I treat a lot of people with foot and ankle issues. Those of you that have foot and ankle issues often ask me about resting your feet. I am going to attempt to answer this the best, and most consist, way that I can in a blog post.
Your Foot and Ankle
There are 26 bones and 17 muscles in each one of your feet. There are an additional 12 muscles that move your foot and ankle from outside of your foot! There is a lot going on there.
Your foot is where your body connects to the ground. This is true with most exercise, standing, walking, and sitting.
A majority of the structures of your foot (toes, arch, ankle) are being used throughout the day. The only way to really rest these is to be off your feet. Sometimes sitting is okay, but this usually means lying down.
If your life is anything like mine, there is not a lot of time to lie down.
How Much Your Foot Works
If you have a job, exercise, or both that requires you to be on your feet for a good amount of the day, you may or may not need to rest your feet.
If you are on your feet all day for work that usually means 8+ hours of standing, walking, or other activity where your feet are being active. If you sit at a desk most of the day, this is substantially less, but not 0.
If your exercise regiment involves high impact things such as running or jumping, your feet will be more active than if you are riding a bike.
If you are doing balance exercises like yoga, your feet will be more active as well.
All of the things you do need to be taken into consideration before you talk about resting your feet and ankles.
When you change jobs, exercise types, or exercise amounts, this can lead to an increase or decrease in the amount of work your feet and ankles are doing during the daytime.
For the most part, if you do not have foot or ankle symptoms, you don't need to rest your feet more than when you sleep.
Your feet are working all day and will usually develop the endurance to handle your workload over time. Since they are in constant use, you may need to build up endurance in your feet and ankles as opposed to strength to combat the use they will get during the day.
When To Rest Your Feet
If you are highly active, whether it is for work or exercise, and don't have any foot issues, you probably don't need to rest your feet at all. If you do have foot or ankle issues, your rest will be dependent on your symptoms. If you can do most of your work and exercise without aggravating your feet, you may not need to add more rest or stop doing what you do.
If you are in a lower activity category, and you don't have foot or ankle issues, you don't need to rest your feet. If you have foot issues, you may require 1 or 2 small rest periods throughout the day.
When you try to increase your activity, this may exacerbate or cause foot and ankle symptoms. You can prevent this head on by gradually building up your tolerance. If you end up becoming more sore, instead of stopping your activity, back it down and add in more time off your feet during the day.
If, god forbid, you do injure your feet and/or ankles, it is best to let them rest for 1-2 days to help decide how serious the injury is. If you are unable to do this, then you should try to do as much as you can without making your symptoms worse.
If you have any more questions about foot and ankle health, join my Facebook Group -
This group is free for people like you to ask questions and return to your active lifestyle.
If you want an in depth review of your specific issues, email info@bodyfixpt.com to set up a free discovery session!
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