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Bharat Savur

The body and mind are reflections of each other and this is more than evident in flat feet which can turn arched with some mind-building exercises.

I've never given much thought to feet except that during winter, the heels crack and cry for petroleum jelly. But, bodymind specialist Ken Dychtwald is forcing me to look at them with new eyes. ``Do they provide the appropriate structure upon which you can build the rest of your bodymind?'' he asks.

Dychtwald's dictum: The way a person is grounded physically is frequently identical to the way he is grounded emotionally. Meaning: feet fairly arched with three contact-points each with the ground indicate stable, grounded emotions. Whereas, flat feet with one's entire contact-plane indicate a slippery psycho-emotional relationship with the world.

Literally like an ice-skater, a flat-footer supposedly slides through life, never quite planting roots, never quite staying put. Apparently, flat feet make for easy motion, but without stable effectiveness to that ease, and are injury-prone. Similarly, though relationships with people appear smooth, they create an inner struggle, a vulnerability.

Normally, I'd pass over this treatise as mere infotainment, except it vividly described my student Bilasha. She glides in and out of class announcing she can spare only 20 minutes; travels abroad four times a year, in India, innumerable times because, ``If I didn't, I'd go bonkers!'' Warm, affectionate, yet she seems out of her depths with almost every relationship. She's easily flustered, thrown at the slightest yes and no situation — ``flat-footed people usually lose their ground pretty quickly and are easily pushed off their spot,'' says Dychtwald. ``Such people have overdeveloped thighs and a correspondingly overemphasised need for self-control to compensate for the lack of fluid stability and relaxed contact with the earth. They develop `clutching feet' and tight back muscles...'' Hmm, Bilasha does fit this bill.

Dychtwald continues to analyse, ``Because this person is so easily pushed over and manipulated, to remain stable and grounded, she may develop a chronic attitude of determination and control...'' Yes, I've seen Bilasha powering her way through, declaring forcefully, ``My mind is made up!'' then anxiously back-pedalling at the slightest assertiveness from co-exercisers.

In fact, my wife and I have always had a soft for our vulnerable, restless, blunderbuss Bilasha, wondering why she has this compulsive need to be constantly on the move. Genetic, say psychologists, or environmental — influenced by a parent's response. Essentially, it is an inability to plant one's weight and energy beneath, so as to be anchored and self-supported. (``If there's always the impulse to flee, but is not acted upon,'' explains Williams Schulz, the unconscious clenching of feet distorts muscles and causes pain. Bilasha does complain about tender heels and shifts from foot to foot while exercising. On the emotional front, Dychtwald advises ``down-to-earth, mundane changes.'' Make the home and workplace comfortable. Stay with the same job or project for a minimum three years. Focus on maintaining relationships. He warns that there would be ``the pressure of a lifetime of emotional restlessness to ice-skate.'' But, as one begins to feel and appreciate the world slowing down, appearing stable, the roots of restfulness start to take hold. ``As a result of these basic life changes, my arches have increased considerably and my feet are no longer flat,'' Dychtwald reveals.

Sounds fanciful? But, bodymind therapists believe — as do yoga and ayurveda practitioners — that the body and mind are reflections of each other; that emotions and experiences which form the personality also affect the formation and structuring of muscle and tissue. Hence their bio-logic: the structure of feet reflect the psychological stance of a person, in that, the physical contact with the ground-reality mirrors the mental contact with life's realities.

I suggest introspection, not as a course correction, but towards creative self-exploration and development. Also, restful action. Polish off an exercise session with the Chitasana (the awareness pose): lie on your back letting both sides of the spine rest evenly on the floor; lengthen your legs and let the feet fall open; relax head, neck, shoulders, hips; rest arms loosely on your sides, palm upwards; close your eyes and breathe naturally. Remain in that position for one minute.

Aligning the spine to gravity gives the beautiful natural experience of an all-there groundedness without clutching to the nowhere person. Another practice worth following is the foot-massage. Take a drop of herbalised sesame oil and massage your entire foot before bedtime. If you feel a sensation of mashed nuts moving in your heels, it's crystallised wastes — clogging your nerve-endings and capillaries — being ousted by improved lymph (waste-carrier) circulation thus enabling blood to flow freely once again. You can also get a massage treatment from a foot reflexogist or a shiatsu practitioner to eliminate tender spots. Losing weight also eases heel and ankle aches. Finally, on cold days, wear socks. As The Massage author George Downil warns, ``Nothing destroys a good massage more than physical coldness.'' Warm feet conserve energy on this good earth.

The writer is co-author of the book, `Fitness for Life'.

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