The ‘Rule of Thirds’ can calculate cranium development

Many runners complain of having flat feet. 

This problem was on display during the London Marathon at the weekend and the usual answer to this condition is to wear orthotics. 

But do orthotics really work? 

I’ve known clients to wear them for years and still experience pain when running.

When the feet are extremely flat, the foot pronates and can cause the person to walk like a duck. 

Unfortunately, genetics can play a huge part in having flat feet.

Dr Francis M Pottenger discovered some fascinating findings in his study, Pottenger’s Cats. This study wasn’t exclusive to cats but also
applied to humans. 

Pottenger claimed that flat feet were a side effect of malnutrition in one or both parents.

The human subjects he tested on had a dysfunction in normal cranial development.

If we apply the ‘Rule of Thirds’ to the head we can calculate if our skulls have developed properly. To start with, place your thumb next to your index finger with your teeth together.

 n Place the thumb on the bottom of your chin. The index finger should touch the bottom of your nose.

n Place your thumb on the bottom of your nose. The index finger should rest between your eyes.

n Place your thumb between your eyes. The index finger should be positioned at your hairline.

In cranial development disorders, usually the middle third gets shortened, the top third can be long or short and the bottom third is
typically long.

This all disrupts the ability to breathe through the nose, encouraging the mouth to open during breathing and creating a forward head posture. This can cause pronation of the body (movement into the fetal
position), which produces flat feet.

If the core muscles are shut down for any reason, usually from eating processed food, the brain recruits the hamstrings, which causes the hips to tilt backwards. This makes the spinal discs stack on top of each other, as it’s the next best way to stabilise the hips when there is poor core control.

When this all happens, it triggers the thigh and shin bone to rotate out and the feet to turn outward.

This all means the feet are
misaligned with the body and
over-pronate, with the big toe
turning inwards, which usually causes a bunion.

There are a few strategies we can apply to help with this problem. 

We should start by stretching out the calves as much as possible and try not to wear heels greater than an inch, as the calf muscles adaptively shorten over time.

That’s why if you walk barefooted, there is so much tension in the calf muscle, as it pulls the heel upwards, stressing the plantar fascia, producing pain and nerve impingement in the foot. You should try barefoot walking on beach stones everyday and hold pressure on the tight spots of your foot for as long as you can. 

Treating these reflex points will give the foot a massage. 

It will also mobilise the tissues and activate the intrinsic muscles in the foot and turn on the core. Orthotics often shift the compensation to the knee, hip or back. 

No part of the body works on its own. Only once we’ve applied the strategies listed, should we start to consider wearing orthotics. 

Colin has designed the only online coaching program for the Bermuda Half Marathon. Colin blogs at www.CoconutFitness.com. Subscribe to “50 Ways to be Fit and Fabulous” for absolutely free. 

Colin Ayliffe is a certified personal trainer and holistic lifestyle coach with over 10 years’ experience in training clients. He graduated from the University of Surrey with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sport Science and is also a CHEK practitioner, golf biomechanic and is accredited by the
National Academy of Sports Medicine.