As bipedal beings, humans spend a LOT of time on their feet. Whether you’re running, jumping, or going bananas, your feet support you every step of the way. It’s hard to compare our toes to the dexterity of a great ape’s but we can always increase our muscle tone and movement with a little monkey business.
The muscles of the feet should be trained just like any other muscle group. These help keep a healthy arch in the inside of the foot which gives a natural “spring” to your step. However long your feet are, this muscle group is called the “short foot” muscles. There are a lot of great exercises that focus on strengthening the short foot muscles (see some below) as well as helping reduce foot pain.
A lot of force goes through the feet and it’s where many proprioceptive receptors (receptors that tell you where you are in space) are located. When these receptors work well, signals are sent to your brain to help keep balance and not lose your footing. When there is injury to the foot or ankle, the receptors have a harder time telling the brain what is going on around them. By increasing the muscle activity to the feet, the foot becomes stronger while also sending signals to the brain to say what good movement and how much range of motion that muscle has. This in turn, increases the balance of the foot and ankle which can help to reduce sprains and falls.
Exercises:
Toe splaying
Try to fire the muscles in the foot so that the toes separate from each other
Hold for 5 seconds and release
Repeat throughout the day
Picking up items
Whether it’s a pair of socks, undies, or a t-shirt by the laundry bin or a scrunched up piece of paper, use the toes to pick up items from the ground
Hold for 5 seconds and release
Towel scrunches
Sit in chair with a tea towel by your feet
Use the toes to reach out and grab the cloth
Scrunch the toes in grabbing the piece of towel and bringing it towards you
Repeat until you get to the top of the towel
Short foot flexion
Touch the middle of your foot where the arch should be at its highest. These are the muscles you want to fire
Try to fire those muscles and raise them off the floor
You’ll feel your toes flex into the floor. Try not to let them fully flex under your foot (keep the toes pressed into the ground)
Hold the short foot arch muscle for 7 seconds and release
Repeat throughout the day
If you want to progress, complete the same exercise while standing
An article from Unver et al. as well as a systematic review from Hara et al. found that 5 weeks of short foot exercises improved muscle activation, balance, joint movement/function, plantar fascia thickness, while also reducing pain and disability scores (1,2). It takes time to increase muscle mass but the effects on the foot and ankle afterwards are enough to hoot about.
Just remember, the secret to unlocking muscle tone in the feet is to practise like a mon-key.
Happy monkeying, happy feet,
Dr. Cole Maranger DC
References:
Hara, S. et al. 2022.The effects of short foot exercises to treat flat foot deformity: A systematic review. Journal of Back and Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35871320/
Unver, B. et al. 2019. Effects of Short-Foot Exercises on Foot Posture, Pain, Disability, and Plantar Pressure in Pes Planus. Journal of Sports Rehabilitation. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30860412/
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