Younger Longer: Baby Those Feet

Hole 18  at the Trails in Norman with a newly created water hole in the middle of the fairway.

The Fitbit clicked 10,000 steps as I stepped onto the 10th tee. (I did take the dog for a short walk before playing golf that day, so perhaps I should rethink my daily habits.)  Staring at nine more wet holes of cart path only golf,  I looked at my feet and sang, "Baby the rain must fall, baby the wind must blow, wherever my shot leads me, that's where I must go..." I don't imagine that Glenn Yarbrough would be too pleased with my rendition of his song  Baby the Rain Must Fall (click here for the original song), but I enjoying singing while playing golf so that my brain relaxes, and I don't think about my tired feet.

AND BABY THE RAINS HAVE BEEN FALLING

Normally, riding a golf cart and walking on a dry day relates to about 7,000 steps, but for the last month we've been experiencing a tremendous amount of rain, and our golf courses are feeling the effects, and so are our feet, knees, and hips. Obviously, many of us are not in shape for playing walking sloshing golf that the Fitbit says is 14,000+ steps.

Since I know my feet are going to be tired, even though I wear inserts,  I am learning to care for my feet in the evenings by soaking them in Epsom salts. My feet begin to tickle and giggle when the aches wash away. Perhaps the most important step I take is to roll my feet every morning and often at night. The rolling gives me the chance for a free foot massage and to actually release some of the tight knots that build up with lactic acid and inflammation.

First, select the level of pain you want experience, or the level of comfort that your souls want to feel.

The golf ball is the hardest, but will cut into a pained knot or plantar fasciitis quickly. 

The pink ball is a racquetball size and the in between for soft exterior and firm inside.

I prefer the softer rubber ball or tennis ball because of the texture and relief.  

If I stand to roll my feet I make sure I am holding a door frame or chair, so that balance does not become an issue. Most often I sit and bend forward so I can put more weight on my foot when needed. I start on the top inside of my right foot, rolling is back and forth downward toward my heel, then around the heel and back up the other side.

 If I feel a sore place then I stop and concentrate on that one place by applying more pressure and rolling it slightly back and forth.

Another explanation can be found on the following websites:

Foot Rolling

The MELT method is the most detailed





Our feet play a vital role in the overall health of our body, and need to be treated like other muscles in our body--warm up the ankles and feet by rolling in circles before even getting out of bed.  Stretch them along with the calf or hamstring stretches before and after walking.

You may have noticed that my big toe has begun to move inward forcing the 2nd toe to cross it. It is commonly called 'hammer toes' and can be quite painful. That's one reason I wear professionally built inserts and toe spacers.  While writing this and researching foot rolling, I discovered this video on relaxing and stretching the toes. She's correct, I can barely get my fingers between my toes, but oh baby, did it feet good.   I can hardly wait to relax outside tonight by skipping barefoot through the wet grasses and then while sitting on the patio I will put my fingers between the toes to stretch and relax them.

It's almost like the care we give babies to hear them giggle and wiggle their bare feet.  Unlike babies we are now totally responsible for taking care of ourselves, so start soaking those feet and priming them for the next walk in the park. 

Getting Better all the Time

My first thirty years were spent living as if I were invincible.  Only my heart seemed to be broken in those years, and broken over and over until the tears began to dry.  My scars showed openly from childhood falls and stitches, while the inward scars slowly healed, and were eventually soothed with a deep abiding love and a houseful of growing children.

Tuck the tummy!

The next thirty some years were spent raising children, sharing my love of literature with the world, becoming a writer, an LPGA teaching pro, and adjusting to those "Senior years".  All the while my back ached until one day I saw myself in a mirror hunched over like an old woman.  That couldn't be me, I thought, because I had worked out by lifting weights, walking, swimming, keeping my weight at a minimum, but there I was bent and constantly fighting pain.  Besides doing my best to keep myself in shape over the years, I swallowed many Excedrin's, muscle relaxers, Advil, and now Tylenol; visited the chiropractor frequently;  learned to apply ice to pain or biofreeze to warm up the muscles.  Massages and hot tub relaxing and stretching allowed me relief for hours at a time.  Then it became so painful I spent three summers visiting rehab, and when at last the neurosurgeon said, "Stay active as long as you can, because surgery will immobilize you."  I took a serious look at my future.

I was fortunate to have a physical therapist who recommended Pilates.  I had discovered through rehab that one simple strength training pose "the Plank" awarded me with a stronger core, but I needed more. At the tender age of sixty-two I began Stott's Pilates using the "reformer" and "cadillac" equipment of a trained Pilates instructor, Karen Larimore.  Within months my back pain was fading and a smile rose from within as I walked my dog, and swung a golf club. Two trips that spring to the desert helped to build my confidence that 'maybe' just maybe my back might be strong enough to play one more year of golf!

Stretch and Tuck.

Then one day Karen announced that she was selling her equipment, and I would have to find another place, another path!  Luckily, Abby Hurst opened "Core Connections" within the month, and I followed right along with a new personal trainer.  It's only been a year and a half, and my strength from head to toe has increased, I stand tall with shoulders back, my belly fat is shrinking (yeah), and my confidence in my backswing and "follow through" has increased.  Even though I'm 64, thanks to Pilates, I'm getting better all the time.