Moving Forward
John Hudak
The foot is the part of the body that comes in contact with the ground when we run, walk, and jump. Over the years, I have wondered what happens to our bodies when we move on our feet. Understanding which muscles are involved in moving forward yields the answer to why some of us develop soreness or pain after running or walking for extended periods.
“Just run,” a lot of my friends and acquaintances say. This can work well for young people, because our joints, muscles and tendons are more resilient when we are young. Young bodies can better withstand the repetitive motions we go through when propelling ourselves forward because they are better able to adapt to stress and are less vulnerable to being slightly out of balance, or, in bike lingo, “out of true.”
As our culture becomes more sedentary, certain muscles are under-used, and some are over-used. If you don't move your joints often enough, they begin to move less smoothly, and sometimes cause pain or soreness. Problems occur when we get out of alignment, and I find that this often starts with foot alignment, arch and toe strength.
When we are older, our muscles tend to get set in certain fixed ways, due to our habits of holding ourselves. If we sit or stand a certain way at work, or in relaxation, or perform any repetitive motion, and then try to change the way we hold ourselves, things feel “wrong,” because they are different… not so “normal” to us. But it is never too late to improve the functioning of older bodies (or younger ones, for that matter). I like to see how a body is unbalanced (or misaligned) and offer suggestions for change that can lead to easier, more efficient forward motion, because that is what running and walking is: moving forward.