Chronic foot discomfort can be caused by a variety of factors, one of which is your natural foot arch.
Our stride and the mechanics of how we walk from place to place are heavily influenced by the shape of our feet. Arch height refers to the way our feet arch, and there are three types: low arches (flat foot), regular arches, and high arches.
The key to long-term foot health is to understand our arch height. Your foot posture won’t contribute to painful diseases like plantar fasciitis, corns, or iliotibial band pain if your foot is properly supported with bespoke arch support insoles or even shoes developed for that reason.
Let’s take a look at how our arches effect our gait and how you can support your specific arch shape to preserve your feet’s long-term health and comfort.
Choosing the Right Arch Height
A quick and simple ‘wet test’ is the quickest technique to evaluate the height of your arches.
Simply dampen the bottoms of your feet and carefully step onto a piece of cardboard or dark paper. Take a step back and look at the imprint your wet foot left on the fabric.
You probably have very low arches if your footprint is almost fully visible. The footprint between the ball of the foot and the heel will be quite small on feet that are arched higher. A lot of people are born with high or low arches. However, lifestyle factors such as weight and health can cause normal feet to change form over time.
The Benefits of Arch Support Shoes and Insoles
Due to the instability of their stride, people with low arches or flat feet are prone to overpronation and swelling along the inner of their ankles. The collapse of the arch can also cause tearing of the neighboring tendons and muscles, resulting in plantar fasciitis.
Due to the tightness of their arches, people with high arches frequently feel joint and muscular strain. They may also have frequent soreness as a result of their higher arches, which do not provide as much shock absorption as a foot with a normal arch.
It’s crucial to find the right support for both high and low arches. Without assistance, gait and pronation problems may worsen over time. Pressure and tension are placed on delicate joints, muscles, and tendons due to a lack of sufficient support. This can result in Achilles tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, knee discomfort, and hip difficulties, among other things.
How Do You Know Which Arch Support Is Right For You?
Although the three primary arch height categories are a good place to start, the reality is that each foot is unique. Investing in arch support insoles or orthotics that are created to fit your exact measurements is the best approach to ensure you obtain appropriate therapy.
Arch support insoles should fit to your foot’s exact shape and provide both comfort and support. A deep heel cup should also be used to anchor your heel, preventing excessive movement and aiding in the treatment of overpronation.
For the best arch support, go for custom orthotics.
Although over-the-counter arch support orthotic devices may be appealing, they will likely be of limited help because they aren’t custom-fit to your measurements.
Testing kits, such as those offered by IDEASTEP Orthotics, are created by taking a thorough impression of each foot using a foam or digital model. Then, to accommodate the unique shape of your foot, bespoke orthotics are made.
You can begin wearing your bespoke orthotics as soon as they arrive in the mail! This means you can both feel and see the benefits of tailored arch support for your feet, as well as be confident (literally and figuratively) that you’re getting the support you need when going about your everyday activities.