Part one talked about why shold you embrace minimalism?

A better approach to minimalism is to realize that your feet are weak in their current state and you need to add a foot and leg strengthening program to your current regimen. A strong core is imperative for good, efficient running form. The stronger the core, the longer you can hold good posture as you run down the road in search of your zen.

Six Simple Exercise to Stronger Strides

Here are six simple exercises you can do daily to improve your intrinsic foot strength. I recommend you walk around your house barefoot for five minutes to warm up your feet. Then really warm up your foot muscles by pretending your big toe is a marker and writing the alphabet with your foot. Do this twice. Now you are ready to begin strengthening your feet.

These six simple exercises can help you strengthen the intrinsic muscles of your feet and lower legs to help you transition to a minimalist running style. Remember to also stretch your quads, hip flexors, hamstrings, and calf (gastrocnemius and soleus) as well as your plantar fascia after these exercises to warm down.

Small incremental increases in stress make us stronger. Large incremental increases in stress lead to overuse injuries! Achieve your natural stride slowly and carefully to stay injury free.

Watch the video if you need help with the exercises!

Why do my feet itch so much? Why does it seem to happen more in the summer time even though I'm not wearing closed in shoes? Why does it itch more some days but not others? All good questions! Let's talk a little about itchy feet.

Many people have itchy feet from simply dry skin. Their skin is drier in the summer because they are either going barefoot or wearing sandals all of the time. They also don't habitually put moisturizer on like they do in the winter time. They also may be predisposed to dry skin from underlying medical problems like diabetes, poor circulation or hypothyroidism. Luckily dry skin has a simple fix. Exfoliate your feet with a combination of a cream or lotion that contains urea or lactic acid coupled with a gentle buffer or sand paper. If you do this a few times a week, it should alleviate all the itching of alligator feet.

But you don't think you simply have dry skin? Perhaps you have a fungal infection. Chronic itchy feet from an underlying tinea pedis (also known as athlete's foot fungus) is extremely common. It is more common in the summer due to increasingly sweaty feet. Fungus loves sweaty feet! Take a look at the skin on the bottom of your feet and in between your toes. Do you have a wet whitish peeling look to the skin in between your toes? This is called maceration. It happens when you toes are wet a lot or have been submerged in water for a long time; but it is also a hallmark of interdigital tinea pedis or fungus in between your toes. Check out the bottom of your feet. Does the skin have little red bumps or scaling skin in the pattern on very small circles? This is also indicative of fungus. The great thing about athlete's foot fungus is that it is easily treated with a topical medication and then decontaminating your shoes. Keep your feet clean and dry and make sure you change your socks if you sweat a lot.

So you don't think its dry skin and really don't have the hallmark signs of fungus? Another common problem is contact dermatitis. You may have contact dermatitis if you have a red, scaly, itchy rash and it is in the pattern of your new sandals or perhaps socks. You can also get contact dermatitis from a new cream or tanning lotion. Any kind of topical allergen can cause a skin reaction. I've even seen dermatitis from an ankle bracelet! Contact dermatitis is usually a new problem and a little detective work will help you find the culprit! Topical treatment with a steroid cream coupled with removing the allergen usually rapidly relieves the itchy rash. Rarely an oral steroid is needed to calm down the itching and alleviate the rash.

Other causes of itchy feet can be any kind of skin problem like eczema or psoriasis. Most people will see a telltale skin rash prior to the itching and are familiar with the symptoms they have in other area of their skin. Treatments vary depending on the underlying skin problem.

So these are the top reasons for itchy feet: chronic dry skin, tinea pedis, or a dermatitis or skin disorder. Itchy feet driving you nuts? If your detective work falls short, and your itching persists; it is time to visit your podiatrist. Skin scrapings or a biopsy can often help find the culprit and eliminate the annoying itch!

55 million Americans experience one or more foot problems every year! Many fail to seek medical advice early and develop more complicated foot conditions that can be severe and difficult to treat. One of the most common foot problems is heel pain. It is estimated that 15% of the adult population complains of heel pain, which includes one million runners who experience heel pain (plantar fasciitis) every year. The American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons has stated that heel pain has reached epidemic proportions in weekend athletes. This common condition is typically ignored, especially by athletes. People tend to seek treatment only after the problem becomes severe and disabling or when they just can’t run. When foot health concerns are ignored, simple conditions can develop into more serious problems affecting the ankles, knees, hips or the back. A simple functional orthotic is the answer for many people experiencing this kind of foot pain.

Orthotics are devices which fit into the shoe to aid the foot and allow it to function more optimally. "Functional orthotics" are usually relatively rigid in shoe braces that are designed to control motion and correct the function of the foot. Individuals with flatfeet, tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, knee, hip and back problems  and certain foot deformities, may benefit from functional orthotics.

Will orthotics help my foot problems? The goal of the functional orthotic is to control the abnormal motion in the foot, improve foot function, decrease the pain in the foot, ankle, knee, hip or back and to add support. The orthotic should make standing, walking, or running more comfortable. The orthotic must be rigid to help control the motion in the foot and add support. If the orthotic is soft, the weight of the body would collapse the device and it would no longer function.

Functional orthotics are a successful treatment for many problems affecting the lower extremity. In a recent article in the Journal of the American Podiatric Medical Association, 75% of patients surveyed had good to excellent results from functional orthotics. This includes 17% who felt the orthotics "cured" their pain. Less than 10% had no relief. The most commonly treated condition in the study was a painful heel. Over 20% of patients surveyed were treated for a painful heel and 20% were treated for a painful arch. Fourteen percent of the individuals were using orthotics for flatfeet. Other conditions treated with orthotics were knee, hip and back pain, foot arthritis, bunions and high arches. Tendonitis was not specifically evaluated.

Individuals with plantar fasciitis (heel and arch pain) who also have flatfeet usually respond best to orthotics. People with high arches may require orthotics as well, but they do not respond as well. Orthotics can help slow the progression of bunions and hammertoes, but they will not prevent this process. Orthotics may help with some pain at a bunion, but they will not "cure" the bunion. When the motion in the foot is contributing to the problem, orthotics are generally recommended.

Podiatrists are the most common prescribers of orthotics, but pedorthotists, orthotists, physical therapists and sometimes chiropractors will also provide orthotics. Remember that the device is only as good as the doctor taking the mold and writing the prescription. Make sure that your practitioner is trained in foot biomechanics and experienced in orthotic therapy.

Orthotics are a staple in the treatment of the majority of foot pain. When utilized for the correct indications, orthotics are highly successful in controlling foot pain and can add pep to your step! Orthotics have helped Plaxico Burress conquer his chronic injuries and they may help you!

Run Happy! And Thank God Football Season is almost here!!!!

While every shin splint injury has its own specific biomechanical causes, most are rooted in tight calf muscles and relative weakness in the front leg muscles. What's going on is that your tight calves are pulling up on your heel, which in turn pulls the front of your foot down. This puts strain on the muscles in the front of your leg, which unfortunately are not strong enough to resist the pulling. This causes a big pain in the leg! This is very, very common in runners, since running tends to exercise the calf muscles more than those in the front. But fear not, a little rest and a lot of stretching and strengthening will fix you up and possibly make you a better runner, too. 

How do we treat them? Early on in the syndrome, shin splints are treated with ice, relative rest (slow down and get off the hills and uneven surfaces), anti-inflammatory like ibuprofen, stretching, and arch supports. Take a good look at your shoes. These often need to be replaced or upgraded to a better pair for your foot type. (More discussion on that topic in a future article).

After we address your shoes and overpronation or underpronation (your foot rolling in or out excessively when you run), then we move on to the muscle imbalances in your lower leg. Your calf muscles are too strong and tight, while your front leg muscles (anterior compartment) are too weak. This is easy to remedy but won’t happen overnight. Stretching your calf muscles with a simple wall stretch for your Achilles tendon many times a day( how many?) will help. Strengthening the front of your leg can be done by actually putting a small weight (or an athletic sock full of sand) on your foot and lifting it towards your shin. Hold that for a count of ten then relax. Repeat twenty five times. You will be amazed how tired those muscles are!

If your pain persists after two weeks of these simple solutions or is at any time pinpoint or severe in nature, call my office or your sports medicine physician. Stress fractures can creep up on the overzealous new runner and can take 8 to 10 weeks of no running to heal!

Shin splints are common in today's active population. It is important to keep in mind that shin splints, like most running injuries, are basically an overuse injury. Listen to your body and back off when you begin to feel pain.

These are just a few tips to get you on the road to recovery! Run Happy!