It’s about my feet.
I don’t object to aging; I am fascinated by the process. But my feet are unhappy more often than I’d like. What to do? As I said to a friend, “I can’t go to the doctor because my feet hurt. That’s too silly.” No disease applies. What to do?
If I net out my reaction to this physical experience of aging, altogether, it’s very similar to how I felt with a newborn. What books should I read? Where is the conceptual model? Can I go to graduate school and get an MPA? A masters in personal aging; I want it.
Here’s the list of my specific physical issues:
- The very beginnings of osteoporosis. How annoying that having kept my weight in check puts me more at risk for breaking bones. I’d much prefer a larger trouser size, thank you.
- Cholesterol numbers that threaten if I even so much as breathe near carnitas.
- Weird heart flutters are within normal range but make drinking too much tea and almost any wine infinitely less pleasant than previously.
- A recalcitrant sacroiliac, still resentful of my having given birth to a son with a big head, transmitting outrage to various ligaments on my left hip and leg.
- The afore-mentioned feet.
None of this, as far as I can tell, puts me at particular risk. I could be wrong. Medication for osteoporosis; control cholesterol by eschewing meat, embracing beans, and hiding flaxseed in granola. The no-added fat granola to be sure, that might taste like horse food, but strawberries fix a multitude of sins.
However, my relationship to the medical profession feels uncomfortable.
Can you imagine getting pregnant, only society has yet connected the dots around the phenomena, and then you find yourself in a series of disconnected doctor’s appointments for:
- Trouble keeping your breakfast down
- A strange lump in your lower abdomen
- Your period stops
You get the picture. I want the equivalent of an OB for getting old. You’d think was a gerontologist, right? The medical practice I’ve gone to since I was 4 years old, except when I was on the East Coast, only offers the gerontology option if you are really sick. I was literally told, “Oh no, you are way too healthy for a gerontologist.”
So here we are, just a girl, standing in front of her doctor, asking to be seen as someone with a natural condition of life. Someone who is willing to buckle down, to do the Healthy, who – even though she finds cardio exercise incredibly boring – will buy a health wearable to bring her to account.
And when the doctor can’t oblige, the girl asks her community, my friends, do you have any particularly intelligent resources for understanding aging?
Note:
- I do not want to jump out of an airplane with a parachute on my back
- I already know what healthy diet and exercise look like, to my great annoyance
What can I read to better understand the larger process of what’s happening? Thank you in advance.
Oh, about my tootsies, the Internet tells me that since I don’t have diabetes probably it’s just that I shouldn’t go barefoot in my house, as my foot fat pads are now insufficient. Fine, fine, fine.
Have a wonderful weekend. Back to my slippers. Conceptual model checks out.
60 Responses
Honest Aging, by Rosemary Leipzig is really great and proactive. Knowing you, you will appreciate the meta-ness of her approach that uses the format “here’s what you (aging one) need to know about X, followed by here’s what you need to know if you are a caregiver for the aging one.” Very efficient and of course, I try to help myself before any caregiver has to be involved.
Who knew that as we age, we still need hydration, but our sense of thirst, will decline? Or, that because our kidneys and liver process medications less efficiently as we age, we may develop side/effects or toxicities from maintenance drugs and doses that we’d tolerated for years? Or that because new drugs are not tested on us, we are better off starting with established drugs for which there is empirical evidence of their suitability and safety for us? All this I learned, plus lots of body-system and condition-specific information.
This is exactly the kind of information I’m looking for. And it makes total sense that the knowledge would be good for caregivers AND agers. Hey, that’s what I want to be called, not old, that’s static, but an ager! It’s now my primary physical process. Thank you so much.
I’m adding this to my book list now. Thank you!
My body at 81 is pretty much still ok. Eyes, back, an old TIA lead to many meds even after a healthy life but please, higher power, leave my mind intact.
Oh, yes, may we all keep our minds! If not what they were, at least in my case, as when we were young, at least that essential consciousness and memory. I am happy to hear that you are doing well.
On this topic, I feel you!
Have you tried a Geriatric Nurse Practitioner (GNP)? GNPs serve the 55+ demographic — from early “seniors” to “elderly” (it’s so hard to know what to call ourselves during this age span). A medical professional specializing in this area knows how to listen, how to connect medical history with present issues, and most importantly, has a great deal of patience.
I discovered this niche when caring for my 80 year-old father, and was so impressed that I was eager to make her my doctor, too.
I have not. Didn’t even know this was a possibility, and now I will check. Thank you!
Seriously the whole part about the ONE PLACE we lose fat as we age is the bottom of our feet.
Which happens to be the one place on my body that fat is actually both useful and wanted.
I would like to talk to the manager about this please.
Definitely. I lost the Cush on the bottom of my feet so long ago. It sure puts a damper on wearing my most beautiful heels, but cushioned insoles change my world.
Definitely a little discussion with the manager is in order;). Cushioned soles, yes. (I haven’t added insoles, but I will if I must. And then the TOP of my feet started to hurt, so I had to get shoes with cushion everywhere. It’s truly comical.
I added insoles about 10 years ago. I love the ones from Sonoma Wool Company (buy local!) and also Pedag (German). The Pedag come in merino wool as well as terry cotton for summer. All are washable.
https://sonomawoolcompany.com/products/wool-shoe-insoles
check Amazon for Pedag varieties.
I love Farmacopia.net for tinctures and other products related to wellness. It’s owned by Lily Mazzarella, a clinical herbalist, and she offers great advice for everyone, but especially for those of us who no longer count higher than our current age.
Oh boy, my feet are constantly sore, and I am fighting oteoporosis/osteopina after years of keeping my weight down. My feet are the worst part of aging, interfering recently with a trip to the Cotswolds that involved lots of walking on meadows and trails. One afternoon I stayed behind as my feet were too sore. I have learned that thinning fat pads, arthritis, and general wear and tear are what make them hurt. Great. What next? Good arch support, cushioned soles, lidocaine cream when hiking, and now, foot exercises. Lots of videos on Youtube as to strengthening the muscles in the feet, and fortunately I can do these while watching something on the TV, or when a passenger in the car. That book sounds good–will give it a try. I am 71, lucky to be as healthy as I am, but tackling these challenges keeps me busy!
Here’s to the good fortune and good practices of health. Time to add foot exercises. You’d think they’d gotten plenty since I’ve been standing on them for going on 70 years, but, as they say, nooooooooo.
A podiatrist (DPM) can be exceedingly helpful for the foot issues. Might be worth a consultation.
I don’t know. I saw a Podiatrist for foot/ankle issues and she told me to wear a brace for 6 weeks and then not to stand on one foot. I did the brace and my foot ankle improved. But, now I’m supposed to be improving my balance -falls are very bad for old ladies- and standing on one foot is a big part of balance improvement activities.
I follow gaithappens on Instagram and like their approach. Instead of immobilization and avoiding things they’re focused on improving strength.
This is what I think of as the “narrowing trail” of aging. Like keeping my weight in check collides with low body weight making one prone to osteoporosis. A brace is good for one thing, I guess, but weakens something else.
That thought has crossed my mind. Thank you. For now, I’m going to try these socks at home and see if that helps. https://bombas.com/products/womens-gripper-slipper-double-cushion-2-pack?variant=taupe-grey-mix&size=m
Podiatrist may follow.
Totally identify. Thank you, Lisa, and thank you to those who are commenting. Since I turned 70 I’ve thought it would be lovely to have a doctor to help pull everything together. Since knee replacement in December, it seems some days I spend half my day exercising. And now I read in Susan’s comment that I could include foot exercises too?! Happy to be here, and I need not to lose sight of that.
You are welcome, and I echo your thanks to those commenting here. I mean, d we want to spend half our day exercising? Even when we know it’s good for us? I know that for me, if I can talk to someone while I do it I like it better. Unsurprising. Good for you, making the effort.
I recently asked for my Lipoprotein(a) to be tested, and because it is high I needed to see a preventive cardiologist even though the rest of my numbers are fine.
In my research about cholesterol and statins, I came across the portfolio diet out of Canada and have found it very useful. I like any approach that tells me to do more of something rather than less, especially when one of those things is eating nuts. : )
https://ccs.ca/app/uploads/2023/08/Portfolio-Infographic-EN-FINAL.pdf
I LOVE that diet, or at least most of it. Not that I knew about it, but that’s how I eat anyway. Nuts, and olive oil, and whole grain bread – delicious.
I don’t think I can replace dairy milk with plant milks, at least not without distress. But I can make the dinners of tofu a little more frequent. Thank you!
Lisa, I’m 74—so several years older than you are. And, I am having the same health issues that you describe. I am beyond frustrated as my feet hurt and sometimes my ankles hurt and sometimes it is my hip and/or my neck. I have Osteopenia. I haven’t kept my weight in check as well as you have, but no one would look at me and say “Wow–Susan has really let herself go.”. We live in a two story house and I am finding the aches and pains are making it more difficult for me to get everything done I need to get done. Like you, I know what a healthy diet is–and mostly stick to that. But, I also love to bake and cook and sometimes have to take a few steps beyond totally healthy, I’ll be reading what your readers have to say. I’ve asked my doctor for a stepped up timeframe for our next appointment and I need to get going!
I mean, if taking those few steps beyond completely and purely health bring so much joy, I’m hard pressed to be sure that they aren’t good for us in other ways. We are more than our various fats and fluids, we’re also our neurons of joy. No? Maybe no? I should ask my doctor LOL. I hope your visit is fruitful.
“I can’t go to the doctor because my feet hurt. That’s too silly……..[pain] to my left hip and leg…..[I question] my relationship to the medical profession.” Parens, mine.
Pain is never silly.
You CAN go to the doctor for feet, hip and leg pain, especially a Doctor of Physical Therapy – not a podiatrist, not a chiropractor. I’m even wary that an orthopedic MD might be more likely to cut first.
You’ve told us in the past that you have a SUPER high arch [as do I; at this point, my high arches are fully pronated; going barefoot and/or slippers are out of the question for me TMI – it’s fully supported sneakers with high-arch supporting inserts, right out of bed].
A diagnostic biomechanics gait analysis is a good place to start [since it might uncover a link between the pain in your hip/leg to an imbalance in your gait, especially if your high arches are unsupported]. Referred pain.
Although this post is meant to be about Aging – and the Comments have all been so good – I’m still stuck back at Pain. Can’t overestimate the value of an experienced DPT telling you it’s all about arthritis – if that’s indeed true – but listen for the rest of the story relating to your own biomechanics.
A gait analysis might be a good idea. I do have high arches, to the point where I have to wear wide shoes because the cubic inches require it;). So far they remain functional, but I am sure they add to the pressure on my metatarsal. Maybe part of what I’m dealing with is the different types of doctors required at this stage of life, and I just don’t know them yet.
I have started to go for regular massage, and that absolutely helps.
Agreed – even just in midlife, I’m finding that my knee and hip pain go away if I wear arch support in the house.
Yes, it contradicts the advice about walking barefoot in grass to ground oneself, but I will be prone in the grass otherwise…
I know I’m way out of my depth here, but if it’s ever plantar fasciitis, calf stretches can help a lot — essentially lunges with the heel of the foot being stretched touching the ground, as far back as you can go. Hold each side for 30 seconds or so, switch and repeat. They’re great for balance too. I’m in my 40s, so this is a different kind of pain than that caused by fat loss but of course can coincide. Daily stretches keep my PF almost entirely at bay. I hope you have some super-comfy soft slippers and feel better soon, Lisa. Have a wonderful weekend. ❤️
Not out of your depth at all. This is not plantar fasciitis, as far as I can tell, but of course if I went to a doctor I’d know for sure. This is what happens when your mother came from New England and thought doctors were only for emergencies;). Sigh. I guess I should go. It’s a very low level kind of pain, but so constant. I am not used to having awareness of my feet when I’m reading a book, for example.
This is a BIG clue: “Constant low-level foot pain at rest.”
One wonders whether both feet, or one foot.
As Max would say, Onward.
I can have low-level achy pain at rest with PF, but there’s sharp pain in the heel and through the midfoot when putting weight on either foot. If sharp pain is never present, it’s probably something else. Mine’s all my fault for doing high-impact exercise (I have of course stopped this, but the tendons get damaged somehow and remain very easy to irritate for life, it seems). Yes, though — definitely go see someone who can make sure there’s no injury present. My family members (and I — who are we kidding?) are exactly the same about waiting until the bleeding won’t stop to see a doctor. :)
Its well known that women with a European lineage develop osteopenia, then osteoporosis as they age. I’ve always been slender,
(except for my 3 pregnancies). I am 86, have genetic high cholesterol. I took a low dose of statins, for probably 15 years but when I gave up meat, and dairy my doctor allowed me to stop the statins. I took Fosamax for my osteopenia for years but it was
not really helping. I started getting Prolia injections about 7 years ago and my bones improved .
My experience with the feet issues, is to wear good athletic shoes. Hoka is my favorite brand. I have orthotics, and see my podiatrist who checks on my orthotics, and gives me silicone toe separators. I have always had to walk for my chronic depression as meds do not work for me. And yes, we all know as we age that we have to keep moving,
gardening, yoga, whatever you can do to strengthen these old(er) bones. Walking helps with many age related medical
conditions. I take no other medications, still live in my own house, and hope to continue to do so.
I wish you such good luck in the stay at home project. Sounds that you are doing really well at it. Good tip about the injections if Fosamax has no impact. My doctor had said I was doing fine bone-wise, Vitamin D level had risen, and she never said anything about my being at high risk. Which, again, she was young and I am not. I just hope that as we entitled boomers hit the US system knowledge about our requirements increases rapidly;)
I am 71 and my feet haven’t been hurting so much as getting tired fast over the past year or so, plus a knee issue that has been diagnosed as bursitis has kind of sidetracked my walking. I don’t like it. I recently read that walking barefoot at home helps with foot strength and balance so who knows what is best. I am in overall great health with ok labs (that of course could always be better) and my biggest challenge is that my body is no longer forgiving – any slacking off on anything and it shows up somewhere pretty fast.
Yes, exactly, the extent to which Level 1 fitness effort now only gets me Level .5 actual fitness. And walking barefoot is good to prevent bunions. But foot fat, oh no! Just feels trickier now, although so rewarding, that I want a better and more detailed manual than what I’ve been operating on. Good luck with your knee, hope it recovers soon.
I’m younger, so I haven’t encountered losing padding in my feet yet, but took up bouldering in the last few years, and one of the most important things I have learnt is that many areas where I have had pain or poor function through my life were probably the result of insufficient muscle strength.
When the right muscles aren’t strong enough to support the joints, tendons and ligaments they need to, those latter parts are more prone to damage and pain. I say right muscles because, as an example, I had no idea that knee and ankle joints were better supported by (all of) glutes, quads, hamstring and calf muscles. I now have the least knee pain and/or swelling since my teens because of working on that whole muscle chain to be able to climb as injury-free as possible.
I’ve also learnt that pain in one are can be the result of muscle tightness or loss of flexibility elsewhere, and found that self-research (when added to a physiotherapist as needed) can be a cost-effective way of improving those areas and decreasing pain.
While I love climbing, I recognise not everyone is going to want to take it up, however it has been the motivator for me to learn about and strengthen my body and is much better at getting me to complete my weights routine than general fitness classes, or the general desire to be fit/strong ever were.
I hope everyone can find some form of exercise that challenges them (not too much, or at most progressively) and helps keep them motivated to be as strong (and flexible) as they have time and resources to be. I also hope they have access to good sleep and are able to fuel their body effectively – for me this has meant a big increase in protein to be able to build (where needed), and recover (always). I was definitely not eating enough before, particularly as a vegetarian menopausal woman, but I only ballpark track this as I’d become obsessive if I worried too much about all of the nutrients and requirements.
Like others, I also note that all of the things we need to include make it feel like we need to be constantly exercising, so it feels rude to link to more exercises however this is an over-50s focussed physio (https://www.youtube.com/@HT-Physio). Even adding one new exercise once a week that I didn’t do before still has to be better than nothing, and I try to cycle through different exercises and muscle groups so I am feeling somewhat well-rounded without sacrificing my life to exercising.
Whether through any advice any of us have offered here or from finding the right medical professional/s, I hope you (and any readers in pain) can find workable solutions to keep active for the long term. I think we have all gathered a lot of wisdom, so finding care that allows for flexibility and our own input and bodily autonomy is way more important than having someone else (or social media) dictate a solution.
And then the algorithms brought me to this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEDET75r4Yo), which was a great reminder that your pain could be tendon based, rather than muscle, and that these structures, are healed differently than muscle. (Don’t ask my finger tendons to tell you about pain and recovery!)
Also I love that she is deeply focused on how women’s bodies can be affected by different things than younger and other-gendered people because of the effects of aging and our differing hormone levels and whether we are using HRT.
She mentioned the paucity of research in this area, and I imagine, as with studies of women’s issues, that more research is needed for trans-women, and in fact all trans people, since they are also modifying the hormonal make-up of their bodies.
I’ve noted times where my therapists could use more knowledge about recovery and injury in an aging woman, but that’s where listening to our wisdom is important in adjusting.
I will definitely watch the video. Thank you. All my injuries have been tendons and ligaments. I’ve always been prone to muscle, if that makes sense, so I suspect I need to keep trying to balance my muscle strength across my body and stretch/loosen my fascia. This is just my guess. How great to have found a form of exercise you really love, so you can enjoy learning about it rather than just putting in your time.
… now wondering, for those without arch issues but where it’s *just* foot padding, whether walking barefoot indoors on dense foam exercise mats (like a half-inch yoga mat, or those lock-together mats used either for home weight training areas *or* brightly colored with alphabet letters on them for toddlers?) would soften the impact while providing the proprioception benefits of barefoot walking?
One thing I bumped into while doing fall-recovery research after my mom broke her femur was balance perturbation training, which has many forms, but is basically concentrated practice with recovering your balance after it is slightly destabilized by various mechanisms (someone throwing a soft ball at you while you walk, a platform that moves, etc.) and which can come with various security mechanisms (i.e. an overhead harness like you’re learning circus tricks so you *cannot* actually fall).
But yes. I would like Aging Advisors!
My book group read “The New Rules of Aging Well” several years ago; I am not sure how much it would be worthwhile to you vs. not, but perhaps there is a cliff notes version or you could read the table of contents? (Being Mortal is more about *dying* specifically, but gets into some of the quality-of-life questions and the issues of how different people in a situation have different priorities for themselves, and also for others [as you are probably familiar with, people usually want their loved ones to be comfortable and maximally *safe* and stay alive as long as possible, whereas those peoples’ own priorities may be strongly at variance from that?) I’ll be looking into the first book mentioned in the comments section, as it sounds much more relevant!
But also yes, joy and hope and purpose are, according to research, health-improvers in themselves! Happy active neurons are worth a chunk for health and healing up from something and reducing the ill effects of aging!
Joy, hope and purpose. Just saying those words makes me happy:). It’s funny, arch support is actually uncomfortable for me. It seems to be largely from foot strike, my problems, and cushioning is helping. I’m also going to start on some foot exercises. If I’m going to strength training for the rest of me once a week I can surely allot some time for my very important feet. VIF?
Hi there
As my ex sister in law a nurse used to say you don’t get healthier as you age.
I’m 77 and quirky things occur. The latest is the feet flare up. It is not plantar fasciitis- I’ve had that before. It’s the thinning of the pads. Ouch ouch ouch. Eventually it will settle down – anti inflammatory – heat – ice – etc.
See a physio for alignment issues – there are some good muscle energy techniques/stretches that really help.
On occasion I have gone to a foot lounge – they massage your feet – ever so relaxing.
Oh I so love a good foot massage! No, we don’t natively get healthier as we age. But I’m thinking it’s possible that with work it’s possible to be healthier at, say, 70, than one was at 69. Sort of like salmon swimming up river.
A podiatrist once advised me, when I was dealing with plantar fasciitis, to alternate footwear between daytime and evening. He suggested wearing slightly different heel heights and/or shoes with slightly different arch support rather than wearing the exact same shoes all the time. Always wear some supportive footwear (no bare feet) but basically — switch it up.
It actually helped me quite a bit, and I still follow that advice years later.
Thanks for all the advice and suggestions , Now I’m having right hip pain – trying to figure that out!
Suz from Vancouver
Great advice to switch up footwear. Of course, different heel heights today mean more like the difference between 1/2 inch and 3/4 inch, but still works. Hip pain, yikes. First thing I had to do was learn the anatomy of the area, which made me realize that what I think of as my “hip bones” are actually my iliac crest, and my true hips are the joint below. How did I not know that?
Love this thread of advice – thank you all. Just wanted to mention Katy Bowman, who is a biomechanist who does a lot of work on aging – and has a great book about movement and getting older. — Sarah
Thank you in return, Sarah!
Dear Lisa,
Safety in numbers. I was at our 48th Reunion this weekend and suggested a survey where we would answer what parts of our bodies we have head health challenges with and then create a visual “heat map” showing where most of us have been challenged (the size of the dots would reflect the frequency.). Our genetic evolution has some dispersion, but I think we mostly are all going through similar issues at similar stages of our lives. Safety in numbers! And maybe a little consolation that we are not alone.
“Our genetic evolution has some dispersion.” So much to learn! And how much is in fact known at this point? We are not alone. Our generation can maybe help sort this out a little before we move on.
My sympathies on the foot aches. My solution will sound like utter nonsense. My feet used to hurt all the time. Then I switched to barefoot shoes. Now they only hurt some of the time, and I have finished 10 marathons in minimalist soles. My theory is that it makes me walk and run differently, without thinking about it, so that I’m not pounding down on my feet.
Wow. Ten marathons and only intermittent foot pain? That’s wonderful. If you feel like sharing the brand of barefoot shoes you like, I’m all ears.
I found 2 brands that I go back to over and over: Xero and Vivo Barefoot. I wore Five Fingers for years, and I loved them until my toes decided they wanted a wide toe box instead of individual compartments.
I prefer to be barefoot whenever it’s safe, so this solution makes sense for me.
Great. Thank you!
Just learned this year about physiatrists when I was referred to one for back issues. I had not heard of this before. They are medical doctors who specialize in structural and nervous system issues, pain management and rehab. I expect painful feet would qualify… (Mine hurt a lot too!)
I did wind up seeing someone in Physical Medicine, for my shoulder in 2014 when I pulled my bicep tendon from shrugging on a motorcycle jacket. Yes. True story. I should return, for my feet. I wonder if I have to go to my PCP, who keeps changing as physicians leave the practice to join concierge services. A real thing in Silicon Valley right now, and one of the downsides to living alongside so many billionaires.
Here is what I know/experienced.
My feet started bothering me about a year ago. I self-diagnosed myself with plantar fasciitis; my doctor does not agree. Nevertheless I bought some ‘indoor’ shoes that are designed to resolve that problem and my feet greatly improved. Pain is gone. My take on this is that my lifelong habit of wearing only flip flops in the house is no longer sustainable because of padding issues. When I switched to an indoor shoe – not a flip flop, not a slipper, but rather a shoe with support – the problem went away. Give me a housecoat and ankle socks and I will greatly resemble Grandma Moses, but never mind about that part.
Second, look up the Foot Collective Network. We need to exercise our feet. I know – one more thing to do. I take private Pilates classes and we work on this regularly. Use a ball to massage the bottoms of your feet. Use the boards to work muscles. It definitely helps.
Many thanks to the commenter for the book recommendation. I will definitely buy the book about aging.
Foot Collective Network here we come! Thank you!
Another blogger recommended Will Harlow, and since I have been following his youtube exercises my aches and pains have definitely improved, I am 71.
Thank you. I love all these resources. I have some watching/reading to do now!
My physical therapist watched me and said I am walking wrong. And to think I thought I had that mastered. But nope, I am not using the right muscles. So it’s always something and yes the knee bone is connected to the …..
Oh my gosh!