I know. I had to do a double take on my own foot because if that’s what op thinks a high arch is… I’m gonna blow his mind. https://giphy.com/gifs/3d4PWIqF5g9Hqd6Q6O
Lmbo! Yesss, exactly. I even took a pic of my own foot for reference after this post. Is that sad? Because apparently I can’t see it with my own eyes, but on camera it’s boom there. 🤣
I have high arches, as told to me by physical therapists and dancers. That might be a high arch based on the OPs pov from the side angle making it less intense.
I have small feet and my wife has large feet so we actually have the same sized feet. It's nice to be able to swap crocs or slippers. I wouldn't ever use her real shoes but slip ons are so underrated for casual wear.
Yup, i have flat feet, didnt do anything about it for ages, now my feet hurt when walking and im still in my 20s.
With physiotherapy and the right shoe inserts it has gotten a lot better.
ugh. I have flat feet too and then on my honeymoon in europe I ended up walking 20,000 steps a day everyday, my arches got so sore i couldn't put any weight on it ended up spending a day just sitting in the hotel room icing. then i got arch support shoe inserts from a podiatrist, helped so much but after a few years it just shifted the problem onto my knees. i could walk completely fine barefoot but if i wore my shoe inserts my knees would hurt. i have since switched to zero-drop/barefoot shoes, every other day i wear them. it's slowly rebuilt my arch after about 2-3 years and now i don't use any type of arch support
I believe barefoot shoes are zero drop, but zero drop shoes are not necessarily barefoot. To be barefoot you should have a toe box to allow the toes to splay, a very thin flexible sole, and zero drop.
I have both. All barefoot shoes are zero drop, but not all zero drop are barefoot. It depends on if I have work too because my barefoot shoes are more casual than my zero drop. I just try to go with thin soles to maximize sensory feedback from the ground. It's changed my gait considerably, I walk far slower and have far shorter strides than I used to because you don't have the cushioning for your heel dropping but it's been helpful. I live in a concrete jungle though and barefoot shoes are hard to do everyday with concrete as your only ground texture. But my wife and I have noticed a considerably larger arch in my foot (took a long time before I noticed anything though)
Thanks for sharing that. I had somewhat flat feet growing up. I have transitioned to barefoot shoes 10 years ago and I recommend it to everyone. The balance, mobility (zero drop forces full extention of the calves) and strenght you gain are unmatch. You can't get that otherwise.
IMO traditionnal shoes are prone to hiding problems until they become major. It's a pain sometimes to switch, but it's worth it.
Let this be a cautionary tale to anyone reading this. If you suspect you have something wrong with your feet, for the love of God, get it checked out. And if you have a kid with weird feet, get it nipped in the bud early.
Corroborating this by saying I’m also in my 20s with metatarsus adductus (severe intoeing). I cannot stand for more than 15 minutes or walk more than 30 otherwise my feet develop inflammation that can last for hours. My orthotics are so thick I need to wear wide-model shoes just so they fit and it still only partially helps. My podiatrist said if I’d been brought in as a young child, it could’ve been surgically corrected, but as an adult the success rate of surgery is too low to bother. I wear podiatrist-recommended shoe models, but it only helps so much.
Foot issues do not fuck around. Remember that your feet are responsible for bearing the weight of your entire body; even seemingly minor structural issues will cause problems over time.
Get yourself some arch support inserts ASAP. Your case is so bad though you might want to consult a podiatrist or something. You will have foot and back problems later on, better to take care of it when you're younger.
The thing is if you have flat feet, having ANY type of arch support feels like you have a boulder under your foot. It hurts just as bad as being flat footed, but in a different way.
I assumed it would be the kind of thing you'd need to stretch and build up to over time, starting with almost no support? I had bad plantar fasciitis in my early 20s and managed to solve it with stretching, rolling, and increasing arch support but if my feet were that bad I'd probably just go to a doctor if I could.
Yeah idk wtf these people are on about. Clearly they don't have flat feet. I have flat feet. My feet cramp up with "arch support" because it's like you said: it's like having a boulder under your foot.
I specifically avoid anything that says "arch support" and feel great as a result.
As someone with flat feet, I have ONE pair of shoes with “arch support” that is actually comfortable and supportive. My oofos flip flops. They are great. Very cushiony, and have genuinely reduced my foot pain.
But yeah no, people with flat feet actually need physio to strengthen and stabilize their arches and improve balance and flexibility.
Arch support can be a part of that, but it’s not an instant fix. You can’t force an object into a new shape if it isn’t flexible enough to mold to that new shape!
I have a roller/massager I use on my feet after standing all day, and I strengthen my arch by using it grip soft balls and tennis balls. My feet are still noticeably flatter than average, but they hurt a lot less than they used to so :/
Go see a podiatrist and get some custom orthotics. Your body will thank you. I had decades of hip, knee, and lower back pain before I finally got it addressed. Game changer
The muscles and tendons in the foot arent under tension like normal so the foot potentially cant work properly. Like a car thats overloaded so the suspension is squished all the way down
Hahaha the car suspension analogy is so great! I'm currently being diagnosed with a hypermobility disorder myself (not sure which one yet), so my balance is absolute shit.
My feet are as flat (if not even flatter if possible), I run 6 miles a day and marathons and such and I’ve never had any problems. I’m in my late 30’s. I don’t know what I did differently, but I suppose there are some exceptions
Same, I've always been athletic and have flat feet. I'd totally use it as an excuse to not get drafted but realistically, there's nothing in boot camp my flat feet would hinder me from doing.
I was 6 years in the army, with light infantry. I have the flattest feet anyone I met in the army who saw my feet had ever seen (according to more people than I can remember). I was unbeatable on an obstacle course. My flat feet seem to help my balance more than hinder me.
Same. I was infantry for four years, and just about the only one who went through training without getting any blisters. I think part of it has to do with boots being inherently flat.
As a kid I was recommended to get orthotics, and thankfully I never did. My feet are perfectly fine, and I’m middle aged.
My dad played d1 ball. He was flat footed as fuck. He said his feet never hurt. I have the same feet and they've hurt my whole life haha. I found the right shoes for me and started walking a lot and the pain is gone now for the most part, kinda wild
Not always the case, I have flat feet but no pain whatsoever, no balance issue. I play basketball often and I was the fastest on court most of the time, didnt even occur to me that my feet was different until my adult life that someone pointed out my feet has no arch.
I have flexibile flat foot and regular run, bike, and rock climbing with zero issues. Ironically it's my upper extremities that are showing issues now from so much computer usage.
They absolutely do cause problems, including lower back pain which I've had since age 7 until I got proper orthotics.
The collapsed arches cause quite a few problems, take a look at actually peer reviewed studies online to see. It doesn't affect everyone the same, and it may take time, but it comes.
I can’t find anything that says flat feet will inevitably cause problems or that you need to correct them if they don’t bother you. I understand they can cause problems for some people, but that doesn’t mean they will for everyone. Reading this thread made me want to do something about mine lol but I honestly can’t find anything that supports that.
>They absolutely do cause problems, including lower back pain
This. My wife has flat feet that failed to be corrected early with physiotherapy (I went to corrective gymnastics as a kid, and in my case it resolved) and by the age of 38 she already has terrible lower back pain due to a completely worn out L5/S1 intervertebral disc. She's forbidden from lifting anything heavy as it's at the point where one wrong move can cause nerve damage and put her on a wheelchair for life.
She's awaiting diagnostic MRI at the moment, but the x-ray she had shows that the disc is almost nonexistent and multiple doctors and physiotherapists commented that her lower spine looks so worn out that on the x-ray alone they'd say she's 80, not 38.
You’re probably as much of a victim as buying inappropriate shoes, and then layering them on with arches.
I have flat feet in line with the OP, and I wear wide-boxed, low-to-the-ground shoes. I have no problems whatsoever, and the only time I’ve had foot pain, is when I’m in a pair of shoes with arches.
This is unironically one of the funniest Reddit threads I've come across in awhile. The comments, pictures, gifs, all of it is just comedy gold for different reasons.
As a fellow duck-foot, I highly recommend barefoot shoes. I thought I needed arch support for years but then my feet hurt whenever I wasn't wearing shoes, and I hate wearing shoes lol. Barefoot shoes helped strengthen my whatevers such that I am now self-sufficient without artificial arches and it's great. But I'm also not yet 40 so this may change as I age.
I have high arches for a male (is there a standard) and my feet will cramp on occasion. I've also ran on gym floors barefoot on my toes and kicked a bunch of stuff.
Start wearing arch supports in your shoes...if you're having pain or dysfunction. Flat feet are more common that you think and not a guarantee you will be in pain. Google will tell you that 👍
Suction cup stompers lol but yeah fr sorry U have flat feet. A few of my pals do as well and they say their feet hurt all the time after doing some activities
This is gonna cause a whole slew of problems down the line. If you're interested in reversing this, look into toe yoga, forefoot striking when running, calf raises, wearing minimal drop shoes. Botn to Run is a great book to read, or at least look up what it's about and the main takeaways.
My mom in law had to get 3 surgeries in her late 40s because her arches were this flat and something eventually tore in each foot. I highly recommend seeing a specialist for custom arch support!
My dad has flat feet, and he's in his mid-70s. He's had to have a knee replaced, and one of his foot's arch broken and repaired (on purpose, surgery) to fix the issues he's had from his flat feet. Still needs to have both done to his other leg too, but recovery is hard. Might be worth talking to a physical therapist or, hmm podiatrist? To see if there are any protective steps you can take while you are young to prevent needing those surgeries when you are older. It's been hard watching him recover from those very difficult surgeries.
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u/Adventure_Bookworm 5h ago
Bro. That is flat foot vs normal.