Ok I know I’m jumping the gun a bit here in southern Ontario. This is intended to be more reflective, as we change seasons and dig out last year’s footwear.

As anyone who knows me will testify, I’m not really much of a slave to seasonal fashion( or any sort of fashion for that matter). Especially at work, there is very little or no variation in my attire, footgear or otherwise. Outside the work environment thanks to the beautiful summers we get, things can change significantly.

The hook for this weeks blog was one of my patients brought in a selection of her footwear to help identify possible sources of instability in her gait. During our discussion, she revealed while working from home she predominantly wears her Birkenstock sandals all day, every day and for many, many days. (Sorry this isnt about Birkenstocks, but this is https://youtu.be/_It9df5GwFk)

Clearly, I choose to use this case as a very clear example to illustrate my point. For those of us with abnormal gait patterns, we WILL wear out the material and the structural integrity in our footwear much more rapidly than normal. Conversely, if you identify that the fabric of your footgear is showing abnormal wear either inside or out then your foot function is abnormal.

It appears we can grasp the relationship between abnormal tire wear and our cars more readily than shoes and body. Perhaps this is indicative of our perceived relationship with our mechanical chariots vs the humble body we came equipped with at birth.

Regardless of this deep psychological relationship! As you pull last years shoes out of hibernation yawning and blinking into the bright sunlight. If they are abnormally worn or deformed this WILL negatively impact your performance and comfort. Get rid of them!

As in the image above they can make a bad situation much worse and increase the likelihood of injury. Clearly the increased risk of a lateral ankle sprain or fracture on the right foot is highly probable. Ankle fractures as we see regularly can prove life-changing even when managed properly.

These wear marks are not only indicative of functional instability but often serve as a useful diagnostic tool for us clinically when figuring out the structural origin of problems. Thus we often recommend to new patients or those with new issues to bring footwear to their appointment that demonstrates a degree of wear and tear. Oh and a final thought, bad or worn shoes will not be improved by the introduction of custom functional orthotics, ever.

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