Whether you work in food, sales, or nursing, a lot of jobs require you to spend more or less the entire day on your feet. If you do work one of these jobs, you’ll know just how bad your feet can feel after a full day of running around. While some days you might be tempted to work through the pain, that is not a long-term solution. In this blog, we’re going to give some tips on how to protect your feet and avoid any unnecessary pain.
The Right Shoes
The first and most important aspect of looking after your feet is to make sure you have the right type of shoes. Soft shoes with a lot of cushioning will help, but what you really want to look out for is arch support. Good arch support will prevent your legs from becoming tired or painful, and will enable you to go for much longer. If you have trouble finding good shoes with proper arch support, you can consider getting an insole or an orthotic. To learn what the difference between the two is, see our blog on that subject. Finally, to give yourself the most comfortable and least exerting posture, you should make sure that your heels are somewhere between a quarter of an inch and 2 inches.
Workplace Tips
There aren’t too many changes you can make to your workplace, but depending on the kind of work you do, there may be one or two things you can do to help. If you work a job where you stand in one place all day, placing a mat at your station can make a big difference. The extra layer of cushioning between yourself and the ground may not seem like much, but when you’re there all day, it can relieve a lot of pain.
One thing you can do almost anywhere is stretch your feet. A simple exercise that will stretch most of the muscles in your feet is to balance on the heels of your feet, and stretch out your toes for a few seconds. Do this ten times, and then reverse the exercise by standing on the ball of your foot, and stretch your heels as high as you can.
This ergonomic chair series at Spectrum Optimise has further tips and advice
Home Tips
Even when you’re not at work, you can prepare for making the whole experience less painful (physically at least). Though it may not sound like the most appealing option at first, giving yourself an ice foot bath can help reduce swelling and inflammation, which will both ease the pain from the workday gone, and prevent it from worsening the following day.
An alternative to this is to freeze a water bottle, and the roll it on the ground against the bottom of your feet. This will have a similar effect to an ice bath, but with the added benefit of massaging the feet as well. Finally, when resting, you should make sure to spend some time with your feet elevated. Something as simple as lying down on the couch can help get the blood out of your feet and reduce swelling.
