Naturally Healthy Feet

Now that it’s the end of summer and many of us will start packing our pretty tanned tootsies back into airless shoes, so how can we keep our naturally healthy feet through the winter months? There are all kinds of foot exfoliating scrubs and odor sprays, which you can find at the drugstore, but I think they are mostly a total waste of money or even worse – toxic.

When writing Do It Gorgeously: How to Make Less Toxic, Less Expensive, & More Beautiful Products, I wanted to include a couple of really good foot recipes in the DIY skincare section, so now might be the time to give them a whirl – one is a minty foot scrub, and the other a minty foot lotion.I always love the tingly feeling of mint on my feet, but beware – most commercial “minty” foot products will use a synthetic mint, which doesn’t have the same healing benefits as the pure essential oil, which you’ll use in the Do It Gorgeously recipes. Whether or not you plan to make these potions, try to follow my healthy feet tips below:

1. Go Barefoot: I don’t love walking barefoot in my home, and yet I know it’s the most healthy thing for my feet. The solution is to grab a pair of Toesox, which feel quite wonderful and will help you to develop really healthy feet. Toesox also makes a Five-Toe sandal, which will help to separate your toes. Having taught yoga for years, I know how important it is to separate your toes as much as you can (create as much space as you can between each toe.) It’s important for posture, balance, leg strength, and to guard against developing bunions and corns.

2. Cracked Heals 101: Cracked heels are not only ugly, but they also feel dreadful when you’re putting on hose. The first thing that you should check, if you have very cracked heels, is your thyroid levels. Thyroid levels begin to decrease dramatically after the age of 4o and one of the symptoms is extremely cracked heels. You can get a really reliable home thyroid. hormone testing kit from ZRT. I did one about a year ago and found my thyroid levels to be a little low. If you’re okay in the hormone department, the next best thing is to get the Gilden Tree terracotta foot scrubber and give your heels a good going-over 3 X week. Before your go to bed, coat rub some virgin coconut oil into your heels and put on a pair of cotton socks for the night.

3. Save on Pedicures: During the winter months, I cut down my pedicures considerably to save money. I either let my toe nails go bare or have a pale pink polish, which lasts a lot longer (because tiny chips don’t show so much.) I think it’s a great idea to let you toe nails go bare and breathe for a couple of months. I’ll go the the nail salon and get a really good pedicure (no polish) and then every week, dip my toes into a bowl containing 1 cup of lemon juice and 1 cup of water. I let them soak for as long as I can bear and then rinse. You might also want to purchase a good nail buffer to shine up your nails – they may look yellow on account of wearing dark polishes, but this and the patches will disappear if you can go without  polish for 2-3 months.

4. Tea Tree: Whether you go to the salon for a pedicure or do it yourself, always add about 5 drops of tea tree oil to your foot bath, as it is anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial.

5. Reflexology: Back in the UK, Reflexology is taken a lot more seriously than it is here. People go to great lengths to find a good reflexologist or to learn how to do it themselves. The basic premise is that the different areas on the soles of your feet, correspond to the different organs in your body. By massaging and pressing these areas on the soles of your feet, you can help relieve everything from stomach aches to headaches. It’s also a lovely idea to use an Essential Oil blend when massaging the different points on your feet. I love the Women’s Balance Blend by Neal’s Yard – especially when I have a touch of PMS. Check out which points to massage for whichever condition you’re suffering from.

6. Stretch Them: As a yoga teacher, I know how very important it is to stretch both the front and back of your feet. It can be uncomfortable when you first start – so just a few seconds will suffice to begin with and remember to breathe through the pain. Virasana (pictured left,) is your first pose to practice – if too hard, place a small cushion, yoga block or folded blanket under your sit bones. After this pose, stay in the same position but curl your toes under and sit back on your heels – this will seriously stretch your toes.