Wrong Shoes: One of The Major Causes of Knee Pain

“Shoes and gait transform your body language and attitude. Perfectly fitting shoes lift mental attitude and mood”. You might have come across this beautiful saying on shoes many a times. But ever gave a thought on the fact, “Wrong shoes can get you physically and emotionally down!”? Yes! In a world where we all are busy running in our life, we usually lack behind finding out if something we are adhered with, is actually helping us or making us fall sick.

Knee pain is one of the common problem people face in their lifetime.¹ There are many reasons behind this pain in your knee. Amongst all the crucial causes of knee pain is the wrong shoe that you put on your feet. The current article will revolve around the point on how shoes causes knee pain and what are the ways one can avoid the same.

• Knee is the largest joint in your body.² Knee joint assist movements during walking and jogging. The repeated flexion and extension of the leg at the knee joint exposes knee joint to various injuries. The intricate design of the knee joint make one of the most important reasons why the knee gets affected easily.
• There are two crucial bones namely the thigh bone (femur) and the shin bone (tibia) involved in forming knee joint.³ The anterior surface of knee joint is protected with the kneecap. Knee joint is also supported by ligaments and the shock absorbing cartilages.
• In the knee, each of the joint components depends on the other for proper functioning and also saving from any severe pain.

Knees are designed to assist movements and balance while individual is standing, walking or jogging. Knee joint provide intense support to the lower body and weight distribution. Impact or improper weight distribution while knee joint is actively moving often results in knee joint subluxation or dislocation. The malalignment of knee joint is caused by tear and fracture of ligaments, bones and cartilages, which supports the knee joint. Such malalignment causes knee joint pain during ambulation. Strenuous activities or running results in abnormal twist of hip joint, which follows knee joint pain. Repeated abnormal hip joint movement causes more pressure on knee joint resulting in knee pain. Pain following hypermobility of hip and knee is observed in obese women.

There can be pain behind and around the knee, which is caused when there is excessive rubbing of the kneecap with the lower end of the thigh bone. Usually this movement occurs very smooth. However, under intense pressure there is a great friction which damages the cartilage lying under the kneecap. This leads to severe knee pain.

Below is the list of factors that might cause such great friction leading to the knee pain behind and around the knee.

• Osteoarthritis and ageing causes such pain
• Excessive running or walking
• Over-use of the thigh and hip muscles leading to the muscle weakness and excessive pressure in kneecap leading to the pain in knee.
• Wearing wrong shoes causes excessive stress on ligament, cartilage and knee cap resulting in early wear and tear.

There is another common cause of knee pain where the pain occurs outside the knee joint and this condition is termed as iliotibial band syndrome. Such a condition in man is caused when there is an excessive rubbing of the Iliotibial band (The band which extends from the hip to the outside of the knee) against the bottom of the thigh bone and the band gets inflamed causing the knee pain.

Listed below are the factors that leading to such pain in the outside of the knee or the causes of iliotibial band syndrome:

• Running in uneven surfaces with tight or loose shoes
• Climbing or running down the hills while wearing improper shoes
• Frequent exercising on treadmill, stationary bike and elliptical while wearing loose or tight shoes.
• Wearing wrong or torn out shoes at work and jogging.

“Shoes are symbol of attraction or flaws!!” We usually put on our shoes that match our personality, our attire and help us look & feel slim and attractive. But there are shoes when wrongly put on, may lead to the most irritating issue of pain in foot and knee. So, “A right pair of footwear is the biggest asset your feet want to wander around the world.”

Now coming down to one of the major factor causing knee pain which is usually neglected by us; here we come up with the following section on how wrong shoes can cause unnecessary knee pain and also discuss on various ways to get rid of the same.

“When summers are on, flip-flops are what we put on!” In warm weather we love wearing flip-flops while running or walking. But coming to a deeper study on the same, flip-flops do cause shortening of your gait and thus reduces a comfortable movement and in turn increases the chances of fatigue in lower body or cause pain in the knee and feet. They also cause stress in the toes and leading to pain in feet.

In order to get rid from this, follow the below mentioned steps and win your walk!

• Look for a purchase on a more structured pair of flip-flop if you cannot think of your walk without them.
• Go for branded pair shopping on flip-flops keeping note on the countered arch of the flip flop that would fit perfect to your feet and its shape.
• Avoid wearing worn out pairs.
• Go for some stretches and moves so as to relax your toes from stress caused due to flip-flops. Stretch the muscles from the top of your foot for relaxation.
• Simple step of doing the absolute stretch is to stand on the feet hip-width apart and place one of your foot behind you. Now turn your toes’ top to the floor. Make sure you are keeping your knees straight and not bending. Maintain a proper stand while stretches.

“Your heels represent how strong you are to walk with pain on your feet!” It is good to be strong, work for increasing strength; but it is perhaps not good ruining self while proving yourself to be strong. High heels do cause a lot of pain in feet and also come under the major factors causing knee pain. An additional amount of strain is put on the shin muscles when you put on high heels shoes. This causes the pain in knee and leg. Apart from this, the extra height of heels can cause shortening of calf muscles. This in turn lead to pain in feet and knee.

One surely needs to look for steps to follow for getting rid of this problem. Check them out below!

• Go for massage and relax your shin muscles.
• Do regular stretches in proper manner and relax your calves.
• Shop on comfort! Go for a purchase on comfortable pair of heels, which are lower in height. It is better to avoid heels while long run or regular walk.

Now diving down to the flats! Wondering how can flats cause pain in the knee? It is true we all think flats are better alternatives to high heels. But under a proper study, there are many types of flats which usually lack the internal support. This lack of internal support leads to overstretching of the tendons & ligaments present along the foot bottom. This in turn can collapse the arch of the foot. This would result a severe pain in the feet, may slow you down, make you grow fat and lead to various kinds of injuries in knee and leg.

• Shop for the flats which provide enough of internal support and comfort you.
• Avoid wearing worn out flats.
• Go for some exercises for your foot. You can do toe lifts.
• Do go for stretches that would help you work on the toe abductor and adductors so as to provide enhanced support to the foot muscles.

Simple perfectly fitting pair of shoes brings comfort and pain free life style, so why not spend extra time to look for a shoe which is not too tight or loose.

How about applying the same concept on your footwear? Isn’t it a smart act making a purchase on simple pair of shoes for your comfortable walk or smooth run in life? So, keep a note while shopping your shoes to get the absolute pair for your feet, to avoid over stress in your foot or knee and to help you be a smart and proud lifer understanding & valuing the importance of the most crucial and largest joint of your body.

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Also Read:

• What Causes Knee Pain When Squatting or Bending?
• Can Shoe Inserts Cause Knee Pain?