Minimize the Damage Caused by High Heels With WBV
Look at the picture below, and tell me what you see there: a great pair of Louboutins, or the legs of a woman who’s surely in great pain after walking for 10 minutes?
The fashion or esthetic benefits of high heels do not outweigh the damage these shoes cause to our entire body. You might be tempted to think it’s just your feet that are affected by the regular wear of heels, but if you analyze your posture while walking on heels, and you think of how swollen and painful your calves are after a day spent on stilettos, you’ll understand that these fashion items aren’t really worth the trade-off.
High heels are responsible for:
1. Muscle imbalances and posture problems
High heels put your body in an unnatural and poorly aligned position, causing an increased tension in the spine and making it more likely for your back to become deformed – lordosis and scoliosis can be caused or worsen by the daily wear of high heels. Due to the uneven distribution of forces, some muscles become shortened while others are lengthened, and this leads to imbalances and an unhealthy posture.
Shoes with high heels put your feet in a plantarflexed position, which shortens the calf muscles and weakening the ankle muscles. The feet becomes unable to maintain its natural arch, and plantar fasciitis occurs. Also, ankles become more unstable and this increases the load on knees as well, leading to a higher risk of knee injuries.
2. Back, hip and joint pain
The poor postural alignment means not only an increased risk of spine deformities, but also back pain and hip pain. Joints in the toes and on the balls of the feel can become irritated if heels are worn all the time, resulting in intense pain. The higher load on knees and the unstable ankles cause hips instability, and this translates into a higher load on the lower back muscles as well. In other words, the misalignment caused by high heels affects the entire body, leading to excess tension and pain.
3. Constricting the blood vessels in legs and causing swelling, poor circulation and pain
By putting the feet into an unnatural position and squeezing the toes, heels can constrict the blood vessels, leading to circulation problems and pain. The blood flow is impaired and so is the lymph circulation, so most women wearing high heels end up with swollen feet and puffy ankles. Moreover, the tiny and sensitive blood vessels can break, causing more severe issues in the long run.
4. Ingrown toenails and hammertoes
High heels put a lot of pressure on your toes, which are kept in an unnatural position and forced against the front of the shoes. This not only increases pain, but can also cause deformities such as hammertoes, and can increase the risk of ingrown toenails. Corns and calluses are also very likely to occur in heels wearers.
5. Neuroma
The excessive load on feet compresses the nerve tissues, irritating them and causing their thickening. This painful condition is called neuroma and can lead to permanent nerve damage. Besides the discomfort caused by neuroma, a burning sensation, numbness of the toes and tingling of feet can also be experienced.
6. Sprains and fractures
Wearing a high heels isn’t the easiest thing, and the risk of fractured, twisted or sprained ankles increases with the heel’s height. Moreover, as women age, the risk of breaks in the leg bones gets higher, due to the decreasing bone density.
WBV can minimize the problems caused by high heels
Switching to a more comfortable type of shoes is the first thing you should consider in order to relieve the pain and prevent the damage high heels can cause to your body in the long run. Still, if your job requires you to wear heels on a daily basis, you can minimize some of the issues caused by this type of footwear with the help of your Hypervibe whole body vibration machine.
As you surely know, WBV training is useful in strengthening the muscles and toning them, so it can minimize the posture problems and muscle imbalances, relaxing the painful feet and ankles at the same time.
A daily session on your WBV machine can improve circulation, as the energy waves sent by the platform stimulate the blood flow and lymph circulation. This is helpful especially if your legs get swollen after wearing heels, and if you tend to retain excessive amounts of fluids.
Depending on your position on the platform, the Hypervibe WBV machine can provide a relaxing massage to your feet, ankles, thighs, lower and upper back, relieving the discomfort and eliminating the tension from your muscles. You can also use the machine for stretching exercises, which are very useful for loosening the tense areas.
Then, whole body vibration training was proven to have positive effects on bone density, so it can help in reducing the risk of fractures. However, this form of therapy will not be able to solve the other potential problems caused by wearing high heels on a regular basis, so you should try to either limit the wear of heels or alternate your footwear choice throughout the day, even if you’re at the office.
Also, make sure to stretch your legs as often as possible, to wear soft insoles and to make sure your shoes are the right size, as wearing too large shoes puts even more pressure on your toes. Last, try to opt for lower heels if possible, and stay away of the pointy toe shoes. As fashionable as it may seem, wearing high heels on a daily basis can be very damaging for your body.
Did you experience any of the WBV benefits above? If you did, we’d like to hear from you! Feel free to leave your comment below, or join our community on Facebook and share your HyperVibe with us!
