Getting Help With My Feet

As a runner, you put your feet through a lot of hard work. It's important to take especially good care of your feet when you're a runner, because otherwise, you risk injury, damage to your feet, and chronic pain that will not only put an end to your love of running but possibly affect your mobility and overall health. Luckily, there are things you can do to prevent problems with your feet and keep them comfortable and healthy. Here are three foot care tips especially for runners:

Wear the Right Shoes

Investing in high-quality running shoes can make a huge difference in how comfortable and protected your feet are when running. In addition to quality, the proper fit is very important, as running shoes that are too tight can cause painful calluses, corns, or other conditions, and shoes that are too loose lead to friction, blisters, and potential injuries such as sprained ankles. Your best option is to buy your running shoes from a specialty running shoe and supply store, with on-site experts to help you find the perfect fit for your foot and gait.

Ice and Elevate after Runs

Spending time resting your feet and legs after a long run goes a long way toward preventing injuries and damage to your feet. When scheduling a run, make sure to plan on an extra twenty minutes or so resting afterward. It's a good idea to elevate your feet to prevent swelling and ice them to prevent injuries and pain. Consider this a well-earned break after your hard work.

Know When to See a Podiatrist

If you are wearing the right footwear and icing and elevating your feet after long runs, you shouldn't experience much foot pain, and whatever pain you do experience should go away quickly. If you are instead dealing with frequent pain, or have developed symptoms of calluses, corns, runner's heel, or other painful foot conditions, it's time to see a podiatrist.

A skilled podiatrist will not only treat your current condition but give you advice for preventing future foot pain. If needed, they will even have special custom inserts made for your running shoes to provide your feet with extra cushion and protection from friction when running. 

When you take great care of your feet, they take great care of you, and you can enjoy running comfortably and in good health for a long time to come. Contact a medical center like Advanced Foot Clinic for more information and assistance.