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<p>Walking is one of the most powerful health tools we have. It improves cardiovascular fitness, boosts mood, sharpens cognition, and can even be a predictor of how well you’ll age. But all those benefits depend on something we rarely think about until it starts hurting: our feet.</p>
<p>For many of us, walking is so automatic that we never consider the mechanics that make it possible. Yet the way we move, the shoes we wear, and the strength of the muscles in our feet can have a profound impact on how comfortably and efficiently we walk. When something goes wrong at our physical foundation, the effects can ripple upward, leading to pain not just in the feet, but in the knees, hips, and back.</p>
<p>My guest today is Dr. Milica McDowell, a physical therapist and the co-author of the new book <a href="https://amzn.to/4u2KQLh"><em>Walk</em></a>. Today on the show, Milica explains why walking speed may be a hidden vital sign, what gives you your signature walking style, and how to spot and address injury-inducing inefficiencies in your gait. We then talk about feet: whether you should worry about pronation, how to rehab plantar fasciitis — and no, it’s not stretching — the best kind of shoes to wear, and much more.</p>
<h3>Resources Related to the Podcast</h3>
<h3><b>Connect With Milica McDowell</b></h3>
<p><a href="https://amzn.to/4u2KQLh"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-193732" src="https://content.artofmanliness.com/uploads/2026/05/71F7XzsK-L._SL1500_.jpg" alt="" width="325" height="490" srcset="https://content.artofmanliness.com/uploads/2026/05/71F7XzsK-L._SL1500_.jpg 325w, https://content.artofmanliness.com/uploads/2026/05/71F7XzsK-L._SL1500_-320x482.jpg 320w" sizes="(max-width: 325px) 100vw, 325px"/></a></p>
<h3>Listen to the Podcast! (And don’t forget to leave us a review!)</h3>
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<h3>Transcript Coming Soon</h3>
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<br /><a href="https://www.artofmanliness.com/health-fitness/health/podcast-1119-built-to-walk-how-modern-shoes-and-weak-feet-are-holding-you-back/">Source link </a></p>
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Podcast #1,119: Built to Walk — How Modern Shoes and Weak Feet Are Holding You Back
