Improving your athleticism by strengthening your toes



Although you can walk just fine flat-footed, which I've done for years, it isn't exactly an athletic stride. And that's because in order to move quickly you need to get up on the balls of your feet, and that really means your toes, especially your big toe. If your feet don't flex well there, you have some work to do.

All of this just comes naturally to you as a kid, and if you've always been athletic, such as a tennis player, it's never left you, and you just take it for granted. I discovered how weak my toes were, especially my big toes, just this year, so I'll tell you what I'm gonna do.

First of all, I'm barefoot around the house. And when I wear shoes they will have to be very flexible in the toe area. The idea is to be able to stand like Barbie. Here, I'll show you an example:


As of this writing, I can't stand like that, with the bend between my metacarpals and my phalanges (both terms I just learned this year). And it starts with just doing a gentle stretch to get the bend started. Then of course it's a strength movement, as you can't have any brace under your heel.

The arch isn't enough, the goal is tip-toes

Like I say, for most athletic people this is just a given. It starts with regaining your arch (which I did), and then strengthening your toes. Once you have the strength, you can go from there. I'll let you know how it goes for me.

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