The exercises of some martial arts are suitable for adults who have flat feet deformity but no time and no habit to walk barefoot. Such persons will strengthen their feet muscles and greatly alleviate the existing problems. Strengthening your foot muscles and eliminating flat foot deformation is a long-lasting process so that a person should have patience as well as exercise willpower. There is no need to give up exercising because some doctors say the exercises can only slightly alleviate the adult flat foot condition. In practice, things are different. Although it will take a long time, depending on the degree of deformation, the condition of the practitioner's feet deformation can be greatly improved. There has been really great improvement of the condition of many adults. Many people who have experienced a significant improvement of flat feet deformity practiced yoga, and a significant improvement has been also found in those who practiced some of the eastern martial arts skills. Frequent walking barefoot, as well as striking leg kicks, with raising or bending the toes, as well as balancing on one foot (lifting the body on tiptoe) such as for instance in some judo throws (or in sumo, ju-jutsu, too)- all of them strengthen the foot.
Ancient Techniques for Treating Various Health Issues with Foot Massage
The first information on foot massage as well as the treatment of certain health problems by pressure on certain areas on the foot were found in Asia (China, India) and date up to 3000 years BC. Ancient peoples like the Egyptians, Persians, Asirians, as well as the ancient Greeks and Romans, knew various foot massage techniques. There is a well-known note on foot massage from the pharaonic doctor Ankhamor from the 2330 BC. Foot massage was also described by the legendary Greek physician Hippocrates (460-377 BC), as well as the famous Arabic physician and philosopher Avicenna (979-1037). Not long ago there was a US scientist called William H. Fitzgerald (1872 - 1942), who studied ancient methods of treatment by certain pressure and foot massage, used by American Indians in both North and South America. Interestingly enough, almost the same methods of massage as well as pressure treatment were used in old China, India,Thailand, in old Japan,too.
The Japanese have the popular shiatsu (shiatzu) massage - foot massage performed by pressing certain foot areas with fingers (shi-fingers, atzu-press).
Ayurvedic massage has come from India as well as a special padabhyanga foot massage, while the American scientist Fitzgerald called his method of foot massage therapy - reflexology.
Obviously, the ancient doctors knew about the usefulness of well-developed foot muscles as well as the importance of a proper foot appearance. It was known to them that the foot consists of 26 smaller bones connected with 33 joints, and a multitude of muscles, ligaments and tendons that join them together. On the feet there are also about seven thousand nerve endings associated with all parts of the body.
All of the above facts were known by ancient masters of various martial arts who were well acquainted with the man's anatomy as well as treatment methods, but also various kinds of massage, as well as the massage by pressure on certain parts of the foot. Chinese martial arts specialists agree that knowledge of massage and the skill of its use in China, is as old as Chinese martial arts. The importance of massage on certain parts of the foot is so significant that there is a central point on the foot, considered to be the key to recovery after effort, in China known as - Yong quan, in Japan known as - KI (inner energy).
It is certain that the old masters of martial arts knew a lot about the human body as well as about the importance of strengthening the foot muscles.