Many of you have met our Office Manager, Jen. Well, a few years ago Jen was suffering from some severe pain in the ball of her right foot. The pain came suddenly, soon after Jen began a job where she was mostly on her feet. It was soon discovered that Jen’s pain was primarily caused from her choice of work footwear. The shoes she was wearing were extremely thin and flat, providing absolutely no support to her foot.
Some who have been in Jen’s position (maybe those who often wear high heels, perhaps…) often justify their choice of footwear, and will either suck it up and endure the pain or spend money on inserts that are created to provide more support. Now, there is nothing wrong with buying these types of inserts. It is definitely better to have some support than none at all. However, if the pain continues even with addition of the support inserts, it may be time to give up the shoes entirely.
This was the case for Jen. She upgraded her flimsy shoes for some that offered great support for her flat feet. Jen felt an immediate change. She no longer experienced any pain. Not only did she noticed the lack of pain in her foot, but she also noticed that her lower back wasn’t sore as often. By changing out her shoes, Jen’s posture improved as the alignment of her spine improved.
If you are experiencing lower back pain, I would recommend testing out a different pair of shoes for a couple of weeks. In order to see if there’s a difference, the new pair of shoes should provide quite a bit more of support than your last pair. This might not work for everyone, but it couldn’t hurt to try – especially if it ends up solving your back pain!
By the way – the shoes Jen began wearing were Birkenstocks. These shoes often provide a great amount of support for the foot – in particular for those with flat feet (like Jen). Search around until you find the right shoes with the right support for YOUR type of foot.
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