Category Archives: feet

The One Concept Central to Them All

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Asymmetry.  Up Leg.  Compression.  Push Down.  Space.  Rotational Organization.  These all describe the physics of one half of the body accepting load, and one half of the body avoiding load.  The first time I wrote about this, I referred to… Read more ›

Christine
Adarian Barr, asymmetry, balance, compression, concepts, connection, coordination, down leg, feet, joints, Mental, mobility, movement, Nicole Uno, observe, pelvis, perspective, Physical, posture, pressure, problem solving, ribs, rotation, tension, up leg, xiphoid

The Pigeon Toe: Friend or Foe?

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Oh, the mighty pigeon toe.  Such a strange little insurgent, and yet, it exists peacefully all around us.  Where does it come from and how does it form?  Does it afflict one leg or both?  Is it the tibia or… Read more ›

Christine
abduction, acl, Adarian Barr, ankles, arches, calf, coordination, feet, fifth metacarpal, first metatarsal, flexion, hamstrings, heel, joints, mobility, pelvic floor, pelvis, Physical, pressure, rotation, shins, technique, tension, tibia

A Different Way to Use, Train, & Treat the Knee (Part 2)

Knee2

In part 1, I suggested that using the knee as gas instead of brakes could help free up the knee for motion and elicit the hips and ankle-foot as stabilizers.  For folks with chronic pain, however, their nervous system likely… Read more ›

Christine
acl, ankles, compression, coordination, feet, hamstrings, heel, hips, learning, load, motor control, motor learning, movement, pain, pelvis, posture, pressure, problem solving, technique, tension, tibia, toes

A Different Way to Use, Train, & Treat the Knee (Part 1)

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There are three hinges on the feature photo door.  It’s a strong front door, solid and meant to take some battering.  The cheaper, lighter, all-have-problems-closing-and-opening doors inside the house have only two hinges.  Weight-load divided by two, or weight-load divided… Read more ›

Christine
acl, assessment, back pain, calf, down leg, extension, feet, flexion, glutes, gravity, hamstrings, heel, hip extension, hips, joints, knees, pain, pelvic floor, Physical, pressure, problem solving, relax, shins, squat, stability, technique, tension, tibia, toes, up leg

Why the Bricks Are Genius

Bricks

While walking through the streets of Europe last Spring, Adarian Barr wondered why his feet felt so good.  He traced it back to the cobblestones.  The lift, the variability, the multiple points of potential folding.  This was the impetus behind… Read more ›

Christine
Adarian Barr, ankles, arches, feet, fifth metacarpal, foot, gravity, isometric, joints, load, motor learning, movement, pinky, rotation, shins, squat, stability, technique, tension, tibia, toes

Up Leg, Down Leg, and Arches Preference

Fp

Pairs.  Roles.  Asymmetry.  The body knows and the body has ways.  Understanding the differences between the halves helps you appreciate them.  One side isn’t ‘good’.  The other isn’t ‘bad’.  They hold a function within the system. Here’s a big picture… Read more ›

Christine
Adarian Barr, ankles, arches, coordination, feet, fifth metacarpal, foot, glutes, heel, joints, motor learning, movement, Physical, rotation, shins, technique, tibia, toes

Coming Together

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Flexion and extension.  Compression and Suspension.  There are pairs that govern movement, both globally and locally.  The system and its parts act to pull apart and come together.  Posture, moving fast, and any sort of training or exercise is versed… Read more ›

Christine
Adarian Barr, compression, coordination, core, crawls, dynamic, extension, fast, feet, flexion, hamstrings, hands, heel, joints, jump, Physical, posture, power, pulls, reflexes, ribs, sprint, squat, technique, tension, xiphoid

Suspension & Compression

Suspend

This piece serves as the follow up to How To Push Down.   When we are talking about compression, we are also talking about tension.  It is the interaction of these two push-pulls that creates suspension.  Otherwise everything would collapse. … Read more ›

Christine
Adarian Barr, arches, balance, compression, coordination, core, extension, feet, flexion, gravity, hamstrings, hinge, hips, joints, knees, load, pelvis, posture, rotation, shins, spine, squat, tension, xiphoid

Calming an Irritation (Fixing a Foot-Hip)

Jenga

This post serves as a follow up to: A Path Towards Harm.  Otherwise titled: The things I did wrong when I didn’t pay attention or have compassionate patience.   The tag to this blog used to read, “fix yourself.”  But… Read more ›

Christine
abduction, ankles, arches, assessment, awareness, balance, compression, concepts, connection, control, coordination, core, dorsiflexion, elbows, feet, glutes, hamstrings, heal, hips, joints, knees, learning, mobility, motor control, motor learning, movement, Nicole Uno, pain, pelvis, perspective, posture, problem solving, relax, ribs, rotation, scapula, shins, shoulder, squat, stability, technique, tension, toes

A Path Towards Harm

Eggsmash

Some context.  I have been learning to be sensitive to signals of and mitigate pain for about a decade now.  My training revolves around feeling things out, noticing any off-ness, spending some time and attention there, and finishing the session… Read more ›

Christine
anxiety, assessment, compression, connection, feeling, feet, foot, glutes, hamstrings, heal, knees, learning, load, Mental, pain, pelvis, perspective, power, problem solving, reflexes, shortfoot, squat, stability, tension

Pain: Solutions Based on Self-Study

Si

This hurts.   The most common reaction is to stop using it or doing that.  It’s even the advice of many medical professionals.  Rest, it is assumed, is a cure all.  But what happens when this magic pill doesn’t work?  When… Read more ›

Christine
anxiety, assessment, awareness, back pain, confidence, control, coordination, environment, feet, gravity, knees, learning, Mental, mobility, motor control, pain, perspective, posture, problem solving, relax, rotation, technique, tension

Knee Findings: Hinges and Rotation

Kneepistol

  Joint ‘popping’ is a curious thing.  It alarms without hurting.  Especially when you realize it wasn’t there before.  You notice something is different when you do that particular thing in that particular way.  The different becomes ‘less than’ when… Read more ›

Christine
acl, ankles, balance, extension, feet, hamstrings, hip extension, hips, joints, knees, lunge, motor learning, movement, pain, Physical, problem solving, rotation, squat, stability, technique, tibia, toes

The World of Fighting Monkey (part 1)

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Doing without knowing.  Playing, creating, learning.  Adjusting and adapting.  Describing Fighting Monkey is an act in organizing verbs.  Everything overlaps and intertwines and is a wonder.  The only certainty you are left with is that you have experienced something good… Read more ›

Christine
awareness, balance, beginning, coaching, concepts, conditioning, confidence, control, cooperation, coordination, core, creativity, developmental, dynamic, environment, feet, fighting monkey, grips, knees, Mental, mobility, motor control, motor learning, movement, perspective, Physical, play, problem solving, relax, rotation, stability, technique, tension, workshop

The Toes!

The more I work with folks to teach proper foot function, the more I am drawn to the toes.  Arching, gripping, and pushing are toe driven movements.  The toes feel and sense the ground, giving it’s feedback to the feet… Read more ›

Christine
feet, Physical, toes