Motion Forword - Words of a Therapist - No 10
Welcome to Motion Forword - Words of a Therapist! Issue 10!
Motion Forword is about discussing the combined benefits of movement with a positive mental attitude. Using my personal/professional experiences, evidence-based research and some of your own experiences.
Bringing some hope, positivity, happiness and maybe usefulness to those, perhaps like yourself, that needs a pick me up.
Something about me - Surf, DIY and Hockey
Well I was fortunate enough to enjoy my first surf of the year and first time in over a year at Bracklesham Bay. We were pleasantly surprised by the conditions despite the wind and managed a good 30-45mins of exhausting but exhilarating surf 🤙
Haven’t done it for so long, so I was surprised by how hard I found it! But another example of if you don’t use it, you lose it! So it’s a learning curve again but I look forward to getting on the water more! I’ve managed to redecorate my room in my new home so far which I am very pleased with. Repainting the walls, the built-in wardrobe doors and resealing around the windowsills. Next job is the living room decorations.
Sadly, the hockey season finished on a low. It came to the last game of the season. We had to win to get promoted. Anything less meant no promotion. We lost 3-1.
Frustrating but lots of positives to draw on this season. Next season is our season!
Something for you - Shoes
I have been wearing Vivobarefoot shoes since Jan 2023.
I wanted to see for myself the effects of minimalist shoes and how my body would respond to them.
I bought the Geo Court III’s and I wear them every day at work and I also bought the Primus Trail Knit FG’s for outdoor running and trail running.
There is advice around ‘breaking yourself in’ when you first start wearing such shoes, especially if you wear heavily supportive shoes with soft insoles or supportive arches. But I found that given I don’t wear such things I felt quite comfortable straight away wearing my Vivos around work. I was pleasantly surprised how good things felt when I started introducing my Primus shoes to my running about 9 months later. It was very evident how much more feedback you get from the ground you are running on, a downside is that sometimes sharp stones or edges were uncomfortable. I also noticed how much more my calfs have to work initially getting used to them. But they’ve been through rain, puddles and thick mud and seem to be holding up.The Geo Court III’s haven’t held up so well. I wear them far more frequently but the leather on the right foot seems to have gone hard and the inner sole has been wearing away the last few months. They’ve also squeaked a lot even from new which is a little annoying and especially on hard floors. But generally quite comfortable.
As for what it has done physically to my feet… not a lot. Here is what my feet looked like before I started wearing them to what they are like now after 15 months of wearing them.
But I think this has more to do with the fact I haven’t done any specific foot training. The shoe allows for normal function, but you still need to do something with them!
And let's not forget that this is a still image. If I were able to capture live footage of my foot adapting to forces involved with running, jumping, hockey or acroyoga (for example!) before and after… there may well be differences.
I’ve also not been wearing barefoot shoes for 33 years of my life, so 15 months isn’t going to make a huge sudden difference (at least in my foot’s appearance).
I believe the Vivobarefoot shoes are doing me more good than harm. Giving my feet the space they need to function as normal as possible. I haven’t noticed any major functional drawbacks of the shoes, besides the squeakiness which is somewhat irritating!
I bought the shoes for around the £140 mark. You could probably get two pairs of Sketchers for less. I am disappointed in the wear of the Geo Court III’s considering this cost as I’ve had cheaper shoes that have lasted a lot longer.
If you were ever considering buying Vivobarefoot shoes, it is worth noting what shoes you currently wear. If you rely on heavily supportive shoes with soft/spongy/memory foam insoles you will probably hate the Vivobarefoot shoes as they will be too uncomfortable initially hence ‘breaking yourself in’. If you already do a lot of walking, running, ‘foot-based’ activities then you’ll probably get on them better than if you haven’t. I hope this provides some useful insight if you were thinking about it!
A story - PhysioSTAR & NB Osteopathy
Karol and I met back in August 2023. Karol runs his business; PhysioSTAR, helping people in sport recover from injury and pain. We got along incredibly well having similar approaches to treating our patients and enjoying a good natter over a coffee at what is now our regular coffee house ‘The Nest’.
Karol has big ambitions and wants to start something of his own, moving away from the rented room he currently uses for his practice, to a more purpose-built space. And he wanted me to be part of it. It has been many months of planning, brainstorming and problem-solving (mainly by Karol!) but there are exciting movements on the horizon. I am very excited to announce that I will be joining Karol in this venture with hopes of starting there this summer.
We are having an open day to invite friends, family and patients to come and visit the newly refurbished clinic in mid May. Most likely a Sunday, preliminary the 19th. If you would like to come and show your support and take home a goodie bag, please reply to this email expressing your interest and I’ll make sure you know when the dates are finalised.
Thanks for reading.
Until next month…
Motion Forword ⏩⏩
Nathan