Improve Your Stride With Big Toe Mobility

Have you ever noticed a pinch callus, a big toe that pushes toward the other toes, or a medial heel whip (foot that pivots) when you walk? It might be time to take a look at your big toe!

Your big toe should be able to extend 70 degrees (but you can get away with 45-60 degrees).

Big toe extension helps with:
Being able to create an arch. This is important for creating a rigid lever to push off of. It also helps create a position to then pronate and lengthen from. Our foot in particular relies on elastic energy for movement efficiency.
The direction of push-off from your foot. Being able to move directly over our foot and create a vertical propulsion in our calf helps us push the ground directly behind us to move us forward. Without this, we might move around the limitation and create a twist in the leg that further affects our movement efficiency and mechanics.
How you function in your hips. How your foot interacts with the ground can affect the alignment and muscles higher up the chain. Conversely, how your pelvis moves and stabilizes can also affect the load you put through your foot into the ground. Sometimes we need to work from the foot up, other times it’s from the pelvis down, and often it’s a little of both. We talk about the big toe in this video, but tibial position and hip strength and mobility can also affect the pressure that is put through the foot.

Sometimes you need to address this directly by working on extension, and other times you might need to restore flexion first to give it a place to extend from. Then we need to practice strengthening and moving in that new range.


Did you know I teach online:
Online Continuing Education for Fitness and Health Professionals
PCES - Pregnancy & Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist
www.coreexercisesolutions.com/postpartum-corrective-exercise-specialist/
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