Why Overuse Does Hurt Your Feet

Taking a break from work and stress is more than just a luxury—it’s something your body and mind need to rest and rejuvenate so you can continue going. Otherwise, exhaustion catches up and you actually become less productive and less engaged in your tasks. This effect has shown up in numerous studies, but anyone who works long hours every day and wishes for a vacation can tell you just how true it is. Well, your mind and body as a whole aren’t the only things that can be overworked. Overuse in your feet can cause painful injuries.

Overuse injuries in the lower limbs are painful problems that develop when the bones, muscles, tendons, or ligaments suffer repeated stress and develop damage. The constant repetition means they don’t have a chance to properly recover from absorbing strain and hard impacts. Eventually this damages those tissues, and the damage only increases the longer your feet aren’t able to properly recover.

The end result of this is pain and difficulty that starts small but increases over time.

This is most common among athletes, but it can happen to anyone. Simply spending hours on end standing or walking for your job could contribute to overuse injuries in your feet. Typically, though, active people experience it when their feet either aren’t prepared to handle their activities, or they are doing something incorrectly when they participate in sports.

Without proper training and conditioning, your feet can’t handle the stress of suddenly being forced to run, jump, kick, dance, or anything else harder or faster or for longer than they are used to. The strain wears them out quickly which, then, causes injuries. Striking the ground incorrectly or wearing the wrong footwear can affect how your bones, muscles, and connectors function, too—potentially wearing them out and damaging them over time.