Monday 28 November 2016

Flat Footed, Fat Legged...

The saga of the painful knee continues.  I had a very positive session with a lovely physio at my GPs surgery on Friday  morning. Bad news, there is wear in the knee joint.  Good news is that gentle cycling will help.  My calves are apparently in good shape because of my pedalling.
But I  am overweight.  Scientists reckon that every extra 1lb in weight puts 7lbs of added strain on the knees,  she told me. I've put on 22lbs since I got to Dorset, I told her. [Do the maths - it's terrifying - no wonder my knee hurts!] AND you are very Flat Footed! Do you usually wear shoes like this? I replied honestly
"No, I put these on because they would be easy to slip off when I got here. I usually wear flat shoes for driving, I wear trainers when I cycle and heeled court shoes when I doing preaching or public speaking."
Then I started mentally listing shoes I have worn recently 
The stilettos I wear for preaching, my comfy red clogs, my black 'MaryJanes', my tall black stretchy suede boots, my pink open toed sandals [Well I never actually wore them, it was too cold - but I did consider it]




 
OK I am a short Essex girl, and I love my heels. "What you need to be wearing, to sort this out, is a pair of good, strong flat lace up shoes" she told me.
It's twenty years since I wore them [my Girls' Brigade Officer Shoes, from the 'school uniform' section of the shop] "And some orthotics in your heels to help correct the flat footedness. That is adding to the knee pain"
So we went off to Boots for the Orthotics, and to Clarks for the shoes. And now I am the proud possessor of a pair of green leather lace ups. Now I'm flat footed and flat broke
The style is called "Hamble Oak" [I think she was Gabriel's mother, in Far From The Madding Crowd] After an incredibly busy weekend, with lots of standing, I have to say that my leg is considerably more comfortable than it was. "You also need to lose some weight, but I appreciate that's difficult in the Christmas period" said the physio. I mentioned our fabulous Church Catering Committee, the Cream Teas, Thursday Lunch Club...she suggested I got them on board in helping me to avoid the unnecessary calories. The weight thing is going to be harder [especially when a kind soul put a selection of leftover cakes into my hand on Sunday!] 
"Finally here are some exercises, do these morning and evening and rub in some Ibuleve Gel"  That part I am managing. But Bob will keep pretending to be one of the Bachelors!


4 comments:

  1. Oh the familiar struggle!
    I have gained 24lb since I retired, mainly through eating lunch every day instead of three Ryvitas with cottage cheese!
    We all know how to lose weight but actually doing it is so DIFFICULT! Sorry to hear about your knees. I have trouble with my feet which I'm sure must be due to the extra load on them.
    Your new shoes look lovely but good shoes are such a price these days. I can recommend Hotter shoes for comfort and durability. They seem expensive but wear really well.

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  2. I suspect that you and I are not alone in our stop work and gain weight situation. I have a pair of red suede hotter boots purchased years ago. They are still excellent, but not quite smart enough for formal events!

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  3. Hope your knees feel better, soon. My mother used to by Clark shoes for me, when I was a little girl. They were very expensive because they were imported and later, became unavailable because there was a ban on imported goods.

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