Feet Don't Fail Me Now
Strengthen Your Foundation to Improve Mobility and Balance
Keep Your Foundation Strong and Flexible
Do you take your feet and ankles for granted? I do. I don’t think much about them unless I drop something on a toe, twist my ankle, step on a sharp object barefoot, or have some other mishap that forces me to take notice. If you’ve ever had sore, aching feet or tweaked your ankle, then you know how miserable it makes you feel.
Our feet and ankles impact how we move and whether we move well, so we need to keep them healthy and strong. Like so many things in life, we wait until there’s a problem before taking action. Our feet and ankles deserve our love and attention now, so we can continue to be stable and mobile throughout our lives.
Strong, flexible feet and ankles are critical to well-being and vitality. Keeping a pep in your step makes you feel and look young. Gait and balance disorders are one of the most common reasons for falls in older adults. While many gait disorders are associated with underlying medical conditions, the importance of having strong and flexible ankles and feet should not be underestimated.
Here are just a few of the many reasons why we should give our feet and ankles the attention they deserve.
Foundation of Movement: Our feet and ankles are our foundation. There are twenty-six small bones in our feet that carry the weight of our body. They absorb shock and provide stability during daily activities and exercise.
The Kinetic Chain: Your kinetic chain is essentially the interconnected network of muscles, ligaments, tendons, and bones from the top of your neck down to your toes. Each part of the body is a link, and each link depends on the one before it. That’s why pain in your feet and ankles can create problems throughout your body. Weak feet and ankle joints can lead to issues in the legs, hips, and back. Whether you’re an athlete or simply navigating daily life, strong flexible feet and ankles can reduce pain and injury in other parts of your body.
Balance and Stability: Strong healthy feet and ankles keep us standing tall and in balance. As we age, maintaining balance becomes critical. Weak feet and ankles can lead to falls, affecting overall quality of life. Ankle and foot strengthening exercises enhance proprioception (awareness of body position) and improve balance. Weak feet and ankles can disrupt proprioception due to pain, inflammation, and other factors. For a more detailed explanation of proprioception, read:
, who discusses proprioception in greater detail in his article on Barefoot Training.Maintaining Mobility: Keeping the ankles flexible and strong allows you to maintain an active lifestyle. Have you ever noticed how many older people shuffle their feet when they walk? One possible cause is loss of flexibility and mobility in the feet and ankles, which makes normal flexion difficult. A shuffling gait increases the risk of falling.
Foot Health: Strengthening exercises promote healthy foot arches, prevent conditions like plantar fasciitis and alleviate discomfort caused by flat feet or high arches.
Even those of us who are diligent about working out and staying fit neglect our feet and ankles. Depending on your strength training regimen, you may have a leg day or a back and shoulders day, but have you ever heard someone at the gym say, “Today is my foot and ankle day”? Neither have I. But, guess what. You don’t have to spend an hour strengthening and stretching your feet and ankles. You can do it with minimal time and effort—no gym membership or special equipment required.
Foot and Ankle Exercises and Stretches
A lack of activity can cause the muscles around the ankle to get weak. That affects how well you move. As with other groups of muscles, tendons, and ligaments, the ones in your feet and ankles can become stronger and more flexible with regular training.
I’m a big fan of making it easy to incorporate movement into your life, and these exercises and stretches can be done almost anywhere. If you don’t have much time, do one or two when you can throughout your day. Even standing on one foot periodically will increase foot and ankle strength and stability; just have something nearby to hold onto for balance if you need it.
This isn’t an exhaustive list. I’ve linked to videos showing these and other foot and ankle exercises and stretches. Check them out to see which ones work best for you.
Ankle Dorsiflexion:
Sit with your leg extended and knee straight but not locked.
Point your foot upward and bring it toward you.
Hold for 15 seconds and repeat five times on each leg.
This motion aids walking and restores normal gait.
Ankle Plantar Flexion:
Sit with your leg extended and knee straight but not locked.
Point your foot forward (away from you).
Hold for 15 seconds and repeat five times on each leg.
Improves range of motion.
Ankle Inversion:
Sit with your leg extended. Keep your toes pointed up.
Turn your foot inward (sole toward your other leg).
Hold for 15 seconds and return to neutral.
Repeat 3-5 times on each side.
Enhances range of motion.
Ankle Eversion:
Sit with your leg extended. Keep your toes pointed up.
Turn your foot outward (away from your other leg).
Hold for 15 seconds and return to neutral.
Repeat 3-5 times on each side.
Increases range of motion.
Sit with your leg extended and lift your foot off the floor.
Imagine writing the alphabet with your toes. Go through the entire alphabet 1-2 times on each side.
Move your foot and ankle in all directions, while moving your leg above your ankle as little as possible.
Enhances ankle mobility.
Toe Splays and Big Toe Stretches:
Seated, spread your toes apart and hold for a few seconds.
Seated, cross your leg over your knee so you can easily reach your big toe. Stretch your big toe by pulling it gently toward you with your hand.
These exercises strengthen intrinsic foot muscles.
Get a hand towel and put it on the floor
Smooth the towel out and place one foot on it, flat. You are going to be moving the towel toward yourself, so have extra fabric in front of your foot.
Sit on a chair (standing works too) with your heels under your knees. Make sure your legs and feet are parallel to each other with the toes pointing forward. Keeping your heel down, lift your toes and flex your foot back.
Leave your heel in place on the towel as you reach out evenly along both sides and the middle of your foot to get your foot to land on the towel, as far out as you can.
Keeping the heel still, pull the towel toward you by scooping it in with your arch and toes.
Use both sides of your foot (all five toes) and try to create a deep dome under the arch area. You will only get a little bit of the towel to move each time you extend and pull back. You might have to take a break to smooth the towel after a few reps. (This works best on a smooth floor like wood or tile.)
Repeat the move at least five times, and then do it with the other foot. You can do this exercise daily or even several times a day.
Good for foot strengthening and improves balance.
Bottom-of-foot stretch:
Stand with your feet together.
Step back with your left leg, come up on your toes lifting your heel off the floor and toes pressed against the floor. You should feel a gentle stretch in the muscles on the bottom of your foot.
Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat with your right foot.
Top-of-foot stretch:
Stand or sit with your feet together.
Working with one foot at a time, raise your heel and curl your toes under, pressing the tops of your toes against the floor. You should feel a gentle stretch in the muscles on the top of your feet and the front of your ankle. It might be more comfortable if you put a towel under your toes.
Hold for 20 to 30 seconds. Repeat with the other foot.
Calf stretch:
Sore feet can often be traced back to tight calves.
From a standing position, step forward with your left foot and bend the left knee.
Keeping the heel of your back leg on the floor and your back knee straight, slowly bend forward until you feel a stretch in the calf of your back leg. If needed, hold on to the back of a chair for balance.
Hold for 10 seconds, and then reverse your foot position and repeat the stretch on the other calf. Repeat the sequence three to five times.
The feet and ankles are often overlooked when it comes to health and fitness. But it’s never too late to start taking care of them. Having strong and flexible feet and ankles is crucial to continued mobility and fall prevention, particularly as we age.