Modern shoe design defies the natural anatomical shape of our feet. It is very common to have shoes with a tapered toe box and a heel. Women’s shoe design is usually more pronounced than men’s. These forces squash our toes together and increase the weight bearing on the front part of our feet. Furthermore, the ankle joint (talo-crural) loses mobility and the calf has restricted range. We are designed to evenly share weight between the front and back of our feet. We are designed to allow our toes to spread out to assist with balance and forward propulsion with gait. When we are young and “bullet proof” we can tolerate shoe design that does not match our anatomy. A lot of foot and ankle conditions are caused by shoes that impart small force over time. As we get older the tolerance for these shoes and associated forces becomes less. Rather than looking for the “perfect shoe” it can be advantageous for your feet health to improve ankle joint (talo-crural) mobility and improve the flexibility of the calf muscles. The toes can be spaced by using toe spacers:
and by actively using the muscles that splay the toes.
