How do you take care of your feet before they start showing signs of trouble?
As a physical therapist my motto is ‘if something hurts, you have waited too long.’ Addressing your foot and ankle mobility, strength, and stability is vital for longevity and performance. Your feet require strength, flexibility, and stability to handle the demands of the sport. Thus, the focus of this article is to provide a basic framework of exercises to implement into your weekly routine to optimize the health of your feet and ankles. As well as to combat the common injuries that runners face such as:
On the bright side, most of these conditions share a common cause, and a common solution. They typically stem from an imbalance in foot strength, mobility, or stability. The good news is that by targeting and improving those weak or stiff areas, often a combination of both, you can address the root of the problem and support long-term recovery.
Prehab and Rehab: Foot and ankle injuries are among the most common setbacks in running, but many are preventable. Investing in prehab, or proactive strength and mobility work, helps build the resilience your feet need to withstand the repetitive load of training. Rather than waiting for pain to sideline you, incorporating regular foot and ankle care into your routine can improve performance, reduce injury risk, and keep you running strong for the long haul.
Restrictions in foot or ankle mobility can disrupt the kinetic chain, altering your biomechanics and eventually leading to discomfort and potential injury like plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendinopathy or shin splints. Limited range of motion doesn’t just impact joints, it also impairs how muscles and tendons stabilize and generate power. Identifying, and addressing mobility deficits is a crucial first step in understanding what your body needs and where to focus your training and rehab efforts.
Dorsiflexion, or the motion of your toes and foot while moving upwards, is essential for runners. Stiff or overly tight ankles can impact everything from your stride length, to shock absorption, and even put extra stress on your knees and ankle. Ideally, runners have between 10-20 degrees of dorsiflexion for ideal mobility and stability.
Use the knee to wall test to assess ankle joint mobility. Stand facing a wall with one foot forward, and keep your heel on the ground while bending your knee to try to touch the wall. Measure how far your toes are from the wall when your knee touches without your heel lifting. If you can get about 10cm or four inches from the wall without your heel lifting, you have good dorsiflexion.
If there is big discrepancy, work on loosening up your calves and repeat the knee to wall motion to improve the range of motion in your ankle. Make sure your knee doesn’t collapse inwards for best results.
Make sure your lower legs, especially your calves, are loose and mobile. Make a habit of stretching your calf muscles after workouts and long runs, and you can use a foam roller or massage gun to access the deeper muscles for a good stretch.
Big Toe Extension Mobility:
Big toe extension is often overlooked by runners, but, insufficient big toe mobility can lead to altered gait mechanics, overuse of the Achilles tendon or calf muscle, bunions, and even plantar fasciitis. Ideal big toe extension is somewhere between 60-90 degrees. You can test your big toe mobility by:
Sit on chair with both feet flat on the ground and slowly lift your big toe up towards you until you can’t. As you can see below with my own toe, I get to about 80 degrees passively. Someone who is stiff would look something similar to the picture on the Right.
Stiff big toes can cause plantar fasciitis, metatarsalgia, and bunion pain.
Strength and Stability
Without adequate strength, your body can’t stabilize effectively. Weak or unstable feet compromise your ability to generate force and power, which are essential for efficient running mechanics.
Strength is what allows you to exert force against the ground. Stability is what allows you to control that force and maintain alignment during movement. Without both, your body can’t manage key demands like ground reaction forces or body weight loading, especially at the foot and ankle. Another way to strengthen your connection with the ground is by upgrading to a trail-specific insole from Sidas. These offer more structured cushioning than the flimsy foam that comes with most shoes and help improve proprioception, making your foot feel more locked in and responsive. Add in strength and stability work, and you’ll move with power and precision.
Many runners struggle with gastroc weakness, or, weakness or imbalance in one of the two major muscles that makes up the calf muscle, the visible bulge of your calf that attaches above the knee join, and merges with the Achilles tendon at the heel. Here’s how that can impact runners.
Gastrocnemius Strength:
While many runners assume they have strong calves, lower leg weakness is still extremely common in runners. The gastroc is essential for force production, shock absorption, and efficiency. A weak gastroc can cause inefficient toe-offs, and lead to tendon issues like Achilles problems or plantar fasciitis. You can test your calf strength by performing a simple heel-raise. Ideally, you should be able to complete 25 good heel-raises per leg.
You can grade yourself with the below chart which adjusts for age and sex. Make sure that your knee doesn’t collapse inwards or bend. Your form should stay consistent across repetitions. To address weak calves, add heel raises to your strength and mobility routine. Stronger calves means a more powerful stride, and reduced risk of Achilles, knee, plantar issues and calf strains.
Posterior tibialis Strength:
The posterior tibialis is the deepest and most centrally located muscle in the back of the lower leg. Like the gastroc, it helps elevate the heel when the foot is planted. But more importantly, it plays a critical role in supporting the arch of the foot, by lifting, tensing, and reinforcing it during weight-bearing movements.
This function helps distribute body weight evenly and maintain proper foot mechanics when your foot is on the ground. When the posterior tibialis becomes weak or overstretched, the arch can collapse, often referred to in running circles as “excess pronation.”
It is difficult to test your own posterior tibialis, but, some functional movements can give insight into whether there might be a deeper issue or imbalance.
Short Foot: Short foot life also knows as “arch lifts” strengthen the muscles within the foot and posterior tibialis.
Posterior Tibialis Band Exercise:
Toe Yoga: Incorporate toe yoga to strengthen the intrinsic foot muscles. Runners need feet that are stable, nimble, and durable.
Attempt to do one or all of these for about 1 minute each. I would advise to do these barefoot, OR toe socks like the ones by Sidas. Sidas have done a great job developing a sock that allows the big toe to move freely and independently, improving your comfort and stability when road running or doing exercises.
Big toe lifts: It is exactly as it sounds.
Little toe lifts: Now we will do the opposite.
Toe abduction press:
Strengthening your feet and ankles isn’t just about injury prevention—it’s about building the foundation for balance, stability, and power. These often-overlooked muscle groups play a vital role in how we move, perform, and stay resilient. The exercises shared here go beyond the basics to highlight strategies that aren’t commonly discussed but can make a meaningful difference.
Consider doing some of your workouts barefoot or with socks like those from Sidas which allow the toes to move more freely. Athletes who suffer from bunions benefit the most from optimizing the function of your foot and toes. Most traditional socks tend to squeeze your feet together and do limit the function of the important big toe. While running in traditional socks is generally okay since running makes up only a few hours of your week, socks with big-toe separation are something to think about in conjunction with the toe box width of your shoes. While supportive footwear has its place, constantly relying on shoes can limit the natural strength and mobility of your feet. It’s part of the reason bunions, collapsed arches, and other foot dysfunctions are increasingly common. Sidas trail-specific insoles can help restore some of that function by offering structured support and improving proprioception. Combined with proper foot strengthening, they create a more stable and responsive foundation for movement. Start taking care of your feet now, your future self will thank you.
If foot pain is interfering with your daily life or keeping you from being active, don’t tough it out. Reach out to a podiatrist or physical therapist for expert guidance.
For more insights, revisit our Foot Care 101 article. Paired with this piece, it offers a strong foundation for understanding both the tools and function behind healthy feet. Don’t just focus on what you put on your feet, pay attention to how they actually work.
Greetings
thanks for this information-
How might Morton’s Syndrome come into play, if at all, in regards to specifically the Big Toe extension section ?
Regards
Morton’s neuroma is a bit tricky because of the physiology irritation of the nerve. What will help OVERALL is optimizing ankle mobility so you’re not trying to compensate and roll harder off your toes.
Keeping your toes flexible can help- but keeping up with ankle and gastroc is where I would focus first.