Work from Home Shoes & Arch Support
Why patients should wear shoes with orthotic insoles when working from home
Dr Ryan Zullo, DC, HealthFirst Chiropractic of Westerville
A meeting in the boardroom, a brief walk to the copy machine, asking a coworker a question in their office, or lunch in the cafeteria. What do these things all have in common? They were all things that forced patients to get up from their ergonomically correct chair when they were in the office prior to the pandemic.
Before March of 2020 there were many things that were considered to be normal when it came to the workday. Then the effects of COVID-19 began to quickly set in, and the "new norm" forced many of our patients to work-from-home. They somehow needed to figure out how to recreate that familiar, ergonomic work environment in the comfort of their own homes. Unfortunately, many of our patients struggled with this transition.
Where patients once made sure that they were wearing proper footwear with proper support, using a sit-stand desk, adjusting the ergonomic chair or monitor stands to maintain proper posture, now had them standing at kitchen counters in slippers working on a laptop, or creating a makeshift desk at the dining room table with a not-so-ergonomic dining room chair, barefoot.
Fast forward to 2023, and likely the home office has been updated with a new desk and chair in order to maintain better posture, but what are our patients doing to take care of their feet? I had mentioned earlier that many would make sure they had arch support for the workday. If our patients wore orthotics it was a necessity that they were in their shoes to avoid an increase in pain and discomfort. But now, since they are not going into the office, or at least not as much, they do not need to worry about comfortable shoes, right? Wrong.
Patients of mine who continue to come in complaining of low back and/or foot pain continue to tell me that they are either barefoot or wearing slippers throughout the day when asked "what’s on your feet while at home." Unfortunately, physical stress will continue to affect our bodies because of the lack of arch support, something that was a necessity when we were in the office on a daily basis.
So, my question to your patients is if they are not wearing appropriate footwear at home, why? Doing so will not only stabilize the arches in the feet but it will help create a solid foundation for the rest of the body. They will also provide that extra cushion and support the foot lacks when wearing unsupported footwear. If patients do not feel the need to purchase a new pair of shoes, orthotics is another option. PowerStep has you covered when it comes to arch support while working from home, whether to slip a pair of insoles into a shoe of their choice or invest in a pair of the PowerStep sandals or slippers that has patented arch support already built into the footwear.
This footwear may be only worn in the comfort of the home. If patients decide to run errands, go on a walk, or need to go pick up the kids, they will change shoes. Then, once they return and continue to work, they would slip their "work from home shoes" back on.
Remember, allowing the body to have proper biomechanics will have a dramatic effect on overall health, which can decrease the overcompensation that typically occurs in other joints. Less compensation typically means less pain and discomfort, which is something we should strive for to maintain a superior quality of life.
While I may recommend specific stretches to a certain area of the body in hopes to help relieve some of that muscle tension that is occurring, I am also beginning to recommend wearing shoes with insoles at home to continue to maintain that arch support. As a Chiropractor I often have our patients’ back, and now I have their feet as well!
PowerStep Slippers with built-in arch support
Styles for Men and Women