Nacho's visit and his radical change

In summer many people travel and take advantage of the fact that they are close to visit us.

Like Nacho, who is from Toledo, but is spending a few days in Chipiona.

He left the beach for a few hours to tell us that he is desperate, that he has visited several clinics with no solution and that he wants a radical change.

I think Einstein said:

"If you always do the same thing, the result will be the same."

Well, that's just it. A radical change.

He arrives in the morning and says that despite his 35 years he is an old man:

"One afternoon I went for a run and in the morning I couldn't walk."

He puts his hand on his hip to imitate how he walked.

"As if my leg was made of wood," he says.

"My lower back hurts, too, and it's never happened to me before."

He speaks venting, releasing tension with every word.

He has a great need to tell his case as he has been in discomfort for months and no one is giving him a solution.

He has also lost some of his vitality. Now he feels more subdued, with less desire to do things.

He fears that something might happen to him, he feels that his body is fragile.

"I just want to run in the mountains from time to time.
I feel good when I do it, but my knees get knocked.
Besides, I have two Haglund's spurs."

He points to the back of his heel. A lump is visible.

It reminds me of my friend Antonio's cocks.

On 3 occasions he looked for a solution in the form of an insole.

Not once, not twice, but 3 times.

Perhaps thinking that the third time would be the definitive one.

On the last one he went to Madrid, in search of one of the best.

It is curious, in two clinics he was told that he had a flat foot and in another he was told that he had a foot with a lot of bridge.

Perhaps in the third one, he tried Einstein's, a radical change.

The conversation at the clinic might have been:

"Have you been told you are flat-footed?
No, quite the opposite, cavus feet".

I'm no podiatrist, but at first sight, Nacho's feet are flatter than a surfboard.

Regardless of the shape of his feet, Nacho has a problem.

His feet are very weak.

His big toes are 'disconnected' and are not able to activate the leg muscles.

So they can't balance the rest of his body.

That's why he knocks his knees.

As his feet are so weak, I try to convince him to stop running for a while.

I encourage him to walk and try barefoot.

But he does not like to do it. He says he likes to run.

This is very common. Despite the aches and pains they don't want to stop.

In a way I understand, running gives him that moment of peace, mixed with physical activity, so necessary in our times.


In one go I take off my Vivobarefoot Ultra and start to do some exercises with my feet.

He tries, but he can't.

His toes are disabled, as if they were not part of his body.
 
Only then does he become aware of his problem.

This acts as a click and changes his thinking.

He focuses on learning the exercises.

"When you walk barefoot you have to let your foot settle into the ground," I tell him.

“No rushing.”

“It's more important to feel than to do.”

“Even if it's only 3 metres.”


After a while he says goodbye.

He says that everything he takes with him is gold.

That he is excited and that he will put into practice everything he has learnt.

He knows that the road is long, but just by changing all his shoes he has done part of the work.

The famous Pareto rule.

A change of 20% leads to an improvement of 80%.

The rest to get to 100% he will have to work on it.

With foot exercises.

With daily perseverance.

20% of Nacho's change:

• Vivobarefoot Addis for everyday use

• TerraZip Pies Sucios Sandals for the summer

• Xero Shoes Daylike Fusion for your hikes in the mountains

Remember, without movement there is no life.

Health always starts with your feet.