Relieving Fatigue — from Your Feet, Up

Do your feet ever feel like heavy, painful boulders that require so much effort just  to move, your energy drains away?  Many years ago I suffered with plantars fasciitis. This greatly affected my activity level, and ironically left me more fatigued than did actual exercise.  The achy tiredness would begin in my soles but creep up my legs until I was useless.

Thankfully, my feet are in great shape now, but I still occasionally use the following trick learned long ago to give me a boost of energy after working my body, and feet, hard.

Find two of those curvy 20-oz plastic Coca Cola bottles.  And, no, you DON’T have to drink the Coke – empty pop bottles are, unfortunately, ubiquitous.  Fill them with tap water, but NOT all the way to the top because you are next going to put them in the freezer and will want the bottles to have some expansion room.

Once the water is frozen, the bottles make excellent footsy rollers!  Put the bottles on the floor, and with your feet atop the bottles’ curved sides simply roll them back and forth.  You will probably want to wear socks to protect your pinkies from becoming little popsicles.

The rolling action will gently stretch the connective tissues in the soles of your feet, and the icy surface reduces inflammation and pain.  You will be revitalized in a very short time, and can put the bottles back into the freezer for future use.

There are often simple, inexpensive solutions we can use alone or collectively to help us overcome our obstacles.  Are there any you find helpful?  If so, please share!