How To Fix Flat Feet Naturally!

[thinkingagain]

The way shoes are designed to smoosh your toes together is dumb

[Drillbitayler]

Not to scare people away from orthotics, but I was told I needed them at like 14. Wore them for 7 years without question. Then suddenly realized my feet were COMPLETELY screwed up. They were twisted. If my heel was neutral, my big toe was almost an inch off the ground. I could even use my strength to bend my foot back even momentarily. Bones had moved. Luckily, I threw out the orthotics and got zero drop shoes with a wide toe box. 3 years later, my feet are like 80% back to normal and I have SO much more stability and balance. I'd caution against orthotics use for LONG periods without at least checking in and making sure your body isn't adjusting to bad habits.

[marcow]

For those whose big toe isn’t smashed into the other toes but still don’t have much of an arch, we just genuinely have flat feet

[Sunshine_potath]

As a ballerina, I have a big arch and I have the ability to move and walk with spread out toes, my feet can look like hands pretty much, it’s from the lack of wearing shoes that compress my foot and the muscles I build in my foot :)

[chrisashtonlightell-west]

I hated wearing girly shoes when I was little because of the way they squished my toes in. I feel for anyone who was made to do that. Lucky for me, I didn't have to after refusing enough times, so I never got trained into ignoring foot discomfort to that degree.

[aprilsparks]

I have always hated foot inserts and this makes perfect sense. Thanks so much.

[InspiredByBrad]

After plantar fasciitis developed from conventional footwear, I was forced to transition to barefoot shoes. It was long and hard, but now my arch muscles are much thicker and stronger. In response to the comments below, here's some critical tips I learned:
I found it safest to use barefoot shoes at first as an exerciser, and carry my conventional shoes with me to immediately switch back to as soon as I felt pain. I was shocked at how weak my arches and foot fat pads were, both got significantly injured as I tried to transition too quickly. Bone bruising was also a problem on flat pavement, and took a long time to heal and adapt. I underestimated the transition time. In retrospect, I would use the above method over a period of at least a couple of years to be safe.
Also, I did have to use orthotics as a crutch to first heal the worst stages of the plantar faciitis, but for sure, they should only be considered a temporary crutch, not a long term dependency. The human foot is not flawed, just misunderstood and poorly adapted to today's shoes and hard flat surfaces.

[thescenesociety]

I fit into a 5.5 shoes size in heels but wear size 7 in shoes because i CANNOT wear shoes unless I can completely stretch my toes out. Having that toe room makes a big difference since I am always barefoot at home & im at home like 90% of my life!

[bsdpowa]

I'm glad you posted this. I found that walking barefoot is fixing my issues I had with overpronation, weak ankles, cracking knees and bad posture. Never paid attention to it and always blamed everything but improper footwear. Wide barefoot shoes with wide toe box can look clownish but better than messing up your heath.

[tzadok]

That's interesting. If she ends up building that arch, could you share her progress?

[tinyriss]

another way to achieve a properly controlled arch is while walking barefoot around the house for example. try to focus on putting slightly more weight to the outside edge of your feet while still using your big toe for pushing off and stability in walking and standing. i have high arches but for some time i had weakness in my arches, i was informed by a professional to try this exercise over time to improve my feet and now it’s a permanent thing, it allowed me to work back up the strength in my arches through proper use. i will say though, it takes focus when first starting out😂

[TwinBleaks]

I was JUST TODAY wondering if you had any helpful advice for ppl with flat feet!! My feet have caused me so many other problems with my knees and my hips, I'm hoping to work from the bottom up!

[IExpectedBSJustNotThisMuchBS]

I had flat feet from an early age to 65. My feet are hypermobile and toe boxes immediately robbed me of my arch. 3 years ago I started wearing CorrectToes and barefoot shoes. Wore CorrectToes for two full years (and now wear them for a few hours every few days). Within about a year or so, I found I had an arch even without wearing the CorrectToes. I’ve recovered my sense of balance. I will never go back to regular shoes.

[MaryArts]

Going barefoot, at least at home, is so good for everyone. Also never stop stretching.

[Josh_Alzamora]

This is why I love Asic's the toe box is wider and helped me tremendously

[marcellogazale]

WOW! Notice how simply changing the camera of the angle the foot is instantly looking healthier! Amazing!

[jeremiahjohns]

Pretty sure shoe "support" is the main cause of foot modern problems in the first place.
The "support" things in the shoe basically take over the role of the foots muscles and ligaments/tendons or whatever, then they just stop working properly because their job is being done for them already, leading to a fucked up foot.

[spongy]

As someone who has flat feet, i had a surgery called "pro stop" and it helped a lot. 1 month has passed and i barely feel any pain if I don't jump or run. The surgery on my other foot will be around September and after that i will have to wait around 3-4 months to fully recover. After that i will be able to run and jump freely. I highly suggest doing a surgery because if not treated, your feet will get worse.

[PSALM-]

Wider toe box barefoot shoes, took away my knee pain. Thank you sir for all your new advice. Its a miracle my right knee pain is cured from barefoot shoes. Yeah!

[ihatepenuts]

I used to have one flat foot and one normal. Once i started wearing barefoot shoes and working on mobility the flat foot gained an arch.