Mon, Jul 22, 2013
I have seen this radiograph of a woman in a heel many times and every time it blows my mind at the amount of stress and strain that women put on their feet every time they wear these types of shoes. Before you berate me with comments about how you can’t live without your pumps I want to let it be known that my purpose is not to bash heels but to help you to use discretion as you make as decision on your evening footwear.
The main issue I notice from glancing at this image is that the majority of the weight is being placed on the metatarsal bones. The meta-whatsal you ask? Basically, the bones that your toes connect to and are responsible for their ability to flex and extend. Normally our body weight is evenly distributed across the foot and heel however when you are in a position like this one the weight is placed solely on those metatarsal bones. The average woman weighs 156lbs according to a poll on the Gallup wellbeing website. That averages to 78lbs per foot. Now let’s add in another factor, an abnormal rotation in the pelvis. Often through the vast amount of time we spend sitting improperly we end up with an abnormal rotation in the pelvis that causes one leg to appear slightly longer than the other. This would then lead to a shift in weight distribution. A mere 5lbs shift in weight would be 83lbs on one foot and 73lbs on the other. Now we are looking at a 10 lbs spread. This will eventually lead to pain and some degeneration as time goes on to the side that has the excess in weight.
My point here is not that these types of shoes should be worn at a nice cocktail party where you may be spending most of your time sitting but just don’t go wearing these to the State Fair. Just be smart about it and maybe bring a pair of flats with you that you can change into when your feet start getting sore. And of course come to get those feet adjusted after! Save some money on your first visit with my Trestles Chiropractic Yelp deal.