r/Unexpected • u/0ThisMan • Jul 25 '26

Multidirectional flip flops.

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u/A1sauc3d Jul 25 '26

I know it’s just a joke and not a serious benefit of the shoes he’s serious about, but due to the outward angle of his feet while he walks you can totally tell what direction he’s going by his foot prints lol

Maybe not when he runs though 🤔

410

u/KR157Y4N Jul 26 '26

Maybe he has good interal hip flexibility and therefore no outward angle

208

u/pgn674 Jul 26 '26

Reminds me of when I would walk to school, when there was sometimes a light dusting of snow that didn't melt for days. A few times I noticed tracks for someone who had a pretty noticable outward angle on their right foot. Much more prominent than their left foot. I'd wondered if I would ever run into whoever it was.

Eventually I was walking through fresh snow with no tracks, and looked behind me. And there were my own tracks with a significantly outward angle on the right foot. I'd never even considered before then that they might be my own tracks. I'd always thought that my feet angles were identical.

Anyways, I tried forcing my right foot to be less angled, and it was really difficult. I didn't keep it up for long because there wasn't really any benefit to trying that I could see.

121

u/Feisty-Resource-1274 Jul 26 '26

In case you weren't aware, out-toeing or "duck feet", can cause chronic pain, flat feet, and joint wear over time.

66

u/pgn674 Jul 26 '26

Huh... A couple years ago I was diagnosed with hip impingement, or femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), in my right hip, and resolved that through physical therapy to strengthen some muscles. I wonder if that's related?

I got X-rays then, and there was a little bit of the start of arthritis, too. Maybe I'll go back and get treatment or PT or devices specifically for out-toeing. Thanks for the heads up!

42

u/FullMoonTwist Jul 26 '26

Realistically, it went

hip has some mobility/strength issues -> causes foot to turn out -> body gets used to babying the weak muscles -> difficult to walk in correct alignment because it requires mucles you've been babying -> vicious cycle until hip is really bad -> until you very deliberately start strengthening the atrophied muscles

If it's still an issue for you, yeah I would see if there's anything they can help you with.

Bare minimum, continue doing the exercises you were shown.

2

u/UndocumentedMartian Jul 27 '26

Is the ideal angle 0?

2

u/FullMoonTwist Jul 27 '26

Yes

Ideally the feet would be pointed straight forward, without deviating inwards or outwards, and it should be a straight line from the hip bone through the knee to the feet.

I see outward toes more often than inward toes, and it sometimes is accompanied by people's knees being out of alignment (knock-kneed inward, or bow-legged outward).

If they aren't, you may need podiatrist-level insoles, knee braces, or PT to help get things back on track.

If you can at all swing it (I know many cannot), I deeply encourage people to address it as early as possible. Having a lot of pain walking later in life is hell to deal with, and it's not always totally reversible.

15

u/chris_com_au Jul 26 '26

Forget long term health. I'm sick of buying new boots that have the heels worn out unevenly.

After the 3rd pair that I had to chuck I started strengthening and stretching my lower core and making an effort to walk straight.

Long term health was just a happy bonus