discrepancy use orthotics? Or should you first identify if it’s a true leg length discrepancy or some other underlying issue that can be fixed? True leg length discrepancies are rare. http://…
Ankle Sprains, Pains, Instability and Other Ligament Damage: Check Your Hormones
…result in weakened structural tissues but also poor balance and movement. Orthotics promote problems too. If your body isn’t exactly sure how your foot is moving and exactly sure how it is loading, unloading, and recovering with each and every step, you’re at a high risk for injury. Add in chronic nervous system and hormonal stress most people are dealing with every day and you’re just waiting to injury your knee or roll an ankle. Strong Body, He…
Do Not Stretch! 10 Reasons Not to Stretch
…aster. Whether it’s a new supplement, pair of socks, pair or shoes, custom orthotics, or stretching. They’re the first in line for Kool-Aid. Stretching is a conditioned behavior, not one we are innately born with. I see my kids run, jump, climb, throw things, and carry objects of all sizes. They move well, and efficiently. I’ve never seen them stretch. Their developing nervous systems know better. The day I see my dog holding a static stretch is t…
Sock Doc Questions & Contact
…things to mention: I cannot specifically diagnose you or advise you on any treatment plan. As you will quickly learn from reading just a few articles on this site, it’s more important to diagnose the process, not the ultimate symptom. I never recommend stretching, orthotics, or NSAIDs to any of my patients. Most likely you are doing one, if not all of these therapies either for an injury or what you’ve been taught is “necessary for healing, recov…
Sock Doc Podcast #1 At Trail Runner Nation
…y first ever podcast I recently did over at Trail Runner Nation. I discuss orthotics, stretching, footwear, and other running related topics with Don, Scott, and Faith. It was a lot of fun and those guys have a great site so check them out. (And yeah, I can’t believe how many times I say “ya know” in the podcast. I’m such an amateur.) http://trailrunnernation.com/podpress_trac/web/5062/0/da-soc-doc.mp3 You can also Listen to the podcast in a new w…
Start Here
…Concerns: Height, Weight, and Length…
Sock Doc Podcast With Liberated Body: “Raising the Bar for What ‘Healthy’ Means”
…1bb/FINAL_LBP_EPS32_Steve_Gangemi.mp3?c_id=8167831&expiration=1439621733&hwt=3ef09a301ae99fc10c92a71508bd4f9c…
Sock Doc: Trigger Point Video – Natural Treatment & Prevention
…your Achilles. Or even vice versa if you’re wearing over supportive shoes orthotics too long that could be the result of an Achilles problem. Another common thing people get trigger points in their traps all the time maybe from how you’re sitting at a computer or if you have a poor ergonomic position. But also these muscles and I talked about this a lot with the Sock Doc site and especially in the new trigger point post, these muscles are highly…
10 Reasons Why You’re Still Injured
…“stretching is good for me” Kool-Aid. Spit it out. 2. You continue to wear orthotics. 3. Your lifestyle is just too stressful. 4. You train too hard – too much anaerobic. 5. You’re wearing the wrong type of shoes. 6. You aren’t getting proper sleep. 7. You’re eating too much sugar. 8. You’re eating too many bad fats, creating a lot of inflammation. 9. You’re not getting enough protein to recover properly: Shoot for 1.5-2.0 grams per kg/bodyweight…
Iliotibial Band Frictional Syndrome – Is Your ITB Killin’ You?
…those muscles could have fatigued from wearing the wrong type of shoes or orthotics, or even from an old injury that is still haunting you, but you don’t know it because the pain is gone, but your body has compensated. Second, ITB Syndrome can also occur from an imbalance between the inside and the outside of the leg. The muscles that support the inside of the knee are related to the adrenal glands. These are the sartorius, gracilis, as well as o…
Surgical Intervention: Think Twice Before You Get Knifed Part II: Going Under the Knife
…ain. This is why you may have a “bad” knee, or “weak” arm, or a “need” for orthotics – your mechanoreceptors suck. So Yes, Think Twice Before Surgical Intervention Surgical intervention is sometimes needed. Of course I’m not advising anyone reading this to have, or not have surgery. I just want you to be an informed consumer. (I guess that would make you a consumer of surgery.) There is no going back once the knife hits your skin and usually there…
Your Running Shoes Are Only Part of the Injury-Free Prescription
…that if you get out of your over- supportive, cushioned running shoes and orthotics then magically your injuries disappear. Unfortunately this is not always the case because running in minimalist type shoes and/or barefoot will not necessarily keep you injury-free. Proper footwear (or going barefoot) is only part of the injury-free prescription. Running in minimalist shoes and being barefoot clearly helps the entire body. Improvements in nervous…
Let Your Kid Thrive Outside
…al setting. Even worse, most of these kids are fitted for unnecessary foot orthotics which further dampens their sensory system resulting in diminished motor response. Moving naturally is an innate behavior – we are hard wired for it. If kids have never developed normal, natural, innate movement patterns such as crawling, walking, jumping, climbing, etc, then their brain has yet to develop to its full potential at the current time in their life. H…
Plantar Fasciitis: How Runners Can Learn How To Step Out of the Pain
…square wheel. As with most pain, anti-inflammatories are prescribed as are orthotics, which only support the dysfunction and weaken foot muscles. Here’s why you really get it, and really fix it . Plantar fasciitis occurs most often from the fatigue of the tibialis posterior muscle. This muscle is behind your lower leg bone and supports the main arch of your foot. Problems arise from injury, lower leg dysfunction, and/or adrenal gland (hormonal) st…
First Aid For Injuries Part I – Sports Injury Causes: Understanding WHY You’re Injured
…y think you got injured because you didn’t stretch or you ran without your orthotics or your lucky rabbit’s foot fell out of your nutrition bag, then this is where you stop and read from the beginning as well as some other stuff on the SockDoc site to get a better understanding of my “madness” before you move on. There are two common “go to” therapies that the injured athlete uses – ice and anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs). I rarely use ice…
The Sock Doc First Aid For Injuries: Heal Your Injury Faster Than Ever & Learn Natural Injury Prevention
…re injured – it’s not because you didn’t stretch enough or you forgot your orthotics Learn the risk factors that make up an injury. You’re probably not injured just because of bad luck First Aid For Injuries Part II – Ice, Heat, or RICE? Contrary to what we’re all told, ice isn’t a smart move for injury treatment Learn part of the benefits of ‘RICE’ – active recovery and compression First Aid For Injuries Part III – Inflammation: Embrace It and Co…
Kuru Footwear Gonna Help Your Plantar Fasciitis?
…at’s your main shin bone as people know it. Rub them out, they’ll be sore. Orthotics, braces, and Kuru, will not cure your plantar fasciitis because they don’t do anything to fix the problem. But wearing improper foot wear will create and/or support plantar fasciitis. Hey, just listen to an exact quote from Dr. Roger Sheffield on the Kuru site, “I’ve developed plantar fasciitis and my Kuru’s are by far the most comfortable shoe as I deal with this…
MovNat For Kids! Get Your Kids Active & Healthy – Outside!
…ural setting. Even worse, most of the kids are fitted for unnecessary foot orthotics which further dampens their sensory system resulting in diminished motor response. As Erwan LeCorre notes in the second MovNat Principle, Instinctual – moving naturally is an innate behavior. If kids have never developed normal, natural innate movement patterns such as crawling, walking, jumping, climbing, etc, then their brain has yet to develop to its full poten…
Plantar Fasciitis: Healing Up Your Heel Pain
…heck out my article on…with the updated article on plantar fasciitis. I’ll show you some other more…some other things you can do and when you want to, perhaps, use a cushion in your shoe to dampen the pain. Of course, why you don’t ever, in my opinion, want to use orthotics, arch supports, or any other supportive device in your footwear to support your dysfunction, and therefore, try to alter your pain pattern only to create other pain later on. L…