Central Kansas Podiatry Associates: Helping Athletes at All Levels Stay Active
Good foot health is the foundation for best performance, whether you’re a novice, a professional, or just enjoy sports for exercise and recreation. Following these basic foot care tips for athletes from Dr. Weaver and the team at Central Kansas Podiatry Associates can help keep your feet healthy, injury-free, and properly functioning.
9 Foot Care Tips for Athletes
Here’s a list of things you can do to keep your feet and ankles ready for any activity you enjoy.
- Keep your body healthy and in good condition with a consistent physical fitness program that incorporates strength training and stretching.
- Maintain a healthy weight to help alleviate stress on the body.
- Stretch and warm up before playing sports—stretch and cool down when you’re finished.
- Keep your feet clean and dry, and check them daily for wounds or skin irritation.
- Prevent athlete’s foot fungus by wearing shower shoes in locker rooms and footies in swimming pools, and never share your towel.
- Use foot powder to help prevent friction and blisters.
- Wear quality, properly fitting, moisture-wicking socks.
- Keep sports footwear clean and dry and alternate pairs to air them out.
Additionally, always wear the proper shoes for your chosen activity, paying special consideration to the sport’s movements, playing surface, and impact on the feet, as well as your foot type and gait. Here’s a guide for choosing sport-specific footwear from the American Podiatric Medical Association.
Have Pain? Contact Our Wichita Office Right Away
Many sports involve quick motions, side-to-side movement, quick turns, jumps, running, and sprinting. As a result, the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons indicates athletes are susceptible to a variety of injuries, ranging from blisters, shin splints, corns, calluses, and athlete’s foot to sprains, torn ligaments, joint and muscle problems, and fractures.
There shouldn’t be chronic discomfort before, during, or after playing a sport, so any type of pain in the foot or ankle should be immediately addressed with a thorough examination by a skilled podiatrist. Waiting to see if the pain goes away on its own or ignoring the pain because you think it’s minor or normal can cause potential damage to worsen.
Dr. Weaver believes in using modern technology like Softwave Tissue Regeneration for soft tissue and wound care, UltraMIST ultrasonic wound healing, and Wharton’s Jelly regenerative medicine injections to help patients treat their foot issues without surgery.