Stand Strong Blog

Even the thought of effective foot exercises is perhaps something that should be discussed. Many would be inclined to deny that supplementary strength and movement therapy are even necessary for most. Sure, perhaps a short course in physical therapy after an injury or surgical intervention; but dancers or gymnasts most of us are not. 

So why does it feel so good to move the feet. Full of nerve endings and beginnings, the sole of the foot has been called a mobile adaptor. Plus, a rhythmic sequence of movement is so soothing to our overactive (sympathetic) nervous systems; the body moves in such a way as to allow the mind to disengage, relax and recharge. 

The Stand Strong® arch is a dynamic arch motivator; it doesn't have the strength to act as a brace or limit motion. By distilling the essentials of arch support down to the bare minimum, the foot structure "self- positions" into a more effective and efficient alignment. Sometimes causing postural fatigue, reactionary inflammation in muscles and joints from their new found foray into freedom of motion. 

No discussion of foot arches is complete without mentioning the cuboid bone. The keystone of most arches resembles a cube; this is the apex of function, the top of the arch and heap big important fulcrum around which several big foot functions occur. A big topic deserving its own forum.

Again, the "big 3" that your Stand Strong Arch addresses are:

While simple to apply, little tweaks in the position of  your Stand Strong® arch support can provide greater relief and increase your feeling of cushion. 

Happy walking in pain free beauty. ✨️ 

Dr Stand Strong 

Inflammation. Owies and sore spots. Toes, heel, arch who knew. Most chronic foot pain is caused by chronic misalignments; ankles, knees, my low back. Or, your arches are out of round. There are several foot arches commonly described in the literature; unfortunately there's not a lot of agreement regarding their functional }importance. 🦶😫👣💥🔄

The ball of your foot hurts. Sometimes you can pop the painful area into relief; it's usually a nerve getting pinched between two metatarsal bones. The ball of your foot has lost its arch and spring, as your foot has gotten wider and flatter. Stand Strong® arch helps to coax an arch into your foot.

But sometimes you'll feel pain from the arch support. 😖 Usually, it's as simple as repositioning the ball of foot support into a comfort zone of your foot. 🩰👣 Other times, there may be so much built up pain, stiffness, and aggravation that one should first use a pain reliever - topically, orally, massage, and physical therapy - to calm your foot pain DOWN. 💊🌡️💆‍♂️

Gradually, over a period of weeks, your feet and legs will welcome the improved alignment and function the Stand Strong® arch offers. 🕒🦶 If your tissues are stubborn like mine, that self-improvement process may take 3 or 4 weeks to get max enjoyment. 📅🌟

Keep On Standing Strong! 💪🦵 Dr. Stand Strong 🩺👨‍⚕️

Foot pain knows no social class, race, or gender. Some of us have more foot pain than others, yet we don’t have to ask too far to find people who have their share of foot issues.

While podiatrists may treat more advanced foot pain disorders, with complicating factors like diabetes or neuropathy to contend with-there are still lessons we can all learn from understanding common foot pain causes. While yours truly, Dr. Stand Strong, inherited a foot affecting neurological condition called Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disorder-many of the symptoms of that nerve disease are just magnified examples of the more common, run of the mill foot problems suffered by otherwise healthy and active women.

As a podiatrist with CMT, it is heartening to hear someone famous like American singer and songwriter Alan Jackson also inherited CMT.  Balance issues, foot deformity, and difficulty wearing normal shoes (or even cowboy boots) are all daily facts of life for this tribe.  And, the development of the Stand Strong® Arch was driven by studying how to decrease foot related pressure points (many causing callouses or corns), and helping to achieve a well aligned foot and leg-leading to better balance and less low back, hip and knee pains.

While a progressive disease like CMT oftentimes leaves the individual with profound weakness and loss of sensation in the foot and lower leg, even the common treatments like bracing with an “AFO”, or ankle foot orthoses can cause secondary pressure points, pain, and even ulceration of the skin from chronic rubbing or poor fitting rigid orthoses.

The Stand Strong® arch is designed to minimize excess pressure points on isolated areas of the foot. Many of us have felt pain in one area of the ball of the foot, for example. Proper placement of this stick on arch support can relieve the pressure, and help the pain because of that. Please let us know your experience with this novel remedy!

Keep On Standing Strong!
Dr. Stand Strong

Hello fellow Stand Strong warrior! You are to be commended in taking care of your foot pain. 

Stand Strong® Arch Supports are "In Step With The Way You Live"!

Your Stand Strong® arches help to balance and realign not only the foot, but also the way in which your leg muscles help support and direct your foot posture and motion during walking and running. Many of our women have suffered for YEARS with foot and ankle pain, before finding the Stand Strong® arch.

First, play with the positioning of the narrow end of the support on the ball of your foot. You will likely find that some areas are quite tender, and you want the arch support to “offload” that area, that is-move your weight bearing pressure to areas that AREN’T sore. If not properly positioned, the metatarsal support (narrow end) can actually increase your pain. Generally speaking, you want the support centered behind your middle toe, in the center of your ball of foot region. Also please note: moving the support forward or back just a few millimeters can make a big difference as well.

Check out this video on proper placement:

Some feet adjust faster than others to the correction. Take your time, and wear the support for just an hour or two the first day you get them. Sometimes the heel is sore, and adjusting the positioning of the support can make a real difference right out of the box!

Oftentimes, you will feel the leg or even your knee adjust to the supports. This is generally a GOOD thing, but let your body have a break and don’t expect instant results. After years of misalignment, most women will need a few days to a few weeks to feel the full effect of the balance and support features of the Stand Strong® arch.

We are excited to hear from you, and welcome testimonials of all types. Let your voice be heard for all women, and let’s help you and others like you to Walk in Beauty!

Sincerely,
Dr. Stand Strong

Hello! And welcome to the Stand Strong tribe; we so appreciate you being part of our forward thinking foot pain relief family!

Sometimes, I notice my arches not sticking as well as they once did. This could be for several reasons-so let’s get started and make sure you’ve got the adhesion you want and need for all your daily activities.

Most common reason: not proper daily washing of the arch support gel. We recommend that you wash the devices as soon as you remove them from your feet.

First, rinse the sticky sides of the arch supports with warm water. Then, apply a few drops of the Stand Clean™ wash solution -to one side and use your finger or the pink sponge to distribute on the whole surface of the first gel sticky side.

Then, put the two wet, sticky sides together and “rub a dub-dub” paying particular attention to any dirty areas, or places where sock lint, or other materials have stuck to the gel. You may need to manually pull off large pieces of lint or hair while it’s wet, but the two sticky sides work in unison to make your Stand Strong® arches glow with as new shine and stickiness. Let the cloth side dry before wearing, and you’re ready for action!

Second most common reason? Not washing the bottoms of your feet daily, or using a moisturizer on the bottom before applying the Stand Strong® arch to your foot. Some skin types have more retained oils in them, making the naturally sticky gel not adhere as well as we’d like.

The special gel we’re using for the supports is sticky because of a phenomenon called “surface energy” which means that the tackiness (stickiness) is always present, but may be covered up by dirt, or by skin surface oils or moisturizers.

Here’s a short video demonstrating the washing technique.

Thanks again, and please post your thoughts and send us videos or other testimonials. We love hearing from our Stand Strong Women!

Sincerely, Dr. Stand Strong

The other reason Stand Strong® arches stick to your feet is that all of our users have magnetic personalities! 😉👣✨