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This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in March of 2023. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/LOGf-RY_fq4
Brad: Do you have low back pain? While it's widely accepted that walking is one of the best ways to treat low back pain, you need to do it properly.
Mike: Both Rick Olderman and Dr. Stewart McGill recommend this style of walking and we're going to show you some easy tricks on how to do it correctly.
Brad: Excellent job. Excellent.
Mike: According to Dr. Stewart McGill, walking correctly and at the appropriate distance is known as nature's balm for your back.
Brad: That's right. Now, as far as walking correctly, a couple of the big precursors are you're going to walk on flat surfaces, not on uneven or up and down hills. That's very critical, as well as the distance you walk. You're not going to go out and walk 10 miles and hope that that cures your back pain. It's short distances as tolerated, and we're going to show you the key parts of how to walk properly, not just a distance.
Mike: The first step is to avoid doing a hard heel strike when you're bringing your foot forward.
Brad: That's right, Mike. Most people walk like this without thinking about the heel coming down. There's a large amount of impact force that goes through the joints, particularly when the knee's fully extended, and that is experienced in the knee joint, the hip, as well as the lower back. It's one thing we want to avoid and we're going to show you how to.
Mike: So what you want to do instead is land on your forefoot, or middle foot when you land.
Brad: And you can see Mike has the heel. There's no force on the heel here. He has shortened his stride up slightly, and that helps. His knee is slightly flexed. We call this the soft knee, so the impact is minimized because of the forefoot, and the soft knee and the back are much more comfortable with this. Now, I'm going to show you another trick I like to do this without thinking about it because this is kind of hard, isn't it, Mike?
Mike: Yeah. It takes time to learn.
Brad: That's right.
Mike: So an important thing to look at when walking too is your shoes. So this shoe has a higher heel compared to the other shoe. This is a flat or minimalist shoe. So with the minimalist shoe, you're not going to want to land on your heel because it's going to be more problematic and almost painful. You're going to want to naturally land more on your forefoot, which will lead to the proper walking mechanics.
Brad: That's right. They also call them zero-drop shoes because they're even, the distance in the sole is the same in the toes as it is in the heel. So yeah, just another point.
Mike: These are minimalists, so there's not much cushioning. You can get a zero drop that still has cushioning as well.
Brad: That's what I have. Okay. I'm going to show you a neat little trick that will help you perform this forefoot walking so you don't have to think about it. I really like it, I've been using it myself. Take two-inch wide masking tape, maybe you have some at home already. It can go narrow if you want. Take some popcorn, unpopped, and put about four or five of them on the tape.
Brad: This is going to be a little different for each individual. Then you're going to go ahead and tape that on your heel. So what you're going to find out is when you pull the sock over and you're going to put that in your shoe, and when you walk and you feel those little popcorn kernels dig into your heel, it's going to be a little uncomfortable and you're going to automatically forefoot walk. Now, it's going to depend on whether you have a shoe that has a thick cushioned insert, it'll be more comfortable. If you have a thin sole like Mike has, you're going to feel it more. So that's going to vary individually depending on your shoes, et cetera.
Mike: So I've never done this before. So putting these in my shoe kind of feels like when you get a little pebble in your shoe and you're out walking and it's really a nuisance. It feels like that, but if I don't put weight down on my heel, I don't feel it. So it feels more natural. So this is going to make you automatically want to strike in your forefoot and continue through without putting your heel down on the ground. That feels like you're stepping on some Legos.
Brad: Yeah, that's popcorn. Now, I've done this throughout the day, and what happens is my calf muscles get a little tired. So you're not going to do this all day long. If you want to try this, you'll have that on for an hour or two, depending on how much walking you do. Take it off, and you'll feel the transformation come over time. It'll be like a muscle memory thing.
Mike: It feels awkward initially. It feels like you're learning to walk again, I did this a few months ago because Rick recommended it for me to engage my buttock muscles more.
Brad: But not the popcorn part.
Mike: Not the popcorn part, no, but walking on my forefoot versus my heel striking and it felt awkward for a week, and now it's becoming more normalized. I can't walk as fast yet, but it is coming along gradually.
Brad: Right. So that may sound like a lot of work, but if you want to have less back pain, and better walking mechanics that's going to save your knees, your hips, as well as your back, it's worth doing. So, very good. One thing we'd like to end this video is with...
Mike: Be healthy.
Brad: Be happy.
Mike: And be helpful.
Brad: Yeah, the three Bs.
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