The feet post

Feet. We love our feet. We like to have a pedicure and to paint our toenails. We put shoes on them. Sometimes, they aren't the best choice of shoes for our feet but they look good. Some ladies can dance in their high heels and look graceful. Me? Well, I can't even walk on high heels without looking as if I had far too much to drink. It causes other people's imaginations to go into overdrive because they are afraid that I will topple over and break! (Note: I am not that fragile.)

For me, shoes have to be sturdy and able to carry me for ten or more miles at a time. I make my feet work hard. It is only fair of me to reward my feet with a good pair of shoes.

So, what about feet? What makes them such a fascinating part of our bodies? 

Here are a few interesting statistics, that I got from two websites: "wonderarch.com" and "sterishoe.com." In each foot, there are:

• 26 bones. Since the human body has 206 bones and, since you have two feet, that means that about a quarter of your bones are in your feet.
• 33 joints
• more than 100 tendons, muscles, and ligaments. There are 33 muscles in the foot, which help the foot to move, 33 joints that hold the foot together, and 100 libaments that hold the bones together.
• 250,000 sweat glands (all of that sweating is probably why we get stinky feet and smelly socks)

Here is something that I didn't know: some people have more than ten toes! One of the people with extra toes is Oprah Winfrey.

Oh, and, even if you're not going for a half-marathon-type walk, you are still walking a good distance, just in every day type of walking (walking around the house, up and down stairs, walking in the store, at your job, etc.). According to the wonderarch.com website, the average person walks about four miles a day. That translates to 115,000 miles in a lifetime, which means that you are walking around the earth four times (hard to do unless you could actually walk on the oceans).

So, how do you take care of the feet that take care of you?

The best exercise for feet is walking. Take a walk, either outside or in a mall. It's a good exercise because you can do it by yourself or with friends, making it not only exercise but a social experience. It gives you the chance to explore your community and to make new friends with people and with dogs.

Dancing is also good for your feet and it has the added benefit of being fun.

Feet also benefit from flexibility exercises. Check out this website for idea of exercises for your feet: exercises for healthy feet

And remember: never do any foot exercise that hurts. This should not be painful. If it is, please get a doctor to look at your foot or feet. Your feet deserve the best of care.