Good Morning! Happy Monday!

Question of the day. When you are showering, do you wash your feet or do you let the soap rinsing off your body do the work to clean your feet? If your answer is the latter, take a sniff of your socks before you shower, your feet might need a scrub.

If your answer is the former, then great! You take great care of your feet. And that care for your feet should translate over to training and rehabilitation as well because your feet play a big role in body function. Today I will be going over another book I’ve read this off season, What The Foot?

*The injuries discussed in this newsletter are for general educational purposes only. I am not affiliated with the athlete’s medical team, and the information shared does not reflect any insider or team medical details. Specifics about the injury are often unavailable, which can significantly influence the estimated timeline for return to play.

“What The Foot?” by Gary Ward changed my whole vision of the athlete. I look at them all differently, constantly assessing them as a whole when they are on the field, in rehab, in the weight room, and even walking the halls of the facility. The book brings a holistic philosophy on human movement. He argues that the feet are the foundation for the body’s entire alignment and function, and is very compelling.

Prior to reading this book, I believed that rehab for athletes should address the athlete as a whole. After reading this book, I learned what to evaluate and how to apply that belief. If you agree with this belief, I highly recommend picking up this book, but for now, I’ll give you a rundown of the book’s main points and how you can apply it to become a better Therapist, Trainer, or Athlete.

One of the first things Gary talks about in this book is if inhibition is removed, than potential increases. And when you really sit down and think about this statement, it makes perfect sense. If I can’t access something, how can I use it? So the first step is being able to access certain positions (mobility).

However, just because the athlete is mobile, does not mean they automatically can access those muscles in different positions. One barrier that is holding many athletes back is training in neutral position. For example, if we start all exercises from a neutral position or a safe knee over toe position, then they will only be strong in those positions. But a big problem is, these safe positions often aren’t the positions athletes are getting injured in. Often times, injuries occur in an uncomfortable position for the athlete. Therefore, once being able to access those mobile and out of neutral positions, then creating strength and stability there will enable them to become more resilient.

Gary then goes into Rants, contrary thinking. Below is a list of the rants, and only a list, because I urge you to pick up this book and give it a read to truly understand his point of view as to why he thinks the way he does.

*Due to my professional association with the Atlanta Falcons during preseason and my current role with the Florida State Seminoles, I will not provide educational content or commentary on any injuries within these programs during or after the season.

Gary Ward talks about 5 big rules of motion.

The First rule is muscles lengthen before they contract. Within eccentric contractions, the muscle develops the most potential and power. Eccentric motion is the defensive motion to control the separation of two parts. The stronger this motion, the less risk for injury. In daily life, the muscle moves from one passive insufficient position to an active insufficient position. Therefore, programming movements should replicate this rather than starting from neutral.

The Second rule is joints act and muscles react. He states the skeleton is the cause of muscle inhibition. The tighter the muscle is the less distance it will allow a joint to travel. Therefore, resulting in more motion at another joint to compensate the inhibited motion.

The Third rule is everything orbits around the center. Center is a key concept for understanding movement. Center is a complex arrangement of our center of mass, base of support, and a perception of the way we are. It is key to help the body find this center on a consistent basis. Wherever the center of mass goes, the body follows.

The Fourth rule is Perceived center dictates movement, posture, pain, and potential. When your perception of center is center itself, then your movement, your posture and your potential are maximized and your pain and inhibitions are minimized. Within this fourth rule, he dives into over-pronated feet (flat feet). The response up the chain is significant, but specifically it deactivates the glutes. Which is very important, because when running, cadence meets a maximum speed, the difference between an old lady and an elite sprinter is the amount of force produced during foot contact which comes from the glutes (another reason why knee should be slightly bent during foot contact in sprinting).

The Fifth rule is perfection is hardwired and pre-installed. There is only one place in the body where tension is eliminated from the system, center. Zero tension means there is balance and equalized tension throughout the system.

Finally, the book goes into depth about the Foot. Often, an area that is forgotten or overlooked by therapist and performance specialist. He states that feet act and the body reacts. He goes into the details of pronated feet and supinated feet and how they affect up the chain. He also dives into the windlass mechanism, the flexor hallicus longus, the one muscle that holds up the entire body.

I highly recommend picking up this book early on in your career to change the way you look at athletes. In addition, I hope you think twice about just letting the soap rinse down to your feet, and instead give them a scrub!