The human body is actually a marvel. It is just that our bodies are meant to move (not exercise, just lots of different movements throughout the day).
Here is a video of the Hadzabe, one of the last hunter-gatherer tribes alive (when I was studying biomechanics I used to watch hours of these videos). They sprint, squat, walk, well into their 70s without any pain.
I know we can't change our professions, so if you are dealing with neck pain, carpel tunnel syndrome etc, please try to maximise your recovery by eating and sleeping well, and if you can, try visit a physiotherapist or check out physio-pedia.com
My best general health advice is: get barefoot shoes, and walk on uneven terrain once or twice per week. Without getting too much into detail: the feet have evolved over millions of years to adapt to the terrain we walk on to provide stability. There are many bones in the feet allowing them to become many different shapes. These shapes affect the kinetic chain above the feet (ankle, lower/upper leg, hips, lower/mid/upper back, neck). All these structures try to organize themselves to keep you in balance and move you forward, a beautiful interplay between your body and gravity. Due to the uneven terrain, your body will take on many different shapes which keeps your body healthy. With narrow shoes you will limit some crucial movements/shapes your feet should be able to make, so something else will have to compensate to make up for that movement option your feet are lacking. Often times, you will get lower back pain. I used to get it all the time when walking in Timberlands or Nike court shoes. Anyway, barefoot shoes are not the most trendy, far from it, but they are bringing out better and better designs each year. Remember, start with once or twice per week 30 minutes, uneven terrain (start soft, grass, forest, meadow), relax your entire body, feel your weight transition fully on your feet as you walk, let your arms swing naturally, let gravity help you.
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