Shoes and back pain

For at least 20 months I have been in pain from a pulled muscle in my back.  The problem is I don’t remember pulling it.  The pain got so bad I had trouble getting out of bed.  Exercises and lintiment have helped significantly.  Maybe 30 days ago I swapped out my COSTCO muck shoes for regular leather work shoes. Within within 24 hours I could feel the difference.  Now, 30 days later, it is all but gone.  And yes, I traced my purchase of the muck shoes back to maybe 60 days before I noticed the pain.  The muck shoes aren’t bad ….they just became my go to shoes.  They would be fine if only worn outside as needed.

Well that is unexpected! Can you say what is is about the muck shoes that may have caused the issue with your back?

Hi Nancy,

Actually, shoes are a common source of back pain. It should have been one of the first things I checked.  As for exactly what …all I have is guesses…arches, heel support, movement ..or lack of movement within the shoe,…etc.  I am sure we have a PT/OT person (Jay?) on staff here who can better answer your question for both of us.

My back is still sore at times  …as opposed to pain.  But the crippling pain is gone.  Most of the time the soreness is gone as well.

I remember reading an article by an east European immigrant to Canada. His biggest adjustment was not being able to find well made shoes.
I notice on this site that some members pay big bucks for custom made boots and shoes.  That is what I get for buying a $39 pair of muck shoes and wearing them all the time.

John F Dean wrote:  I am sure we have a PT/OT person (Jay?) on staff here who can better answer your question for both of us.

It's complicated... and quite a bit out of my expertise area.

The most obvious problem is if the muck shoes have more or less heal rise than your regular shoes. If you're used to a 1" heal, and you suddenly need to wear a 3" heal, there's a good chance your back will notice. But I definitely have heard about "too flat" shoes causing back pain in some people.

Muck boots have a reputation for not having good arch support and they also don't conform to your foot the way a leather tie shoe will. Living on the "wet" coast, my boys wore rubber boots most of the winter. I used to make neoprene insoles for the boots and it was a big help. I used to buy quality insoles for myself, but unfortunately, the "quality" has seriously deteriorated, so now I make my own out of upcycled neoprene wet suits (the thicker ones - thin ones don't last). Even if I'm being fairly active, if my feet get wet, they tend to get cold and then I'm much more likely to get hurt. The neoprene tends to keep my feet warmer as well.

Some boots definitely flex with your foot more than others, so that may be what caused the pain. I have a pair of steel toes for certain activities and I'm aware of having to compensate for the lack of foot movement with my knees and hips. Again, it's possible that John was compensating for problems in hip/knee/ankle joints, and the boots either prevented his usual compensation, or required him to compensate more, and that might have been the source of the pain.

Bottom line is - yes - absolutely - if you're getting back pain, the old song about your backbone connecting to your hip bone, your hip bone connecting with your leg bone, etc is completely true. If someone starts getting some sort of pain, looking for "what changed" and choosing some possible contributing factors and changing them one at a time, makes a lot of sense. Pain in the back is often the result of problems in the extremities, so it's really important to look at the big picture.

Hopefully someone with more expertise will speak up.

I second the suggestions of adjusting inserts and insoles to suit your biomechanics.

Whatever boots/shoes you have, they are only a case that gives traction and mechanically protects your foot. But inside, the insoles you can insert, tweak, make, and adjust determine how a particular boot/shoe will work with your personal ergonomics. It's a life saver.

Following on from Jay.

My main shoes these days have zero heel rise, so all of my biomechanics have adjusted to that (I have flexible flatfoot)

If I'm doing stuff on ladders I switch to my steelies which have a steel midsole because it spreads the pressure. But walking in the things is miserable.

Thinking back to a conversation I had decades ago with an orthopedic surgeon, our feet were designed to walk barefoot on uneven terrain.  So, the closer that can be approximated the better.  The problem is humans love to mess with uneven terrain and make floors, driveways, sidewalks, and roads.