Whether you are going on a long walking tour, or you are jumping whole hog into a workout routine that only involves three-hour workouts on the weekends, you are very likely to encounter a lot of pain. A large part of that pain is going to be in your legs and feet. This "weekend warrior" approach to any exercise, even when you are on vacation, is not good for your feet. Here is more of what you need to know about foot pain and "weekend warrior" exercise.
Your Body Is out of Shape
Many people work in an office or in a place where they are sedentary for a large part of the day. That makes all of your body, including your feet, "soft" and unable to do long stretches of exercise, including walking. Naturally, your feet and all of the muscles in them will be very resistant to sudden and extensive bursts of movement. All of the soft tissues and nerves will be activated, and they will alert you to the fact that you are doing too much. You can try to push past the pain, but you have to realized that there is a moment where pushing past that pain is not a good idea.
Flat-Footedness Contributes More Problems
If you are also a little overweight or flat-footed (i.e., you have fallen arches), then foot pain is going to be much worse than if your feet had a proper arch to them. When you jump into a vacation with lots of walking or weekend workout routine with no training weeks beforehand, your flat feet and/or excess weight are going to contribute to the amount of pain you feel. The excess weight bears down harder on your knees, ankles, and feet, and unsupported flat feet are unable to strike the ground naturally. Your feet will not rebound in the manner they should (or would had you started walking shorter distances for longer periods prior to this much exercise).
Uneven Outdoor Surfaces
When you are on vacation, your feet and legs will encounter a lot of uneven walking surfaces. The unevenness of paved streets, unlevel streets, inclines, downhill walking, pebble or cobblestone streets, lumpy earth and grassy areas, and a few other typically uneven walking surfaces make all of the above even worse. You may even roll your feet in, out, or over and injure an ankle that is not fit for this much movement. Your best prevention is to begin weeks in advance, walking short distances and times, and gradually building up your strength and endurance. Then you will have far less foot pain and fewer ankle and leg injuries when you work out or go on walking vacations.
For help with foot pain due to an injury like this, visit a website like http://familyfootanklephysicians.com/.
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