Category: Outdoors

Take Care of Your Feet

9/26/2016

For the past 6 or so years, I've chosen jobs where most of my day is spent on my feet and moving around. I wouldn't want it any other way. Being on my feet all day I feel it. At the end of a long day my feet and hips are not happy.

Feet are often the forgotten souls (pun intended) of our body. The ones who do the most work, with the least amount of credit. Until...they're screaming at you.

You don't need plantar fasciitis or a broken toe as the only opportunity to start taking time to support your feet. Whether you're on your feet all day for work, or walking in heals, or long-distance running, providing self-care to your feet is just as important as any other part of you...if not more.

When do the same thing over and over again (this goes for anything), our body gets used to it. With this muscle memory, imbalances start to form from the feet all the way up the body (knees, hips, lower back, etc. - you get it.) In addition, your feet start to stiffen up after being in the same position for long periods, offering very little flexibility and becoming achy (or painful).

As your grounding center, your feet are an important part of who we are. They are our connection to the earth, our (family) roots and inner selves. So how do we take care of our soles that keep us connected and without pain?

Self-massage (myfascial release) with a tennis/lacrosse/golf ball. Roll on it in the morning or at the end of the day to help break up some of the fascial restrictions.
Roll your ankles around. Sit anywhere, anytime, any place. Extend your leg out (or cross your leg over the other) and roll your ankle in one direction then the other.
Spread those toes! Stand firmly on the balls and heals of your feet. Pick up your toes and slowly separate your toes from each other as you lay them back onto the ground one. at. a. time.
Lift up to the balls of your feet, standing tall with strong core balance. Hold while taking long deep inhales and exhales. It's ok to fall out of it, just try it again until you can hold for longer periods.
Try the "Yogi Toe Squat." This is an intension pose. Give it a go for 30 seconds and slowly work your way up to 3 minutes (over weeks/months). I do this daily.
Similarly to the toe squat position, place tops of the feet flat on the earth and sit back on your heals. This will feel a little less intense than the toe squat.
Walk barefoot in sand and/or uneven ground/earth - you'll get muscles working that were once forgotten due to flat surface walking. Those "newly" discovered muscles offer a lot of support and will release some of the tension in the formally over-worked muscles. This creates more stability and balance in your feet and posture.
Last but not least, buy quality supportive shoes. They tend to run pricey but check out ebay for less expensive options for Clarks, Dansko, Ecco, Naot, etc. Once I started wearing more supportive shoes, I noticed a huge difference in my feet and hips.

Do you have any feet exercises, stretching, strengthening or self massage moves you'd like to share? Post in the comments - I'd love to learn more!

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Savoring the Weekend

9/7/2016

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I moved from Boston to Rochester only four months ago. One of the best things about Rochester is how much less people use their smartphones compared to Bostonians. I have my thoughts as to why I think Boston is staring at their phones a lot more, but my conjecture is not the point of this blog post.

This past Labor Day weekend I went to the woods of Denmark, Maine near the White Mountains. Needless to say there wasn't much cell service. I opted to put my cellphone on airplane mode (as did most folks). I only checked it once to see if there were any "emergencies" (there rarely are, let's be honest), and to send a few "I'm alive" texts. The majority of my time was spent outside in the woods hiking, swimming, canoeing, doing yoga, eating really really good food with strangers and old friends - cellphone-free. I was being mindful and present this weekend without even trying to be.

The New York Times wrote an article about the overused buzzword last year entitled, "The Muddled Meaning of 'Mindfulness,'" In it, the article quotes Jon Kabat-Zinn, a Zen Buddhist who summarizes modern day mindfulness as “'The awareness that arises through paying attention on purpose in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.'” This weekend was the first time since I moved back to Rochester that I forgot about the busy/distracting act of missing Boston. Instead, I was being with everything around me. It was because I was in nature sans phone.

My biggest challenge here in Rochester is my lack of connection to this lovely Flower (Flour) City. I want to get to know people, places, sites, the culture, etc. But I have been trapped in a cycle of desperately trying to stay attached to Boston via social media & texting. Using my smartphone as a security blanket, I am missing relationship opportunities and experiences here in Rochester.

So, how do we savor the nature-filled/mindfulness (fill in the blank) weekend and stay detached from the phone so we can relate to one another more (in person & in real life)? Below are a few (FREE!) things I try to do when I'm feeling distracted and want to refocus on the now:

Take a long walk/run/bike ride outside with no plan of where to go
Meander over to a park near your home and lay in the grass
Find the nearest swimming hole, dip your feet in or go for a swim
Eat outside during a meal
Put your phone away whenever you're with someone

If you have any other ideas, feel free to share. xo

Maine. The way life should be.
[Photo from this weekend]

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Take Care of Your Feet

Savoring the Weekend

Liz Laneri

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