looking at the shape of your feet.

Unlike other foot structures, such as the Structural Flat Foot, Peasant Foot, Egyptian Foot, Greek Foot (also known as Morton’s Foot) and Simian Foot, the Rothbarts Foot isn’t quite so obvious.  In fact, if you didn’t know better you would swear it was hiding, as upon first inspection you really can’t see it all!

Why is this?

To answer this question, let’s look closer at what is a Rothbarts Foot:  A Rothbarts Foot is an inherited, abnormal foot structure that is the result of an incomplete rotational development of the talus (the bone that sits on top of the heel bone) which occurs approximately between the eighth and ninth week of pregnancy.

When you are born, you can’t see this incomplete foot development as the shape of the foot appears normal. But in spite of its’ normal appearance, the Rothbarts Foot is an unstable foot structure, which causes your feet to twist as you walk.

Because all feet send messages (signals) to your brain, and your brain uses this information to adjust your posture, the end result of this abnormal twisting motion is poor posture, which leads to chronic muscle and joint pain.

What my feet look like won’t tell me if I have a Rothbarts Foot?

In spite of all this abnormal foot motion going on, simply looking at the Rothbarts Foot doesn’t give you a clue that you have one. And this is the problem. If this inherited foot structure was easy to see by simply looking at your foot, then medical researchers probably would have discovered it a long time ago, saving millions of people from the agony of chronic muscle and joint pain.

How Can I Determine If I May Have A Rothbarts Foot?

In order to see a Rothbarts Foot in all its’ glory, you have to know how to position a weight bearing (standing) foot into its’ anatomical neutral position.  This isn’t easy to do without training and practice.  But once you have mastered this skill, you can easily identify this foot structure when present, because when you place the foot in its’ anatomical neutral position, the big toe and adjoining metatarsal are noticeably raised off the ground.

Though the above test is the best way to determine if you have a Rothbarts Foot, you may not have a doctor who is trained to perform this test, so there are other ways to help you make this determination.  One is to take the Rothbarts Foot Questionnaire.  If you answer more than half the questions in the affirmative, there is a strong probability that you have this abnormal foot structure.

Another test you may try is the Barefoot In The Sand Test:  Walk barefoot in wet fine sand, such as beach sand.  Take a look at the footprints you left behind.  If you notice the inside of your foot (where your arch is) has made an imprint in the sand, this is an indication that you may have a Rothbarts Foot.  Note – this is not a definitive test, as there are other abnormal foot structures (such as an inherited structurally flat foot) that will do the same.

If I feel I have a Rothbarts Foot, what is my next step?

If you have taken the Rothbarts Foot Questionnaire and/or the Barefoot In The Sand Test (described in my article above) you can gather more information about the Rothbarts Foot and the chronic pain symptoms it produces, by reading the ‘Abnormal Foot Structures’  category of this website.  

Remember, though it’s fun to examine your feet, what your feet look like will not tell you if you have a Rothbarts Foot.  And finding the cause is the first step in eliminating your chronic musculoskeletal pain for good.

As you learn more about my innovative therapy, you may find that addressing and effectively treating your foot structure may be the missing link to ending your longtime battle with unrelenting muscle and joint pain.

What Your Feet Look Like – Are They A Rothbarts Foot?

People love to examine their feet and seem to take great pleasure in what their feet look like. This is probably one reason so many people have asked me if they can see, by looking at their own feet, if they have a Rothbarts Foot – an inherited abnormal foot structure that causes chronic muscle and joint pain.

I must confess that the title of this post: ‘What Your Feet Look Like – Are they a Rothbarts Foot?’ is actually a trick question because you can’t see a Rothbarts Foot by only