Keep your feet healthy and run your way to good health!

Don’t let feet problems ruin your smile!

Feet are extremely important for feeling well and maintain healthy active lifestyle. Our ancestors used to spend their lives on their feet, for hunting wild animals for food and picking fruits. Modern society is more of the ‘office rats’ type – spending most of their day sitting at the office or in the car commuting between work and home. We are more likely to neglect our feet and suffer the consequences. Our distant ancestors spend most of their time barefoot, but we spend the majority of the day wearing shoes. Shoes protect our feet from getting cut by sharp objects, and from outer elements when it is too hot, rainy or snowy. However, wearing shoes has it downsides, too. It weakens your feet muscles and you lose the direct contact with the nature. We even wear slippers at home! With that much time in shoes, it is extremely important to choose our footwear carefully and with attention to health of our feet. The good news is that it isn’t so difficult to keep your feet in tip-top shape and in perfect health! But first let me tell you why you need to be ACTIVE:

Top Benefits of Running

1. Running improves your mental health – have you heard of the runner’s high?
2. Helps keep blood pressure in normal range. And most importantly – prevents high blood pressure by keeping the arteries fit!
3. Improves your immunity! Running like any other sports helps in building better immune system. It builds tolerance to germs and you get that awful fly less often, if at all.
4. Helps you lose weight. Running efficiently burns calories which results in slimmer waist and sexier butt.
5. Relieves stress – when you focus solely on running, you actually stop thinking about anything else. Also it boosts the serotonin levels which makes you much more relaxed and positive person.

1. Maintain good hygiene!

The first step towards our goal in having perfect hygiene. When you take a bath, don’t neglect your feet. Give them a though clean up with warm water and soap. Scrub the dead skin of the footbed if necessary. At the end, dry them well. Don’t put on your socks, when your feet are still wet. Fungus love darkness and moisture. Drying will make developing fungal infections more difficult.

2. Monitor the health of your feet.

Perform visual inspection at least once a week, or even better after every bath. The signs to look for are scaling of soles or peeling skin between toes. Then inspect your nails for discoloration which is indicator for nail fungus development. If you spot some of these signs, consult your doctor immediately and follow the prescribed treatment. The earlier you spot a problem, the easier it will be to treat it.

3. Cut your nails regularly and properly.

Cut them straight across. Don’t get too close to the skin. Don’t cut them too much around the corners too as this may cause ingrown nails, which is quite painful.

4. Don’t apply nail polish to infected nails.

If you have a thick, cracked or discolored nail, you may as well have a nail fungus. Don’t make the problem worse by hiding the condition with nail polish.

5. Avoid going barefoot at public.

Make sure you wear shoes at all public areas. Public pools and finesses are two areas where you should avoid going barefoot. This is a must, if you notice lack of hygiene at these places.

6. Never share shoes!

Let me repeat – NEVER SHARE SHOES OR SOCKS with another person, even if family and especially if footwear is rented. Make it a must to always bring your own shoes. If that is inevitable, at least use your socks and remove the socks immediately after that. Don’t wear the same pair of socks with your own shoes, as this may help spread the fungus infection to your shoes, too.

7. Keep your feet dry

Always go for breathable leather shoes. If your feet are excessively sweaty, switch leather for mesh shoes as they have improved breathability.

8. Shoes should fit properly

Tight or uncomfortable shoes can cause long-term damage to feet. Go shopping after work, as feet tend to swell at the end of the day. To compensate swelling you can use thicker socks when trying on the new shoes. Always go for broad shoe with plenty of space in the toe areas. Pointy shoes cramp you toes together and can be the source of all kind of feet problems. Use our detailed guide to find the top rated shoes for being on your feet all day. Having comfortable shoes is the best way to keep feet healthy.

Choosing the right footwear means the difference between healthy feet and painful feet. Improper shoes can cause all sorts of problems like bunions, hammertoes, heel pain, ingrown toenail and calluses.

1. Chose shoes for your feet type

Addressing your specific foot type is the first step to finding comfortable shoes. There are three types of feet according to the arch: flat, normal and high arch.

If you have flat feet, then you should look for motion-control shoes that control the motion of the heel and avoid highly cushioned shoes.

Normal arch feet feel the best in cushioned and moderate control shoes.

High arch feet need flexible cushioned shoes. Avoid motion-control shoes.

2. Always try before you buy

Don’t simply rely on your usual shoe size. Always try BOTH shoes in store, before you decide to buy them. Most of the people have one foot which is slightly bigger than the other. Sometimes left and right shoes differ. Save the footache, try your shoes.

3. Go for comfort rather than flashy new style

A plethora of foot problems can be avoided if we pick up shoe styles carefully. Toes that are regularly forced into unnatural position can develop bunions or turn into bent and disfigured toes.

Be careful with heels, too. Don’t buy shoes with heels more than 3 inches. Apart from problems with body balance and putting stress on the knees and ankles, high heels put SEVEN TIMES the pressure on the ball of the feet. Wide heel help distribute weight of the body way better than a poor stiletto. That is especially true if you need shoes for walking, not just be stunning at a party.

4. Pay attention to material

Material of shoes is extremely important for the health of the feet. Choose natural materials and breathable ones. When your shoes are breathable, your feet don’t sweat.

5. Shop after work

Don’t go shoe shopping in the morning. Natural swelling occurs through the course of the day. At the end of the day your feet are at their largest, and this is the right moment to go shopping.

Too many women tend to go to the latest fashion trends, styles and colors and don’t pay enough attention to good fit and comfort of their shoes. Focus on the health of your feet. Make comfort and fit a priority and your feet with be in tip-top condition!