Before you read any further, I invite you to watch this very thought-provoking 5 minute video by anatomy expert and yoga Instructor Leslie Kaminoff:
Ever since I was a young child, I have
been wearing some sort of arch support in both my shoes. I was so
flat-footed as a little girl that the man at the Stride-Rite shoe store
would put a little lift in my shoe (called a "cookie") to keep my foot
from pronating (ankle turning inward due to no natural arch). But then I
got to be a teen, and being hip became more important than comfort. I
kicked off my supportive shoes, and as I went through my rebellious
hippie phase, I wandered barefoot on the concrete sidewalks of
Manhattan. it's no wonder that at about age 19, I began to experience
chronic pain in my knees, as my pronated feet pulled the rest of the
joints in my leg out of alignment.
Eventually--after hobbling into my
twenties--a chiropractor fitted me for orthotics, which realigned my leg
and took the torque out of my joints. I wore those devices faithfully
and found some relief.
Fast forward several decades, and I found
myself in yoga teacher training at Kripalu Center in Lenox, MA. We were
barefoot for at least six hours daily, either doing postures on the mat
or walking through large spaces where shoes weren't allowed.
At first I felt a recurrence of that old familiar joint pain, as my bare feet collapsed inward. I wondered how I was going to make it through the rest of the training. But about two weeks into the program, I noticed that my arches were getting stronger, as I practiced consciously using those muscles that had atrophied over the years.
In Tadasana (the mountain pose),
and in any standing postures, we engage the arches of the feet. We pull
them upward, as if we were drawing life energy up from the earth and
inviting it to come streaming into our bodies to enliven us. Doing this
over time strengthens the arch, which in my body had become weak due to
reliance on orthotics.
Our feet are amazing structures of
Nature's design. They contain 52 bones, 66 joints, 40 muscles, and
hundreds of sensory receptors, tendons, and ligaments--collectively
forming two of the body's most beautifully efficient mechanisms.
Feet are excellent at collecting
information. All those neurological receptors send valuable information
to the brain to tell your body where it is in space and what the terrain
is like. Actively stimulating these receptors improves balance,
increases circulation, and enhances overall foot health.
My time practicing on my mat--or even
better, outdoors on the grass--gives my feet an opportunity to remember
what they were designed to do by nature--to feel the direct connection
with Mother Earth, and experience all the variances, irregularities and
textures of the natural ground.
It's interesting to note that in this
shoe-oriented culture where we've come to associate the phrase "just do
it" with Nike shoes, barefoot running is now becoming an increasingly
popular fitness craze. Vibram's FiveFingers shoes (which I am not
endorsing but am simply curious about) are a bold alternative to the
highly-cushioned running shoes that have become the convention in the
athletic world.
To be honest, I haven't completely weaned
myself of using arch supports. I do wear them when I walk and run, and
even around the house on my hardwood floors. But I do notice that when
I'm on my mat, my yoga practice has cultivated so much more awareness of
my feet, ankles and knees. I feel great gratitude for all the many
miles they've carried me, and all the hours of energetic dancing they've
endured.
"Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair."
~Kahlil Gibran
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