Next time you’re around a bunch of people, take a look at their feet. What do you see?? Do you see ducks, pigeons…or a bit of both?? What about neutral feet…do you see any of those?? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My opinion (and this is completely unscientific) is that you’ll see a lot of ducks, a few pigeons & even fewer neutrals. So what’s the big deal? Why do we care about foot position at all? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, foot position is directly related to ankle & hip mobility. And foot position can either help or hurt your sport performance. Case in point – the flutter kick in swimming. An efficient flutter kick requires very mobile ankles which allows you to apply force against the water all the way down to the tips of your toes. Can you say “legs as fins”??? And in running, foot position is critical to keeping your knees, hips & spine injury-free. Read on!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the basics. We are vertical, land-based animals…which means we contact the ground with our feet. Since our feet are our “foundation”, the position they are in will impact our body all the way up to the top of our head. Feet that are splayed inwards or outwards will pull knees, hips, shoulders & head out of position which all negatively impact the body’s stability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we then do lots of repetitive motion sports (like running & cycling) with our feet in duck or pigeon positions, our bodies make specific compromises to create needed stability. These compromises take a toll on our joints & connective tissues by weakening them & increasing the speed at which they ultimately wear out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When feet are turned outward (duck feet), the body compensates & creates stability in the following ways:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Arches collapse inward<\/li>
2. Ankles cave inward<\/li>
3. Knees also cave inward<\/li>
4. When the knees fall inward, quad ligaments pull the patella (kneecap) out of alignment<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

   Typical problems that come from duck feet are: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

   • Achilles’ tendonitis<\/li>
   • Knee pain like patella tendinitis. <\/li>
   • Hip pain<\/li>
   • Low back pain<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n

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