Now that your feet have survived the partying, dining and dancing of New Years Eve, it is now time to be nice to them again. We all make New Year’s resolutions such as lose weight, exercise more, eat healthy, make more money, wear more sensible shoes, OUCH!,  but how many people make resolutions to decide to take better care of their feet?

“The feet are the most neglected part of the body, everyone thinks they have perfect feet until they start to hurt, then they are not so perfect”.  The triggers to foot pain are many. Shoes, exercise, and structural problems just to name a few.  

When your feet hurt do not ignore them. Wishing and hoping is not the best form of treatment!

If you injure your foot exercising, wearing the wrong shoes or just walking too much, be aggressive in treating the problem. Home care would consist of ice, over the counter anti-inflammatory medications; Advil or Aspirin, rest, elevation, wrapping if necessary, inspect your shoes to make sure they fit properly and there is adequate room for your toes to wiggle around in the toe box of the shoe.  Make sure you have proper arch support in your shoes. Instant Arches®, an over the counter arch support, is an easy way to provide arch support for all types of shoes in your wardrobe. One size fits, just peel and stick in all shoe styles.   

Inspect your feet regularly; it can make a difference in preventing infections in your feet.  

Nail fungus can start off in a tiny little area of the nail and can expand to the entire nail if not detected early. Check for cracks in the skin between your toes and heels after showering.  Ingrown toe nails can develop without any warning due to cutting your nails incorrectly or from tight shoes.  Cut your nails straight across and round the edge with a nail file also check to make sure you have enough wiggle room in your shoes. Cracks in your heel are known as fissures and if not properly cared for can cause pain standing and walking in shoes or sandals. Using moisturizing cream with urea will help eliminate those types of foot problems.

Select the right shoe and arch support for your feet

Whatever sports activity you participate in your feet can take a beating; use sports specific shoes and the proper arch support. Running shoes are for running, aerobic shoes are for aerobics, tennis shoes are for playing tennis and golf shoes are for playing golf.  Wearing shoes that are not designed specifically for the sport you are performing can lead to potential foot problems such as plantar fasciitis, arch spasms, heel spurs and tendinitis. Most athletic shoes do not have adequate arch support. Custom made orthotics made can be costly, too hard and too bulky for the shoes. Alternatively, over the counter arch supports that can be found on line or at sporting good stores like Instant Arches® will also provide the necessary support your foot needs. It fits in all sports shoes, golf shoes as well as soccer, baseball, softball and football cleats.

Home remedies for your feet, can be dangerous if you do not know what is in them

Be careful when using over the counter home remedies because they might increase the problem.   Always, check the back of the package and read the ingredients and warnings.

By subscribing to these foot care resolutions / tips, you too “can be active wearing the right arch supports and play happily ever after in 2012”!

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You know the stilettos.  Ouch!

‘Tis  the season to go into your shoe closet and pick out the hottest pair of party shoes your feet will tolerate  and the question you probably ask yourself is,  “How long can I wear them before I have to kick them off and switch to flats or go barefoot?”  You know the ones, platform pumps, boots and sandals, stilettos and peep hole wedge sandals from designers such as Christian Louboutin, Jimmy Choo, Manolo Blahnik, Miu Miu, and Yves Saint Laurent.  Depending on how much bubbly you have consumed during the evening, your pain tolerance and luck who knows how long they could last.

As we all know, there is a price to pay.

So, here are some toe and foot tips to prepare your feet for the holiday season and lower the price.

Never try and stuff your feet in a pair of shoes that does not fit just because they go with your outfit. That is a recipe for foot disaster.  Bring a pair of ballet type flats with you just in case your feet start talking. Check the lining of your shoes to make sure there is no source of irritation to the top of the toes, sides, and back of the foot.

Fashionistas Beware

High fashion shoes can cause low back pain, blisters on the tops of toes, ingrown toe nails, arch cramps, tendon problems and ball of the foot pain.  Blisters are formed because of friction or constant rubbing of your toes that occur in the toe box. When you wear shoes that are a bit too small, they can cause toe jamming where the tips of your toes will abut up against the end and top of the toe box and buckle the toes. This can lead to blister formation on the top and tip of the toes, pain, swelling and redness on the pads of your toes.  Pumps with a narrow or shallow toe box can also irritate toenails that are too thick causing toe pain or increased pressure along the sides of the great toe nails eventually causing an ingrown toe nail to develop.

If the slope of the pump or wedge is to steep it will throw your body forward. This can create balance and low back problems when walking or standing.  Problems can also develop in the arch, on the ball of the foot or on top of the foot where the toes bend. Shoes that narrow towards the toes can place pressure on an already existing bunion deformity.  Wearing pumps over a prolonged period of time can cause the Achilles tendon to shorten. Women who experience this are not as comfortable wearing flats as they are wearing pumps.

Foot and Shoe Solutions

Band-Aids are one way to protect your toes in pumps from blisters or other pressure points. They are great in emergency situations to reduce skin irritation and friction. There are also many over the counter products you can purchase on line or at a pharmacy to protect your feet. Metatarsal pads can be placed on the ball of the foot to relieve pressure, silicone toe sleeves can wrap around toes and protect them or soft foam insoles can be placed in your shoes to cushion the entire foot.  Instant Arches® is another product available on line to make pumps more comfortable.  They will eliminate arch cramping, foot slippage and ball of the foot pain in pumps, wedges and boots.

In order to enjoy the holidays, wear shoes that fit, protect your feet against blistering, cramping and toenail problems. Then dance happily ever after!

Factors contributing to these types of injuries are poor body biomechanics which can create muscle imbalances from the ground up. Pitchers who do not have proper pitching mechanics can develop long term arm and shoulder problems the longer they pitch. The reason is that continually repeating poor mechanics will cause stress and weakness. If it is not fixed early; little league, high school or college chronic injuries begin to surface. Players with abnormal foot biomechanics are vulnerable to foot, lower leg muscle imbalances and knee problems. That is why it is vitally important to be balanced starting with your feet. Landing improperly, not getting your feet set and not being able to transfer weight evenly over a prolonged period of time are key factors that can eventually translate into muscle brake down. A strong foundation is the building blocks to success; a balanced lower half will improve a player’s ability to become a better hitter, position player or pitcher.
Strains and Sprains
A strain indicates a tear in the muscle and a pulled muscle is the result of a traumatic event to the tendon portion of the muscle as it attaches to the bone. This type of problem is commonly seen in the hamstring muscle group in the back of the upper leg. Quick bursts of speed from a stationary position such as coming out of the batter’s box when your muscles are not properly warmed up could cause this type of leg problem.
Sprains, refers to a tear in a ligament and can range from tearing a few fibers, a slight tear, to a complete tear of all of the ligament fibers. Ligaments are non elastic tissues which connect bones to bones and stabilize joints. The ankle is the most commonly sprained joint in the foot. This can occur when hitting a base funny making your turn, pivoting to make a play or sliding incorrectly into a base.

When can I play?
It depends on the type and severity of the injury. Injuries can take as little as a few days or weeks to heal depending on how sever they are. If the injury is soft tissue in nature such as an ankle sprain, tendinitis or a strained muscle treat them aggressively and do not wish or wait for them to get better on their own. Always consult with your sports medicine physician if the problem does not resolve in a few days or continues to get worse over time. If the injury is in the lower extremity, a rule of thumb is: play when you can bare normal weight and there is no pain associated with movement.
In my practice I prefer using physical therapy modalities; electrical stimulation, supportive taping techniques using a special tape called Kinesio Tape, hot and cold therapy or injection therapy. Be careful about getting cortisone injections because they can also cause tissue breakdown if abused. A general consensus is 3-4 injections per year spread out over 12 months. Alternatively using topical or oral homeopathic remedies containing Arnica will help soft tissue injuries heal more quickly. I routinely recommend Traumeel® to my patients for those types of injuries. Broken bones take much longer to heal, at the earliest it will take about 6 – 8 weeks depending on the type of fracture.

Balancing the foot will create lower half stability. Custom made orthotics made by sports medicine medical professionals or sports specific over the counter arch supports are the best way to perform that task. Custom made orthotics will provide the most support but can be expensive. Custom orthotics are usually made by taking a neutral position cast of one’s foot and then shipping them to a laboratory that specializes in making orthotics. Over the counter arch supports such as Instant Arches® Baseball, Softball or other prefabricated products are available on line or at local sports and shoe stores.

Staying in balance and understanding how injuries occur will prevent long term chronic problems. If you do not see improvement in a few days, never wish or hope for an injury to get better, it is not the treatment of choice!

In order to make those uncomfortable shoes more comfortable, you have to become your own shoe doctor! Shoes are designed to be hot and sexy; they are not always made to be comfortable. So the question is… Is it a shoe problem or a foot problem that makes shoes uncomfortable?

The answer is both!

Structural reasons:
The reasons why the foot can be the problem are because it may be too wide for a normal last shoe because of lumps and bumps that can develop on sides and top of the foot. They are bone deformities called bunions, hammer toes and bone spurs. The ones associated with the great toe are known as a bunion (Hallux Abducto Valgus) foot deformity, the fifth toe deformity is called a tailor’s bunion and on the top of the toes, hammertoes can develop. Bone spurs can form on the top of the foot. These boney problems can cause skin irritations, superficial skin ulcers, corn formations and calluses on the ball of foot. Ouch!

The foot can also be too narrow and create problems when wearing shoes. Women who have a narrow heel have a terrible time finding shoes that fit properly. When you walk the foot will slip or slide in the shoe and blisters can develop on the back of the heel or on the tops of the toes. A bone spur can form on the back of the heel because of this and this is called a “pump bump”. This occurs because of friction or repetitive rubbing of the foot against the lining of the shoe either in the heel counter or toe box.

Hormonal reasons:
Women’s feet can also change during pregnancy because of the hormone called relaxin which is released in your body during pregnancy. Relaxin targets weight baring ligaments in the pelvis during child birth. It also affects the ligaments in the arch of the foot which can cause them to stretch and the foot may get longer and wider. Therefore, over the course of a pregnancy feet can change a shoe size becoming larger. Unfortunately once they change size, it’s permanent and does not return back to the original shoe size. Shoe companies must love this naturally occurring phenomenon.

Could it be the shoes?
Yes, shoe designs can be a factor; some of the hottest shoes on the market are not always the most comfortable shoes to wear. Ladies, you know the ones! There are certain parts of every shoe that can commonly cause problems. The toe box may be too shallow or narrow causing skin irritations or a prominent seam may be present in the lining of the toe box and rubs the sides or top of the toes. Shoe designs can also be hazardous to your foot’s well being. If the slope of the shoe is too acute it could place pressure on the ball of the foot or it could affect the arch resulting in muscle spasms and cramping.

Become your own shoe doctor:
To become your own shoe doctor, you do not have to go to podiatry school! All you need to do is follow these recommendations and you “will walk happily ever after “. When purchasing a new pair of shoes check to see if there is enough wiggle room in the front of the shoe (toe box) so your toes are not cramped or feeling unnecessary pressure. If you see redness on the top or sides of your toes after trying on a new pair of shoes, that is an indication that they are to tight and could lead to developing corns, blisters and subsequent pain when wearing them for long periods of time. If you only plan to wear them into restaurant and kick them off once you get there, you are probably safe. Always make sure that you have at least a thumbs width between your longest toe and the end of the shoe.

Shoes that are slightly too big because your foot is narrow can cause the heel to pop out of the back, foot slippage or arch cramping when walking. Placing over counter arch products in your shoe such as Instant Arches ® can prevent the foot from slipping forward, pain in the ball of the foot and the arch from cramping. Another tip is to place an extra insole in the shoe which would fill in the extra space. Look for shoes that have soft fabrics so it can accommodate the annoying lumps and bumps often found on your feet. Shoe repair shops can also be helpful because they have the ability to stretch shoes and soften the leather if they are to narrow or increase the room in the toe box creating more wiggle room.

Doctoring your feet:
There many types of gel pads or toe caps that you can find over the counter to place around your toes to prevent corn and blister formation on the sides and tops of your toes. Moleskin, Band-Aids and metatarsal arch pads are also helpful to prevent skin irritations and reduce callus formation.

Messaging your feet with moisturizing cream will soften and hydrate rough, dry and fissured skin as well as relaxing the foot after a long day. This should be done before you fall asleep so it will have the opportunity to get absorbed. Look for moisturizing creams infused with ingredients such as Urea, Aloe, Vitamin E, Chamomile and Pure Essential Oils.

Information sources:
Going on the web is another source to find ways to make your shoes more comfortable, web sites such as ShoesTV specialize in helpful information about shoes.

Regardless of how uncomfortable your shoes were or how uncomfortable your feet were in shoes,
with these tips, “you can now walk happily ever after!”

The questions are, how do closed shoes affect your feet and what can be done to make fall shoe wear more comfortable.

Feet Beware

Closed shoes can aggravate the lumps and bumps on your feet such as hammer toes and bunions. Hammer toes increase the chances of developing corns and calluses on the tops or bottoms of your feet. Hammer toes occur when your toe starts to buckle causing a prominence to develop. It is a bone problem causing a skin problem. Corns will form on prominent boney areas on the tops of the toes (the head of the proximal phalanx) when it repeatedly rubs against the inner lining of the shoes toe box. When walking in closed shoes the foot has a tendency to slide forward causing friction to occur on the tops of the toes and burning on the balls of the foot. The skin becomes thickened, red and painful making walking difficult.  Ultimately you end up wearing the shoes into a restaurant and then kicking them off once you are seated.

Bunions are boney prominences that can form on the top and side of the great toe bone (first metatarsal bone) and can cause shoe issues because they will cause the foot to widen making it a nightmare to find the right closed shoe to wear. Bunions develop because of abnormal pronation, which is the collapsing of the arch over a prolonged period of time. The muscles in the arch will eventually weaken and fatigue allowing the great toe to drift towards the second toe forming the bump on the great toe.  No one wakes up in the morning and discovers that they have just developed a bunion! 

 Callus formation on the ball of the foot is another common problem caused by wearing closed shoes. Weather you are wearing flats or high heel shoes the skin on the bottom of your foot can get thicker becoming painful when walking.  The pitch of the shoe forces the ball of the foot to be prominent to the ground. High heels pitch the foot forward and place the ball of the foot on the ground. This causes friction and rubbing against the floor of the shoe and can cause problems when walking.

Arch cramps or muscle spasms are another common problem seen when wearing closed shoes such as high heels or flats.  Women who have flat feet are more prone to sore and tired feet.  As the arch collapses because of abnormal pronation during walking the muscles in the arch of the foot will fatigue over time and get tired. When standing and walking all day in pointy-toed pumps or boots, the muscles in the feet will eventually cramp causing pain and spasms. Finally, some feet have a tendency to slide forward when wearing shoes because the shoe may be too wide or the heel bone is narrow popping the heel out of the shoe. This event causes the toes to grab the ground causing the arch to eventually cramp too. Ouch! Kicking your shoes off and walking barefoot or massaging the arch can help relive the cramping or muscle spasm.

SHOE SOLUTIONS

In order to walk “happily ever after “ this fall make sure you have enough room in your shoes to allow your toes to freely wiggle and not get squashed.  The inner lining of the toe box of the shoe should not be rubbing on the tops and sides of your toes.  Often times going to your local shoe repair shop can help solve a shoe problem. They have ways of stretching the shoe slightly to create space for your lumps and bumps.  If you have hammer toes that constantly get irritated when wearing shoes, try using over the counter corn products such as toe sleeves that have a gel coating which can slip over the individual painful hammer toes.  To prevent arch cramping, heel slippage and callous formation when walking in pumps and boots, place a soft arch support in the arch of the shoe which will prevent the arch from collapsing. Stopping the collapsing of the arch will help eliminate abnormal pronation, heel slippage, and friction the foot goes through with each step.  Instant Arches® is just one of the over the counter arch products on the market that will make shoes more comfortable, stop the foot from sliding forward and reduce arch problems.  Applying a thin soft insole in the shoes will help eliminate friction and burning in the ball of the foot.

 So as summer winds down and the weather begins to change” be kind to your feet and walk happily ever after” in fall shoe wear!

 www.instantarches.com

DEFENSE

Regardless of what position you play on defense when the balls of your feet are on the ground, you will be in the proper athletic position ready to perform and moving towards the ball.  If you are standing flat footed and a ball is hit towards you, your reaction time towards the ball is slower. This translates into not setting your feet properly, being unbalanced when you catch the ball and hurrying your throw. The end result will be a throwing error or the runner will be safe beating the throw by a step. Therefore, it is imperative and always a formula for success to set your feet when throwing by being balanced. This creates stability in your lower half and you can shift your weight evenly when fielding because the balls of your feet are on the ground. Feeling the ground allows more fluid instinctive movements.

HITTING

As a hitter, the lack of proper foot biomechanics and structural misalignments in the hips, legs and feet are contributing factors to lower half balance problems in players. This could be a reason why the player is not able to get the balls of his feet on the ground in the batter’s box or getting enough torque in their hips when hitting. Torque generates power and being properly aligned and balanced allows the hips to rotate more freely.    

PITCHING

Being balanced allows the lower half of your body to stabilize. As a pitcher, having the balls of your feet on the ground allows for better balance whether you are pitching from a stretch or in the windup. It is very important to be able to transfer your weight and stay balanced at the same time. The foot is both a mobile adapter and a ridged lever so both motions, coming set and delivering needs to be fluid and balanced. When the ball of the foot is on the ground and the medial longitudinal arch of the foot is supported by an arch support in their baseball shoes, the mid tarsal and subtalar joints will be stable and not collapse. This process will allow for the proper lower half pitching mechanics to occur.  A pitcher needs to be well balanced when they bring their knee up to start their pitching motion. Failing to be stable will cause them to wobble or drift to one side or the other when they are throwing down hill off the mound and not finish with a stiff front leg.  Therefore they will not be throwing on a downhill plane and it throws their timing and mechanics off causing the pitch to sail. This can result in arm, elbow or shoulder injuries.

COMMON PROBLEMS

 Muscle imbalances in the player’s lower half affecting the feet, legs, thighs can eventually result in overuse injuries, muscle fatigue and potential soft tissue problems. Abnormal foot pronation is the main cause for muscle imbalances in the lower extremity. Many lower extremity problems are soft tissue in nature and are due to repetitive overuse activities such as running too many sprints without allowing for proper recovery time and not having an arch support in your baseball or training shoes. Muscle strains, pulls, plantar fasciitis or a tendinitis are the usual suspects affected. They are the byproduct of an accumulation of micro tears or trauma in the muscle belly that can result in chronic problems if not recognized early and treated properly.

Two of the more common problems that can alter a player’s ability to play every day are Plantar Fasciitis and Achilles Tendinitis. Plantar Fasciitis can be a chronic problem if not dealt with immediately. Pain is felt in the heel and throughout the entire arch area of the foot. It mainly occurs because of the medial longitudinal arch of the foot repeatedly collapses over a long period of time (abnormal pronation) when running and walking. It is more painful in the morning when your foot first hits the floor and as the plantar fascia tissue stretches during the day the pain easies. Achilles tendinitis is another problem that can affect the player. It is an inflammation of the lower 1/3^rd of the Achilles tendon and tendon sheath (tenosynovities) as it travels down the back of the lower 1/3^rd of the leg and attaches the calf muscle to the back of the heel bone.

SOLUTIONS

The only way to control abnormal pronation forces in the foot which are the root of many muscle imbalance problems in the lower extremity is to support the arch of the foot with a custom made orthotic or an over the counter arch support. These products will give the foot the ability to become more stable and place the ball of the foot on the ground for better balance.

Getting the balls of your feet on the ground, setting you feet and being totally balanced  is the ticket to making more accurate throws as a position player, feeling more balanced when pitching and being able to transfer your weight more evenly and getting your hips involved when preparing to hit. The best way to achieve this is to use an arch support in your baseball shoes. There are many types of arch supports on the market that will help support your foot. Custom made orthotics made by podiatrists or other health care professionals can be very helpful in supporting the foot and balancing the lower half.  Instant Arches® Baseball is an over the counter arch support product that is specifically designed for baseball players and provides an easy solution to balancing your foot in all facets of the game.  According to Ethan Katz, varsity pitching coach and former professional pitcher, he observed.  “While working for a collegiate league with some of the top college players in the country this summer, I had a chance to introduce some of the pitchers to the arches. They immediately found a difference with their balance on the mound. One of the pitchers had a problem with his foot moving back and forth while trying to hit his balance point. When we put the arches in his shoes his foot became stable and he felt a lot more comfortable on the mound, which lead to more consistent and repeatable mechanics.”

No matter what facet of the game you are involved in, foot stability is vitally important and the key for success.

Is it better to buy shoes that are too big or too small? How many times do you ask yourself that question? Or think to yourself “now that I bought these hot shoes, how can I make them fit and feel better?”  These are questions that cross the minds of many women when purchasing the latest and hottest shoe styles.

In order to find your true shoe size when you are buying shoes use the Brannock  shoe measuring device at the shoe store. That will give you both the width and length of your foot.  There are many people who find, after measuring their feet that they have one foot longer or wider than the other.  This is a normal variant and there is nothing to worry about.  One of the reasons why it happens can be genetic and you can blame it on mom or dad.  The formation of bunions and tailor bunions are boney abnormalities that have a genetic predisposition and will change the anatomical boney alignment of the foot making it wider.  Another reason could be because of a splay foot where the ligaments weaken and the foot can elongate and widen.  Women during pregnancy may experience this type of phenomena because of the hormone Relaxin that is released to allow the ligaments in the pelvis to stretch during the time of delivery.  The ligaments in the foot can also become affected and the foot can get wider and longer. However, once the foot gets longer or wider it does not go back to its original size.

The rule of thumb to live by when buying a pair of shoes is that there should be a thumb’s width between the tip of the longest toe in your foot and the end of the shoe. The first, second or third toes are often the landmarks because they are usually the longest toes in your foot.

Always buy a pair of shoes that fit the bigger foot.  The reason for this is that you can place an over the counter insole in the larger one to either take up some of the room or prevent foot slippage.  Never force your foot into a shoe that is too small or too tight. Wearing ill-fitting shoes can cause foot, ankle, knee and low back problems. Shoes that do not fit properly can throw your balance off and make you walk funny.  If the shoe is too narrow you can develop ingrown toe nails, corns on the top and side of your toes and irritate the skin resulting in blister formation.

The solution to these problems is to take your time when selecting a new pair of shoes.  Try not to buy shoes on emotion only.  Hint; buy shoes during the time of the day that you would be probably wearing them because feet can often swell during the day.  If your feet are swimming around inside the shoe and slipping forward, place an insole or an arch support in the shoe to take up some of the extra room as well as prevent the slipping. If the arch in your foot is cramping when wearing shoes that are a little too big and going into spasm because the toes are curling up inside the shoes, there is an over the counter shoe product available to prevent that problem.  The product is called Instant Arches®.  This oval shaped arch support product, one size fits all, stop the foot from moving forward in the shoe and prevent skin irritation. They will also support the arch and eliminate arch cramps.

No matter what type of shoe you buy, find your true shoe size in order to walk happily ever after!

http://shoes.tv/video/how-to-find-your-true-shoe-size.

There are 26 bones in each foot, therefore close to half the bones in our body are found in the feet. So when the foot hits the ground everything changes from the ground up. Whatever skill set you are trying to improve, establishing a controlled weight transfer through your feet will help you achieve your goal. When your feet abnormally pronate, it will cause your arch to collapse towards the ground and flatten out. Feet become unstable during this process and therefore your lower half will become less stable and imbalanced. This can result in losing power and efficiency in the lower half of your body whether you are hitting, fielding, running or pitching. As a hitter, the more stable your feet are in the batter’s box, the better balanced you become. When you’re fielding a ground ball you need to transfer your weight, plant your feet and throw. As a pitcher, balance is extremely important for accuracy and velocity. Speed is also a very important part of the game and if your feet are not properly supported it could be the difference between being safe or out when stealing, running to 1st base, tracking down a grounder or catching a fly ball in the outfield.

Whether you are hitting for average or power, a balanced hitter should be on the balls of their feet. Their knees should be bent and their feet should be slightly wider than their shoulders. As the pitcher releases the ball, the hitter is simultaneously loading and striding during the loading phase of their hitting cycle in preparation to hit the ball and getting their foot on the ground for bat impact. It is extremely important that your feet are stable and balanced to be able to transfer your body weight and energy through the lower half of the body. Without being able to control your body motion you will find yourself imbalanced, leaning or falling forward or backward. By stabilizing the foot, it becomes maintained in its neutral position allowing for greater foot and leg stability which helps create a stiff front leg and allows your hips to rotate better when hitting. This could be one of the differences between driving the ball hard and softly grounding or flying out.

Fielding is a multi directional activity requiring your feet to quickly move forward, backward or side to side depending where the ball is hit. Standing flat footed instead of on the balls of your feet will slow down your reaction time to the ball. When your feet are supported properly, the balls of your feet will be on the ground and your weight will be evenly displaced. Being more balanced will help you get an edge. It will improve your ability have a stable lower half and better foot mechanics when fielding and throwing.

Foot balance is equally important when pitching; a foot that is searching for stability on the mound can throw off a pitcher’s mechanics. In order to throw hard, whether the pitcher is a right or left hander, they must have all of their weight on the ball of the right or left foot, which will result in better positive outcomes.

The first step is the most important step you take either as a hitter coming out of the box or a fielder attempting to track a ball hit to your position. Unstable foot biomechanics will slow you down because the foot is not properly balanced. If you stabilize the foot with an arch support it will improve the player’s ability to be more successful.

So, improve your success and outcomes by being better balanced in all phases of the game.

Dr. Steven L. Rosenberg is the official Arch Specialist of Baseball Factory & Softball Factory. Dr. Rosenberg is a podiatrist in private practice spanning over 27 years, specializing in sports medicine, pain management and all other aspects of podiatry. His practice is located in Santa Monica, California. He has lectured worldwide and is a regularly featured blogger on the Huffington Post AOL. He has authored numerous articles on foot injuries, injury prevention, women’s shoe issues, foot biomechanics, and the treatment of foot problems through utilization of eastern and western medicine. Dr. Rosenberg is the CEO and President of Foot Products Enterprises Inc., which manufactures the unique arch product, Instant Arches® for baseball and softball. These Arches are also available for running shoes, all athletic shoes, sandals, flip flops casual and dress shoes. Dr. Rosenberg’s Instant Arches®, sold worldwide, are worn by men and women of all ages from preteens to adults. For more information on Instant Arches visit http://www.instantarches.com/ia-baseball.shtml.

Too get your feet on and off the ground when running for a fly ball, fielding a grounder, picking off a runner at first, hitting or running to any base takes a matter of seconds.  The quicker your feet move the greater chance you have for achieving success.  Agility, movement, speed is all about your feet being biomechanically balanced. While quick and stable feet create positive outcomes, a foot that is unstable wobbles from side to side.

A major reason why player’s feet are not stable is because they are not properly balanced. This is because of abnormal pronation and can be defined as instability of the joints in the middle of the foot (the mid-tarsal and subtaylor joints).  Although pronation is normal and every foot pronates, excess or abnormal pronation is not. Abnormal pronation causes a player’s medial longitudinal arch or inner arch to stay collapsed throughout their entire movement cycle whether they are standing in the batter’s box or standing on the mound getting ready to pitch. It also affects the foot when running to field a ball or stealing a base. The plantar muscles in the foot fatigue because of continual repetitive activity of the arch collapsing during movement and become vulnerable to injury

Players can control abnormal foot pronation and improve their foot biomechanics by placing an arch support or a custom made orthotic in their baseball shoes.  Orthotic foot supports should be placed in the shoes to provide the proper balance the foot needs to achieve better biomechanical balance and stability. Baseball shoes are designed to protect the foot and give the player better shock absorption, traction and stability when pitching, running / stealing, fielding or hitting. The shoe consists of many different parts with specific functions. They are not designed to biomechanically support the foot or prevent abnormal foot pronation.

Custom made orthotics made by a podiatrist or over the counter arch supports are the best ways to control abnormal foot pronation and improve foot biomechanics. Depending on how rigid the material the orthotic device is made of, it will determine how much support the foot will receive. The more rigid the materials used to make the orthotic device the more stable the foot will be in the baseball shoe.

Custom made orthotics are usually fabricated from a molded plaster cast of the foot that a podiatrist takes in his office and then sends to a specialized orthotic laboratory to design the product.  They are made out of hard plastic or graphite materials.  Orthotics stabilizes and aligns the joints in the foot below the ankle and middle of the foot. They create better muscle balance in the lower leg and foot and allow the ball of the foot to be firmly placed on the ground. These types of devices can reduce the risk of injuries to the foot.

 Over the counter arch supports are usually made out of high density foam materials and are not as rigid as custom orthotics.  Instant Arches® for baseball is an over the counter foam arch support that is specifically designed for baseball shoes.  It supports the joints in the middle of the foot and below the ankle.  It allows the ball of the foot to be placed firmly on the ground for stability.

The time it takes, for a player to get their feet on and off the ground can be the difference between a win and a loss.  It’s a matter of seconds.

Its summer time ladies, so take out your summer sandals / flip flops and let your toes enjoy the freedom they have been waiting for all winter. For nine long dreary months your feet were held hostage in closed shoes or boots in order to survive the cold and wet weather. This probably caused the formation of painful corns, blisters, red irritated skin lesions on your feet and arch cramps. The reason those foot problems occurred is because of abnormal pronation and friction the foot experiences when sliding or moving around in a closed shoe.  

 Many people have either hammer toes, bunions or both which are genetically predisposed. So yes, you can blame these annoying, often chronic foot problems on mom or dad.  

Corns do not grow; they form because of a very common bone problem called a hammer toe. They develop over a period of time due to constant rubbing of the skin over a prominent boney surface on the toe in a closed shoe. This results from the toe box of the shoe being too shallow and there not being adequate room for the toes to wiggle around comfortably.

Hammer toes develop because of abnormal foot pronation. As the arch of the foot begins to collapse during normal walking, the tendons in the top and bottom of the foot become unstable and imbalanced resulting in the toes attempting to grab the ground during walking. The toes begin to curl downward buckling at the middle toe joint causing a bone to pop up, hence the name hammer toe. Blisters, red irritated skin lesions or a hard thick painful corn can form on the top surface of the toe because of friction and can make shoe choices a nightmare.

Bunions can also be a challenge when wearing closed shoes. They too are caused by abnormal pronation. The muscles in the bottom of the foot become weakened due to the arch collapsing when standing, walking or running. This causes a muscle imbalance in the foot. The muscles attached to the big toe fatigue allowing the toe to drift and rotate laterally forming a bunion or boney prominence at the head of the first metatarsal bone. They can get red, swollen and painful limiting shoe wear.

Arch cramps are another byproduct of abnormal foot pronation. The muscles in the arch of the foot suffer from overuse, fatigue, and eventually go into spasm. This painful cramp can occur when the foot is at rest while in bed or when you’re performing normal daily activities.      

The solution to eliminating shoe irritation and friction caused by wearing closed shoes is to break out your flat, casual and dress sandals or flip flops.  

However, there are few things women must remember about wearing sandals and flip flops. One must be careful about the straps in some sandal styles and make sure they do not irritate the lumps and bumps on the toes. Also, many sandals and flip flops are not designed to support the arch or ball of the foot properly.  So adding an arch or metatarsal support to your sandals is also a good idea. They will help reduce abnormal foot pronation as well as prevent foot slippage, arch cramping, ball of the foot pain and take pressure off the great toe joint or bunion.   

There are now products available either through the internet or at shoe stores and drug stores. These products can be placed in your sandals and make them more supportive and comfortable. The products are usually made out of soft gels or foam materials.  Instant Arches® for sandals and metatarsal pads are just a few of the products that can help make keep your feet happy.

So if you’re kind too your feet this summer, they will forgive for the torture they endured all winter.