In high school I became really conscious of where my feet were positioned when I walked. I don't know why, but ever since, I walk with my feet pointed straight in front of me. Some people took notice and started telling me I walked like a model lol.
Good to hear that helped your specific issues! Just keep in mind it's also important to understand the cause of that knee pain so it can also be addressed, and need to alter a normal walking pattern isn't needed eventually down the track.
I’ve had duck feet my whole life (20) played football 4 years did track work outs ran from the law in my younger years jumped fences didn’t know how Detrimental it could be until now appreciate this video I will now correct this for the rest of my life
I was maybe 16, and I saw how some people were walking on the TV, with their feet straight. I thought it looked pretty and natural, but I had a duck walk pretty much. I went to my room, and started working on my walk and stance, making them more straight. At first I was consciously doing it, but now I do it without even thinking about it. I’m really happy that I changed to a more straight walk.
I switched from slight out toeing with flat feet to a slight intoe stance and walk with an active foot arch about 3 months ago. Immediately after a few days of this switched i noticed my hip flexors, ankles, lower back becoming less tight, and most shockingly my jumping and running becoming a lot more fluid and easier to recover from. I immediately was able to run 2x the distance I would usually cover at a faster speed and with my posterior tibial tendonitis no longer flaring up and eventually completely disappearing. My squats felt a lot better. I'm able to go deeper with less restriction and I also feel like I can generate more power from the bottom as well. My jumps have improved tremendously. I can feel the elastic energy seamlessly passing through from my foot arches and into my ankles and knees in every ground contact. It almost feels orgasmic and makes me so much more eager to train athletically. I'm also able to walk longer (and faster) with less pain as well, making something as simple as walking in the park or doing groceries so much more enjoyable, even though I do look slightly more goofy when walking and standing as pointed out by some of my friends lol. This small change in my posture has single handedly changed my life for the better! And I wish these type of things would be taught sooner to everyone.
After some clicking on the hips in joint areas I was concerned and didn’t quite understand what was happening, after talking to a few people trying to understand if this was normal or not I had looked at my feet and noticed that I had a walk that was a bit different then others, this video has explained that well enough for me to understand what’s happening, my right foot faces my north west, and my left being relatively between west and north west, I’m currently trying to fix my posture with my feet while being idle, sitting, and walking, I experience little difficulty to do this, but hopefully this fixes my issue.
Thank you for this. I am naturally mildly duck footed, but last year I broke my big toe and have started walking extra duck footed in an attempt not to hurt my toe again. Gotta start retraining, my friend just called me out for walking "funny"
I remember in one of my Boy Scout books from the 70s, they talked about Indians, American Indians, having their feet straightforward. So if you sold their footprint, you could tell that it was probably an Indian because Europeans walk with a V shape. I guess it’s true. I’ve been dealing with plantar fasciitis and it’s been a struggle. Have improved, but now the top of my foot hurts when I try to walk that is the instep. And my knees are bowed. But I’ll start working on this.
Everyone should have some capacity to turn their feet out as it’s just an expression of good hip mobility. But at the same time if that’s the only position a person has been trained to function from, then it may not be a sustainable practice long term!
I really needed this video. I now know I have a duck walk and it must be the cause of my knee and ankle pain. when I try to sleep at night my ankles kill me and me legs burn with pain now I will try walking differently 💙
After my acl surgery my injured side turned out. It just felt normal. After many years this slowly affected my knee and I developed intense knee pain. Even after a few days of consciously keeping my foot straight forward, the pain has significantly improved.
I used to walk with flat duck feet during my teenager years and had a meniscus injury while practicing sports, mainly because of the foot issue. I had to go through surgery on my knee and was forced to correct my feet after the surgery because it would cause a lot of pain on the left knee while walking or just doing anything basically. I corrected it and the pain was gone for years, but i suffered a motorcycle accident about 3 years ago and fractured my ankle, causing my left foot to turn out and get flat again, making the knee pain return once again. Now i've been trying to correct it yet again, but my ankle got really stiff after it broke, it's being really hard
Help pls, I fractured my lower shin, tibia if I can remember, around ten years ago and my ankle was badly swollen. After coming out of my cast I then noticed that foot starting pointing out. Never thought of it as an issue but I in the last 2 years I’ve experienced terrible back pain, a sprain in my inner hip which I thought was a labrum tear cos of sharp pains and also my knees buckle a lot or lock up. Will exercising my posture solve this issue
Thanks for this video, I’ve been waking duck footed and I think it’d caused me to suffer planter fasciitis and severe knee pain, I had insoles made by the podiatrist which gave short term relief but the problem seems to have come back. I will consciously try now to correct this and hopefully it helps
Thanks for this video! I am about to correct this because I have awful heel pain. because of the length of my legs, they are usually splayed because there’s not enough from for my legs and feet to properly fit in the space.
Years of ballet lessons since childhood have heavily impacted the natural position of my feet when walking. Ballet tends to normalize the feet being in positions where they’re turned outward and toes are pointed. I’ve danced for so long that these position have become second nature for me. In ballet, first position is standing with the heels together, and the toes pointed outward. Sometimes I notice myself naturally standing this way, because I’ve done it so much 😢 How do we correct our foot positioning and walking when we’ve been doing it incorrectly for so many years?
I hear you mate! Ballet is wonderful for so many things, but it does have a tendency to leave people and their feet a little skewed. Typically a simple way to realign things is literally just to practice being straighter as often as you can think about it. Another option is to go looking for any of the musculoskeletal dysfunction that may be prompting those feet to turn out - like some tightness through the hip rotators. But most people who do ballet have great mobility and strength because of it, so it can genuinely be just a habit and a mental effort to straighten things up again!
So pleased I came across your video. Been changing my walking style. Takes conscious effort. Any suggestions on doing squats with straight feet as I have more mobility with the duck feet position. How can I have or improve the mobility with straight feet squats ? Much appreciated.
I started being suspicious of this because I keep wearing out 8-9 month old shoes in the inner heel, the exact same spot every time! I think it’s because of my duck like walk.. the heel area has more impact
Left to themselves my feet can externally rotate at 90 degrees. Im hoping just having the awareness of keeping them facing forwards will help my leg pain.
I have horrible hip internal rotation and very good external rotation as I cross my legs when i sit most of the day. So yes i walk like a duck because of this and never realized how bad this was. Recently been working on internal rotation stretches to help fix this and think this will help improve walking straight instead of like a duck.
Weightlifter here - why are we taught to externally rotate our feet when we do squats? More stability? Is it because the legs are spread wider than normal? Would it be better to squat with feet facing forward?
Ultimately it should be personal preference based on what feels best and what helps us perform the best in the moment. BUT, if someone can only squat with their feet out then it suggests they might be missing something. Similar idea to Olympic lifting shoes with a heel. Heeled shoes all day may eventually make an ankle stiffer, but as a one off it may help performance.
I’m 55 and have had severe duck feet my whole life. I’m currently dealing with severe disabling pain in hips and groin. Symptoms came on gradually over a year or so til I’m at the point of disabled. Over 30 doctors have no answer for this disability. I recently started highly suspecting that my duck feet are most likely causing some sort of impingement in the hip. Mri of hips show no need for replacement. What kind of therapist or practitioner should I be seeking out to help get relief? Any help much appreciated.
Always wanted to fix my slight duck walk and super glad I stumbled on your video! But a quick question, does improving your feet to be more parallel reduce your tolerance for wearing heeled shoes or sitting?
Hey Ramond! Everyone might be different. In theory, walking with feet straighter should help improve overall function leading to greater tolerance for less than ideal moments like heeled shoes and sitting.
I’ve been walking with my feet pointed outward for basically my whole life, and today after being incredibly sedentary and overweight, I just started walking around the house… I noticed that my feet were angled, and that I started to feel a bit unbalanced. So I tried walking with my feet straight, but my god it was like I was a toddler, had some slight knee pain and started straining other parts of my body, but that could probably just be my lack of movement
As a rule, feet usually turn out for a number of reasons. The most common tends to be tightness at the front of the hip and at the ankle. These force the leg to rotate outwards in order to get around these restrictions. The couch stretch (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-L4YZLA2bukQ.html) and banded ankle stretches (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-oVkjTXgNJBg.html) are fantastic for removing those handbrakes!
Could you do a video on forefoot walking? I have been following Grown and healthy channel and he walks forefoot. I have been doing it for awhile instead of heel striking and it has gotten rid of my knee pain and improved my sprinting mechanics. Some people believe we are meant to walk heel to toe like Dr. Todd Martin. When you jump rope you wouldnt land on the heel. So it makes sense to walk forefoot if you are walking miles a day. Would like to know your thoughts on this! Thanks
Its a great idea mate! Im with you as whether you walk, jog, run or sprint ideally the same stable mechanics should take place. Sitting and heeled shoes seem to force us more down the heel strike path from what I see clinically. Ill add it to the list!
So, I weigh about 550 lb, at work I walk about 3 miles a day, just turning my feet forward for a couple minutes and I immediately get pain on the insides of my knees. When I step I roll heel to big toe across the balls of my feet rather than rolling my arch.
I know this is an older video, but my son walks with his right foot out. He is going to work on trying to walk straighter. He did say it feels odd for him to do that though. Can you please suggest a good brand of sneaker for him? Right now he likes Nike Airs. Are those not good for this issue? Thank you.
I have to maintain deep concentration to walk without duck feet, and if I break concentration for a second or move in any other way than straight-line walking, I revert straight back to duck feet. So just wondering if it can truly be reversed.
Should your feet be hip width apart or shoul they come in a bit. I thought if they come in a bit then its possibly creating an angle and maybe putting pressure on the hit. The reason i ask is that i do this and walk with feet slightly pointing out; however, recently im making constant conscious effort to correct. Just a thought but you know when you've lying down or lieing down but your back is slightly elivated up, typically, my feet fall outwards as a natural position. Could that possibly be a contributing factor, especially if you are lieing like this for few hours at a time? Appreciate any feed back. Thanks!
Hi Ashley, it really depends on the person. Traditionally we always say shoulder width apart but some people might be a little bit more narrow than that. Clinically, the width doesn’t matter as much as the direction those feet point!
@YourWellnessNerd thanks for replying I walk slightly nattow as my feet are with in hip width so I'd thought maybe bio mechanically the slight angle might put force on the hips. When I sleep on my back my feet go propper duck stance they don't stay straight. Could that put force on your hips when sleeping, or is that just being to paranoid haha?
But you do know its uncurable once you become 18 years old. Im 32 years old and my Doctor said it cant be fix other than taking care of my lower body to prevent future pain.
It really depends Fay. A large majority of people who’s feet turn out that I see do so because they’re compensating for something else. Once that compensation is addressed there’s often strong improvements to be made.
What about when Tibia is turned in but foot is turned out? On the right foot the knee is well past (internally) the big toe, not even close to being in line and the lefty is almost inline with outside of the big toe.
Anything that's flat Amy! Barefoot shoes are ideal in almost every case, but you just need to make sure you work on reclaiming any lost mobility while transitioning. Otherwise you can stir up some hidden dysfunction. I'm sure someone like you would be fine though!
@@amyfrancisconi9386 it just depends how much of heel they have and how long you spend in them. Ideally most shoes would have no heel at all but being barefoot helps! I wrote this a little while ago, it might help frame things? yourwellnessnerd.com/what-makes-a-good-shoe/
Is it bad to leave it the way it is or will it have any bad impact on your bones in the long term? I've been walking like this from my childhood and now I'm 20, I've not encountered any pain or something till now.
I noticed recently that I do walk with my feet pointed outwards, I try to walk and things with my feet straight but if my feet are straight, if I bend my knees they go inwards which is what I assume to me the reason why I walk with my feet painted outwards a bit so that my knees are straight. Don't k is if this is important but I'd also like to add the fact that I don't walk flat foot, I'm a toewalker. I can walk flatfoot without any discomfort or anything but thought that was worth mentioning No pain or anything, just curious if that could be the cause and if it is able to be fixed.
Me my mother and my grandfather all do this and all of our calves go down pretty much into our Achilles tendon. We all look like we have professional bodybuilder calves but we also all have ankle problems
i got duck feet cause i sit on my bed with my legs crossed / criss cross apple sauce that cringe ass name from school is how i would sit for hours playing games lol
It’s always worth looking in to. There are a bunch of environmental factors that often go unnoticed that can stiffen ankles and tighten hips slowly over time. Even if it’s 100% genetic (which is rare IMO) there may still be some things that can be done to see if it can be improved. With being said, if there’s no pain or dysfunction it may not be a priority!
It's a hard thing to judge. Most people are tight through their hips and need to clear that up regardless. If they have full mobility and strength, and also good mechanics then a retroverted hip should be factored into the conversation. Unfortunately many who are don't clear up the surrounding dysfunction and can easily blame any issues on the hips alone.
You have to be kidding me, I would understand if your feet were excessively externally rotated but you don't have to be walking around or stand with your feet perfectly pointed straight. Having some external rotation is perfectly normal, walking around with your feet pointing straight is not, what you should advise is for people to walk around barefooted.
I understand your rationale for not wanting knee valgus, I do agree that this can create issues at the hip. But, in the case of someone with acetabular retroversion, wouldn't walking slightly toed out be more natural? I personally have disproportionate degrees of retroversion on both my hips, when trying to walk with toes forward my ankles have less range of motion in my ankle. The only way I can walk more straight toed is with my hips rotating forward (to the side of my strike foot). This is the only two ways for me to be able to walk without eversion of my ankle or knee valgus. Video was interesting, and would love to hear your thoughts :)
I hear you Jack! The idea is ultimately about optimizing what you have and exploring to see if there are improvements to be made. If someone has a certain hip shape, but they're also very tight through the joint or surrounding muscles then they may not know which thing is the biggest factor. If someone frees up their hips and can now express movement better then the retroverted hip may not be the ultimate limiting factor. If someone has full range of motion and their hip still behaves a certain way, then it's perfectly reasonable to factor that into someone's thinking. Hope that makes sense!
It's certainly worth looking into. If you try and change any soft tissue issues like hip flexor tightness, anterior hip joint capsule stiffness, etc you can see exactly how much of an impact these things have
My feet naturally point outwards. when my knees point straight ahead, my feet are like at 10 and 2 o clock. This is because my shin bones are shaped weirdly. My dad has the same issue. I'm guessing this can't be fixed? When I point my feet straight forward, my knees turn inward, which is just as dangerous when running I guess. Any advice, or should I just live with it? :)
Its had to give any advice without assessing someone, but for the most part id be very interrsted in assessing how tight someone's hips were as well with your presentation!
@@YourWellnessNerd I'm actually seeing an ostheopath for a slight hernia I had. I might ask him. Never saw it as true problem, but it's probably the cause of some of the back issues I've had. Squatting and deadlifts are hard, and obviously I can't go skiing, but otherwise I'm quite sporty. Just thinking of how this will affect me later in life (i'm in my late thirties).
You'd need someone to assess you in person to specifically figure something like that out. Clinically I find a lot of patella tendonitis type issues are deeply rooted in subtle lower back dysfunction, but again, you'd need someone to specifically assess you to hopefully figure things out!
I’m only duck footed on one leg, and it’s mostly due to the fact that my right knee points inward, so if I walk with my foot straight, my knee runs into my other leg. Could this be something I fix muscularly, or is it skeletal for me because of the way my knee is pointed? In order to get my foot pointing right, I have to twist my entire upper leg bone, and end up standing almost entirely on my outer foot. I have very high arches. This has been a problem my whole life, and I’m pretty sure my knee is the cause.
It's hard to say without being able to assess you Adrian. There can certainly be unusual structural causes, but traditionally a foot that turns can be a consequence of a hip lacking rotation or being tight at the front of the hip. It's always best to double check those areas in case the knee and foot happen to be a sneaky consequence of something higher up!
Funny story.. i can put my feet going outwards and even going backward.. WITHOUT BENDING MY LEGS 😂 i can even push my legs to lock going inwards while doing jt
I respectfully disagree Regis. For a large number of people, there are tangible and improvable musculoskeletal reasons behind this. The challenging aspect of this is that most of the tightnesses, weaknesses and stiffnesses we tend to accrue in this modern world occur over time in the background. This often gives us the impression that something is normal or congenital when in actual fact, it can be addressed and improved leading to more optimal function.
I started being suspicious of this because I keep wearing out 8-9 month old shoes in the inner heel, the exact same spot every time! I think it’s because of my duck like walk.. the heel area has more impact
