The Barefoot Therapist

19/06/2026

*Training Session* 💞💯%

Good luck to all those doing any Ultra events in the next few weekends, and those thinking about future ones! 💪🫶🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

Some really useful concepts and SHORTER sessions for your ultra running👏👏👏
Worth a read. I've done them for years as part of my own training, great that James has pulled them together.

Oh...another tip, always aim for trig points, whether it's for hill reps, or a long slow steady climb, the view is worth the effort! 🙏💚👣



Click on the link to read more ⤵️
https://www.jamesrunsfar.com/blog/shorter-training-sessions-for-ultra-runners

18/06/2026

Are high heels bad for your feet?👠😬👠

The first and most obvious change that happens in the body when you wear high heels is that your weight is shifted from your heel onto your forefoot and research has shown that the higher the heel, the more pressure it puts on the ball of your foot (metatarsal bones).

It is this increase in pressure on the forefoot that can cause the balls of your feet to ache after a night out. Stomp et. al made 3 healthy women walk 7km in flat shoes and then in high heels on two consecutive days and MRI scanned their feet after each session.

The scans showed swelling not only under the balls of their feet, but also over the top of the metatarsal bones after walking in high heels. So, if you are struggling with pain in your forefoot or metatarsal bones, also known as metatarsalgia, you may want to ditch the high heels.👠😬👀

An older article, although still relevant to footwear and the impact on your feet, knees, back and whole biomechanical movement. ⤵️

https://www.sports-injury-physio.com/post/are-high-heels-bad-for-your-body


👠👠😬
👀😉😬

17/06/2026

IF..........
Are you a big 'Iffer' 🤔

This was posted by Tom Morrison and I thought it may resonate and help some folk....

The worst of times leave you feeling hopeless and like things are never going to change…

I don’t think that I am an overly strong person mentally, in fact, my biggest weakness is any minor inconvenience of any kind 😂😂

I panic, I worry, I get my head stuck in the future creating scenarios that will likely never happen, and yet, things have always worked out, even when things didn’t work out, there was a new path that did and I’m glad for the lessons…

I’m asked what kept me going when I was in my period of chronic pain and for giving up on everything, my main drivers were my family that was just beginning, and wanting to be able to be there for them as a pillar of strength and not a burden but ultimately what got me to where I am now was just not stopping…

I stayed in the game, even on the hardest of days, I did what I could, some days sucked more than others and some days were slightly better suck but still sucked

My vision was that if I kept trying, I was bound to happen on the things that would help at some point, right?

And things did get better, far better than I imagined possible, especially at the time.

I speak now about this stuff as a distant memory, and yet over 10 years ago I never would have believed there was a way out of the pain I was in.

I am a big “iffer”

What IF it gets worse!
What IF it stays this way forever!
What IF I’m wrong

And I can’t stop being an “iffer” I’ve found…

But I have found that IF I add more IF’s, it helps a lot

What IF it does get better?
What IF I’m one more thing away from what helps?
What IF I’m the first person in the world to overcome something impossible? There’s been lots of firsts to do alot of things haven’t there??

So if you’re an “iffer” like me, add some positive IF’s to your repertoire, I find it helps a lot, and makes me giggle at my illogical worrying IF’s

16/06/2026

Simple yet powerful....👏👏👏

When you fail, don’t make any excuses.

💪 Own it.
💪 Learn from it.
💪 Get better from it.

Elaborate narratives on why you’re OK with your failure won’t help you to grow.

Be frustrated and displeased with failure — let it motivate you to get better.

Failure is a teacher, not a friend 🙏👍💪👊


I posted this a while back, although it still stands, so I'm sharing again. 🤦‍♀️😁🤓

Last week, I didn't prep for an important "teams" meeting online, the reason being, I had tried to fit too many things into my day! The outcome was feeling that I was 'treading water' during the meeting, and just about survived! Not a good way to feel about something I would normally excel at!
The lesson l learned, was to make sure I get my priorities right, and so last night, a good read of all the agenda and supporting papers ahead of tonight's meeting, and now feeling prepared 👍.

Best head out for that early morning run now...👣👣👣👣🙏



Photo 📸 Kate🫶👏

15/06/2026

As simple as A B C 👌🦶
Ok, it's honesty time...I may be a therapist and guide, advise clients about what they CAN and CAN'T do, and then the relevant rehab to deal with their pesky ni**les or injuries. I have decades of running experience to international level, sub 3hr marathon, and 5k to 100 miles, local club to European level.
And yet despite this, at times, I can still managed to give myself a **le 😬🦶
How? 🤔 Don't worry, this is an older tip for you all, and here's how the story goes.......
Simple - busy looking at the beauty around me, and not noticing the rabbit hole !🐰🐇🌼💚🌞🌊 The weather, my own mindset and - above all - the free time I had to play☺
Cue one ankle strain, not a major 'concern' as I flicked out of it quickly.....phew!😬😓
On today's run, when I felt things starting to tighten up, I stopped and did some self-treatment straight away that helped to loosen those nagging ni**les before they turned into injuries.
So for anyone with tightness in the ankle or foot, here's a simple mobilising technique to help address issues immediately, whether on the trail, road or (whisper it....😬😱😳) on the dreadmill. 🏃‍♀️👣
So here's what we do...tune in regularly for professional guidance on how to cope if you are in the same situation. 👇
Special thanks to :
Nail varnish, to make my feet a little more interesting for the video!😁 💙💛💅

14/06/2026

? 🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️👣🤔
?

Does your leg or foot FLICK OUT? Mine does, as does my arm....however, I'm sticking with what works. This is interesting and may help you.


😁

Click below for more information ⤵️
https://www.kinetic-revolution.com/qa-why-does-my-leg-flick-out-when-i-run/

13/06/2026

🔴🟠🟢 Tendon Loading 🔴🟠🟢

Tendons respond to load. Most people already know this intuitively. What many do not realise is that tendons respond very poorly to prolonged rest, especially the kind of rest that leads to deconditioning from avoiding movement entirely.

This is one of the most consistent findings in tendon biology research, and yet it remains one of the most misunderstood concepts in everyday practice.

Complete rest weakens tendons.

Appropriate loading does the opposite. It stimulates collagen synthesis, improves tendon organisation, and gradually rebuilds the tissue capacity needed to tolerate daily life and exercise again. Tendons heal through progressive loading, not through being completely protected from movement forever.

And yet, many people immediately strap, brace, or immobilise the area because they are afraid something serious is happening or worried they will make it worse. Sometimes temporary support is necessary if symptoms are severe, but prolonged avoidance often creates a different problem: the tendon becomes less capable of handling stress once normal activity returns.

In many cases, the tendon heals better when it continues moving and receives the right amount of progressive load.

Thanks for the reminder Dr. Howard Luks 👌👏

Seek the right advice, know your own body responses, and trust your own instinct too 💪👌


Seek

12/06/2026

*HIP FLEXOR REHAB* 🦵💪✅️

🔎Anatomically, psoas major is the deepest core muscle and the only muscle that attaches the trunk to the lower limb. Love the curiosity that is the human body! 👌🤓! It runs from the vertebrae and discs of the low back (T12-L5) down to the lesser trochanter on the inside of the femur. This unique configuration allows psoas to possess the dual role of spinal stabilizer and hip flexor.

🧠If you are experiencing pain in the low back, sacroiliac joint region or hip, it is worth your time to determine whether or not addressing your hip flexors may help. This can be most easily accomplished by adding a bit of stretching and/or strengthening and then examining whether or not your symptoms improve.

1️⃣Hip Flexor Stretch: Place the leg you would like to stretch down. Before moving from this position, make sure to squeeze your abs and glutes to place the pelvis in a position of posterior tilt, which help take any slack out of the hip flexors. Lunge forward slightly without arching the low back. Hold for 15-30 seconds and repeat 2-4 times each day.

2️⃣Front Plank: The front plank creates an isometric hip flexor contraction and is a great place to begin training if have had a recent injury. Shoot for 3 repetitions and hold each one for 20 seconds.

3️⃣Straight Leg Raise: This a great low-load exercise for training the hip flexors. Keep your knee straight on the leg raise as you position yourself in a glute bridge position. Aim for 3 sets of 10-15 reps on each leg.

4️⃣Hip Flexor March: Place a mini-band around your feet and flex the affected hip as far as possible. Feel free to hold onto something, if you need to, as this is not necessarily meant to be a balance training exercise. Perform 3 sets of 12-15 reps.

🟢 Finally, I made a simple video 🎥 with instructions 💬 to follow... it's my own personal fix ✅️ for whenever I feel that tightness occurring, or the hip/pelvis area feeling out of place (easily done! 😬🙃😁). (ish) 🎵

...

11/06/2026

REHAB ALERT *Back Pain* 🤔 😬🙃



Working with a client, I found this article to be very useful for the rehab exercises I suggested. It makes sense to share it with others...especially all of you trying to stay active or return to fitness from injury....👣😊👏 .

Pain or weakness in the lower back, any restrictions with hip flexors? Then this a great little article to help strengthen the sacroiliac joint (SIJ).
Or as Syd would say.... 😼😺🐈



There are several muscles that connect to the sacrum, hip bones, or p***s bones and help support the pelvis and sacroiliac joint, including those in the groin, thighs, abdomen, and lower back. If these muscles are poorly conditioned and unable to adequately support the SI joint and pelvis, pain may develop....and usually does!! 😬

SydSnippets


Click below for the full article ⤵️
https://www.spine-health.com/wellness/exercise/strengthening-exercises-sacroiliac-joint-pain-relief

11/06/2026

Nice! 👌🏃‍♀️💪

Worth a read 📚. It turns out that women, at least highly trained women, have an edge over men when it comes to resilience and durability, per a new study of 11 women and 11 performance-matched men published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sport.

Rachel Entrekin’s Cocodona 250 victory was stunning on its own. But new research helps explain how she was able to keep performing deep into the race. If you’ve ever wondered what really helps runners stay strong when everyone else fades, this story is worth your time.

Read it at the link in the comments.