FEET

[lagster]

Have any of you tried ORTHOTICS in your shoes? (The ones that are fit by a doctor, not the ones you buy in a drug store.) A chiropractor suggested I try them several months ago.

They are supposed to help the back.

Do you play golf with them?

[wolfman]

I have a personal interest in this topic. I make a large part of my income on foot/low back pain.

Because of that, you should really do your homework before you let anyone make you a set of orthotics.

IMHO - very few chiropractors have had the appropriate training to make these things correctly. You need to find a chiropractor, podiatrist, or orthotist who has had advanced training in diagnosing your problem, then fabricating an impression of "YOUR" foot type (from which the orthotic is made) writing the prescription and has the knowledge to adjust them if the orthotic does not at first help the problem.

The very best practicioner uses computerized gait analysis prior to even suggesting orthotics. PM me if you need a reerence in your area.

At all costs, stay away from those stores/infomericials/tv and radio ads that propose to fit you over the internet or in a store. I can't name names because they are all very litigous (sp?). You can get one of their "inserts" on the net for $14.99, not the $250 the store will charge you.

Search the net like you search TGM, and LOOK, LOOK, LOOK!!!!

[dclaryjr]

Have any of you tried ORTHOTICS in your shoes? (The ones that are fit by a doctor, not the ones you buy in a drug store.) A chiropractor suggested I try them several months ago.

They are supposed to help the back.

Do you play golf with them?

I could point to to a couple rec.sport.golf threads via Google where I chronicled my problems. The short version is that I love to walk the course but had to ride after a reoccurance of a nasty case of plantar faciitis. Some new orthotics (and afew cc's of cortisone)) got me back on my feet. This wasn't a back pain problem but I can see where they could help in that situation. Wolfman gave some good advice--see a good practiioner.

[Vickie]

Orthotics are designed to compensate for design flaws in your body whether they are original to the structure or accomplished in your life process. I agree with Wolfman that they need to be properly fitted but don't think you should pay enormous amounts of money unless you have a problem that you have not been able to correct or you have a chunk of cash to blow. I would also suggest you see a well trained chiropractor or osteopath or orthopedic 'guy' and not a podiatrist unless you think your feet are the problem. The chiropractor and osteopath will take into account more closely your 'whole body' problem.

Now here's my shtick:

I have taken many people out of their orthotics thru the process of correcting their alignment. If you can't, aren't willing, or are unable to tackle the origin of your problem (I think you have proven you are willing and able) or if you have a permanent condition (i.e. surgical procedures, fusion, birth defect, etc.) then orthotics can be a bandaid to the problem. (For the record sometimes a bandaid will get you through the difficult period until you correct the problem.) They need to be replaced/refitted every once in a while because the original degeneration that caused the need for the support will continue to decline, thereby needing yet more support. One of the worst mistakes you can make with orthotics is to put them in your shoes and then forget about them for years on end. Another problem is that once you have worn the orthotic in a shoe, you have to always wear the orthotic in that shoe. The orthotic make an impression into the foundation of the shoe that doesn't spring up once the apparatus is removed.

As I help people who are already in orthotic correct their alignment (and therefore the origin of their pain) we buy a second pair of all of their shoes and begin to wear the non-supported shoe for limited amounts of time each day. This is the same process that is required to introduce orthotics but coming out of them (once the structure is improved) is quicker and such a relief. Much like getting braces off your teeth.

So everybody has a story and here's mine. At age 20 (many, many moons ago) I started running and had crippling pain in what you would call my groin. (Ok, you might not, but you know what I mean) At this point I was wearing one of the first three running shoes on the mainstream market and my running expert, the guy at the shoe store, suggested I go to his sport podiatrist. I went and he put me in orthotics and $340 later, voila! NO Pain, it was great! About a month later I was rear-ended and incurred a real neck injury landing me in orthopedics and physical therapy which helped nada so I went to a chiropractor (first visit in my life). My neck got better almost immediately and I started running again in about three weeks. But . . . lo' and behold, my other 'groin' started to hurt. The podiatrist couldn't help me even though he adjusted them. And then the chiropractor suggested that we had corrected my problem, the cause of the original pain and now the orthotics provided the exact problem on the other side; just from my feet this time and not my mal-adjusted spine. Bought new shoes, hit the running track and no pain, no pain anywhere.

This was during the period that I was doing a great deal of discovery about physiology and the experience only bolstered my growing belief that "given the right stimuli the body can heal as it is a self regenerating organism".

For what it's worth. Vickie

[lagster]

Very good post Vickie!!!!!

I am still researching the subject.

Chiropractors do often say that one leg is shorter, but after the adjustment they somehow make them the same.

The S.I. problem does at times affect my gait.

Do you know of any golfers that use orthotics?

I am still doing your stretches.

Thanks,

lagster

[Vickie]

Thanks, Lagster

The only people I have pulled out of orthotics are golfers. The 'predictable' golfers problems are inspiration to look for solutions. I have said it before, golfer's are the best to work with because they have a real passion for their sport and will buy almost anything and then do almost anything to retain their game.

The reason your legs are the same length when you leave the chiropractors office is that they align the vertebrae so your hips are level (or closer to level) with the rest of your structure. The stresses of your life activities, even the ones that make us happy, are expressed in muscular contractions that tend to create a tension pattern that pulls the spine into agreement with those repetitious positions. (Best example is to look at address. Not to natural or too balanced albiet very effective for the game.) The spine complies and gets stuck. You can use the exercises (and increased usage of those exercises and many more exercises to keep you advancing in your mechanical control) to pull the spine back into position if you do it in the right manner, in the right frequency and finally if your flexibility will allow your body to comply. The chiropractor hurdles you to a more balanced place but your body is still dependent on the muscles to hold the adjustment. The better the muscles are able to do their balancing act the better you recover from your 'life activities' and the less frequently you have to depend on the professionals. Remember, I love GOOD chiropractic but it should help you sustain your biology not create your biology.

I hope as you are doing the stretches you are increasing your tension and being ever diligent in improving your form as you progress. It is truly a dis-service to you to get stuck with only these positions. Several of them are daily for everyone; torso twist, hamstring stretches, inner thigh stretches, shoulder stretch. But as you progress and to inspire your body to progress you should vary these with a wider variety of movements and different styles and positions (For example: I have twenty-two hamstring stretches). Many good stretch books are on the market. Help yourself and have some fun.


Vickie

[lagster]

Thanks Vickie... good information.

What about Palates or something similar?

[Vickie]

Pilates can be a great choice if you find a teacher that understands where you are. Unfortunately pilates instructors assume a higher level of fitness. The method was designed by Joseph Pilates for rheumatoid arthritis.Unfortunately doctors believed that any exercise was the kiss of death for this autoimmune disorder; it has since changed it's mind. He made some headway in the mainstream community but since he is practically the grandfather of 'core' training the ballet community was the place his work was most appreeciated and applied. Consequently the teaching methods were established for a uniquely physical population. As the methodology has become more mainstream it has improved. But watch out. Call a couple of studios and ask them what they recommend. Compare the answers and their willingness to discuss their programs with you. I use pilates in all of my work on some level. More often than not I modify it to work in an individuals limitations. An example of a modification would be that I personally use some pilates in my abdominal work but because of some fusion that occurred naturally in my neck (as a result of the accident I mentioned in an earlier post) I can't do three of the basic ten exercises they recommend. I have never found a pilates instructor that would accept this on face value. So I learned what works for me and trust it and make my workout happen. You could also pick up a video version for home. Variety and convience are priceless. Vickie