Why You Want to Have Feet Like a Mountain Goat

Even if you don’t climb

Image by skeeze from Pixabay

A mother leads her kid out onto sheer mountain cliffs to teach climbing skills.

Childrearing drills for mountain goats start early, within 15 days of birth.

These animals spend their days on steep mountainous inclines and narrow ledges. Viewing these animals on this terrain is captivating and will have you gripping the edge of your chair.

Mountain goats are the elite climbers of the animal world. They thread their way up and down craggy cliff faces with ease. Mountain goats can do this because they have feet that are flexible, agile and balanced.

The healthy human foot shares these traits of flexibility, agility and balance.

Our feet differ in design as we complete our feats on flat terrain rather than steep ledges and two feet rather than four.

Foot Parts

Heels
Our heels are like a bubble-wrapped cushion of fat. The heel is the first to make contact with the ground absorbing the impact and distributing the load of the body.

Arches
We have three arches in the foot which work to distribute the weight of the body. Like a cathedral ceiling, our arches form a vault. This vault balances the weight of our body, propels us forward and absorbs the shock as our foot hits the ground. The arches, being flexible, also adapt to our running or walking surface. We may not be able to walk on water, but our feet can adjust to a rock-strewn seashore, a muddy trail or a boggy swamp.

Our arches serve a dual purpose. They are flexible when taking the weight of the body but become rigid as the foot levers to propel us forward.

Image by -Bruno/ Germany from Pixabay

Toes
We have five toes, and they should all go to market.

The toes all work together to balance our bodies and provide the push-off as we propel ourselves forward.

Our toes are designed for action, particularly the big toe.

The big toe determines our direction of travel. So, if you want to move forward but your big toe is crooked, it creates more work for your body. Other muscles and joints compensate for this pattern and can create strain in the body.

And please don’t blame Grandma for your bunion. Instead, you are likely walking like Grandma. A bunion or callous is forming on the big toe because your foot is not striking the ground or loading the way nature designed it.

You may want to look back up the chain in your body to your knee or hip joint. Do you lack range of motion? Are your hip muscles offloading their job to your big toe?

If your bunions are giving you grief, seeking the advice of a skilled therapist may be helpful.

Foot Moves

When stepping forward, the foot travels through three phases.

In the first phase, the heel strikes the ground.

The second phase continues with the foot flat position.

During this second phase, the arches come into play. The arch slackens, which allows the foot to roll in. This rolling in of the foot is called pronation. Following pronation, the arch stiffens, propelling our body weight forward.

The third phase is the push off with our toes, particularly the big toe.

You Want Pronation

You want pronation, just not too much and not too little, just right.

Foot issues can occur when there is either insufficient or excessive pronation.

The ability to pronate is, in part, dependent on the integrity of the arch.

More support for the arches of the foot comes from the muscles and tendons crossing the foot from the lower leg. Poor arch support can cause a spiral of secondary effects up the leg into the knee and hip joints.

Creating an arch with an orthotic or specialized shoe keeps the foot in a locked or rigid position. It can be a short term fix, however, over time, a foot maintained by an artificial arch can weaken.

A rigid orthotic will limit the full range of motion in the foot and toes. Like everywhere else in the body, if you don’t use motion, you lose it.

Foot Feelings

Our feet can be so darn ticklish, but that is a good thing.

The soles of your feet have multiple nerve endings like the hand. These nerve endings are the sensory relays to your brain. For example, when stepping on a wet and slick surface, that sense you get of caution allows you to pay attention to more careful foot placement. It is also why a foot massage feels soothing in mind and body.

Common Foot Ailments and What They Mean
Do you have bunions, plantar fasciitis, tendonitis, dropped metatarsals, over-pronated feet or weak ankles? Hammertoes, corns, callouses or heel spurs?

All these conditions relate to the way your weight spreads out across your foot. The way your foot is striking the ground and bearing the load.

The foot makes initial contact with the heel, moves towards a flat foot and then finishes on the toes. Any deviation from this can cause any number of foot issues.

Also, the foot relates to the rest of the body in motion; it does not work in isolation.

The way we stand on our feet affects the joints up to the knee and hip. It also works in reverse. For example, weak hip muscles will have an impact on the position of the ankle and foot striking the ground.

How To Have Feet That Work Like a Mountain Goat

1. Spend time in your bare feet every day.
2. Practise moving your ankles in circles, both clockwise and counterclockwise. Make the circles as large as possible. Creaking and grinding in these joints is natural, particularly in a stiff foot. Don’t let that stop you from moving your ankles and toes.
3. Wake up your toe motion. Standing, keeping the foot on the floor, lift your toes and separate and then press the toes into the ground. Do one foot at a time with one foot placed in front of the other for ease of the exercise.
4. If you wear high heels daily, give your feet a break and walk in flat shoes or barefoot for part of your day.
5. Aim to find flexible shoes that allow your foot a full range of motion. Be careful of slip-on shoes with no heel back, which enables you to scuff your feet along. Be wary of thong sandals, which cause your 1st and 2nd toes to jam up and hang on.
6. Keep your hip muscles strong and balanced as they affect how the foot makes contact with the ground.
7. For arch strengthening, rise up and down on your toes. Perform it in three positions. With your feet pointing straight ahead, turned out and pigeon-toed.
8. Beach walking when able, as it encourages your entire foot and lower leg to work.

Personal Image by Michael Gigliotti

Mountain goats have jaw-dropping balance and flexible, agile feet.

How about your feet?