If it Walks like a Duck...?
by Allison Suran, BS, PT

Most people have never really thought about how they walk unless they've been told that they're "pigeon-toed or that they "walk like a duck". Most folks just walk and assume it's working because they are able to get from point A to B without any difficulty. That is, until wear and tear breakdown of poor movement patterns showing up in their adult years. For some people it can occur in their back or neck. While others may feel it in the shoulders, hips, or knees. Although some of these aches and pains may interfere with walking, one might never consider that it may be HOW they walk is influencing or causing these aches and pains, unless the pain is in their feet.

When the feet hit the ground, everything changes! This is the title of a course offered to physical therapists, and it couldn't be more accurate. The truth is that our feet were designed to be walking on a three dimensional surface (the earth), without the consistency and one-dimensionality of pavement and flooring, and uninhibited by shoes with stiff soles and increasingly supportive insoles. Our ancestors also engaged in a variety of movements which went beyond forward walking. For these early hunter-gatherers, there were more lateral, side to side movements included in their day to day activities which helped maintain balanced strength and musculature through their feet, legs and backs.

From the time you were born, you learned how to walk through the influences of your environment - which usually meant flat floors, shoes for walking outdoors, and mimicking your parent's patterns of movement. Our current environment is wrought with such opportunities for developing poor walking patterns. These patterns may contribute to your aches, pains and injuries, or may be interfering with effective recovery from an accident. These patterns may also make one more vulnerable to injury due to the weaknesses and imbalances that have developed over the years. Effective corrections can be as simple as going out for a walk - with a new awareness and ability to pay attention to old patterns while playing with new possibilities.

Although most corrections should be individualized to each person or patient, I have noticed some generalities about healthy gait (or walking) patterns.

Let me recommend that as I describe these movements, you stop, play and explore to discover each of them for yourself. Initially, each foot goes through 3 very basic phases each time they hit the ground:

Ah, if it were all just that simple, you'd be home free. Let me point out some common errors and corrections in each of these phases. As you read these, I encourage you not to try them all at once. You may be overwhelmed and will give up! Instead, pick one or two, play around with them for a while, then add in another strategy.

Finally, a common walking error is a tendency to lean a bit backwards, or hold the trunk a bit behind the pelvis. This is called, "sitting in the hips". This interrupts good back alignment and will place undo strain anywhere along the kinetic chain: Foot bone's connected to the leg bones, connected to the back bones, connected to the shoulders and neck, etc…

Below are some additional tips for correcting this which could be applied during the Push-Off phase:

This is by no means a comprehensive description of all the things that go into healthy walking, but it is probably more than enough new information to get you started with your own healthy walking discoveries. (For more information, see reference at end of article).

As both a Feldenkrais Practitioner and a Physical Therapist, I wear two distinct hats. The P.T. in me gives you the parameters for healthy gait correction. The Feldenkrais practitioner in me encourages you to be playful, explore, notice how it feels when you use your feet and trunk in different ways, and come to your own conclusions through healthy explorations of what feels good, strong, and supportive for your body.

It's also useful to know that no one will ever get it "perfect", and there's always more to learn. The choice to notice, explore and play gives your muscles, tendons and tissues variety and helps keep the wear and tear breakdown at bay. Enjoy your new walk, even if, just to see what it feels like and compare different strategies, it means playfully walking like a duck.

Reference: Walk Yourself Well by Sherry Brourman, PT

To use your brain to combat pain. In this first session, the foundation of the series, you will learn how pain lives in both your body and your brain. No, your pain isn't all in your head. But the latest research proves that your brain does have the power to minimize or maximize it though the chemicals it releases into the rest of your body.

Week 2

Stress actually feeds your pain. Once you're caught in a cycle of pain, your brain will generate and exacerbate that pain experience when stress is added to the mix. You can learn to de-program that stress response and replace it with healthy habits that bring relief.

Week 3

Food choices help your body minimize pain. Research shows that your gut actually works as a second brain, releasing chemicals that influence your pain. Certain foods accelerate the release of pain-fighting endorphins. Other foods work against you.

Russell Delman returns!

Embodied Life
Weekend workshop:
May 21-22, 2011
St. Charles Health and Learning Center
Bend, OR 97702

Embodied Life
Week-long workshop
May 23-27, 2011
Breitenbush, OR

Information about the workshops is
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