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When it comes to strength training and athletic performance, most people focus on their core, legs, and upper body - but few pay attention to their feet, the very foundation of every movement. Whether you're a serious competitive lifter or someone looking to improve overall fitness, strong and mobile feet are essential for injury prevention, performance, and stability.
Why Foot Strength and Mobility Are Important
Injury Prevention:
Strong foot muscles combined with proper mobility allow ground reaction forces to transfer up the leg as intended. However, when the foot is weak or lacks mobility, the force is more absorbed by passive structures, such as the plantar fascia or the bony parts of the foot, which is when pain can begin to start.
The problem I've seen working with hundreds of people with foot problems, is most can't activate the muscles in their feet and they lack proper foot mobility. You should be able to splay your toes and lift your arch actively (using your own foot muscles), but most people can't do that. Having the necessary mobility for these actions is crucial.
Stability:
Most people struggle with balancing on one leg. While several factors can influence this (such as vision, proprioception, leg and core strength, etc), foot stability plays a huge role. A stronger foot can grip the floor and better control your body's natural sway when balancing.
Poor balance is a huge reason why people avoid single leg free-weight work in the gym, such as lunges, split squats, step-ups, or single leg Romanian deadlifts (RDLs). While machines can build single leg strength, solely relying on machines usually does not engage the hip and foot stabilizer muscles. Why does this matter? From my work as a physical therapist, I've seen a strong correlation between a lack of foot and hip stabilizer strength and injuries involving the low back, SI joint, hip, knee and foot.
Performance:
Since I primarily treat fitness athletes, I'll tie this into lifting. Having a strong foot that can activate and maintain an arch provides a stable base through your legs during squats and deadlifts. If your feet flatten, your knees will likely cave in, leading to a loss of tension, strength and increased risk of injury. Additionally, as mentioned earlier, stronger feet enables you to perform more exercises targeting overall lower leg stability, which will enhance your single leg strength and further help your squats and deadlifts.
A Quick Note on Shoe-wear and Being Barefoot
Here's the truth: most shoes are either designed for fashion or marketed to make you believe they provide excellent support and comfort. In reality, many shoes actually cause harm to your feet because of their shape or the amount of "support" they offer.
If your shoes significantly narrow at the toe portion, they're not good for your feet. They squeeze your toes together, and over time, you'll notice your feet start to take on that shape. Your toes are meant to spread and stay wide. Small muscles between your toes control this movement, but when they're constantly compressed, these muscles stop working properly and can lead to pain.
Some shoes claim to provide excellent arch support and cushioning, which might be necessary for certain people due to their foot structure or if they're in the middle of injury rehab. However, in an ideal world, your feet should be able to support themselves.
Being barefoot as much as you can is the goal (within reason). However, if you are not used to this, and suddenly try to go barefoot 24/7, that is a surefire way to end up with foot pain. Like any other muscle, the foot has to adapt.
Now, let's explore some exercises that can help strengthen your feet.
Exercises to Strengthen Your Feet
1.Toe Curls
How to perform: Place a towel or cloth under your foot and use your toes to grip and pull the towel all the way toward you. When you run out of towel, flatten it back out and repeat. Aim for 3 rounds of 30 seconds.
2.Toe Splaying
How to perform: Perform sitting or standing. Use your own toe muscles to spread your toes apart as wide as you can, then slowly return to normal. Repeat 2-3 sets of x 10 reps.
3.Doming/Arching
How to perform: Start by standing with your feet flat on the floor. Gently lift your arch while keeping the heel and toes on the ground. You want to think about driving the ball of the big toe into the ground while shortening the distance from it to the heel. Hold for a few seconds, then relax and repeat for 2-3 sets of 10 reps.
Warning: this is very difficult and will likely cause foot cramping if you're doing it right.
4.Maintaining the Arch While Balancing
How to perform: Once you've mastered doming (above exercise), progress to maintaining the arch while balancing on one foot. Stand on one leg, keeping the arch lifted and try to balance for 3 x 30 seconds. Avoid letting the arch collapse as you stabilize. Feel free to add a balance pad or stand on a pillow if you're more advanced.
Once you master this, the end goal is to incorporate a lifted arch while doing other exercises, such as squats, leg press, and deadlifts. Even practice it throughout the day while you're standing in line or sitting during a long meeting!
If you have any problems doing these exercises, there's a chance you may not have the mobility. Stretching your toes forward and back as shown below, or gradually working into wearing a device called CorrectToes may be beneficial.
Need help?
I always advise getting an in-person evaluation if you're dealing with any kind of pain, because more often than not, the source of your pain is not located where you are feeling it. If you're in the NJ area, contact me and let's set up an appointment to get you a personalized game plan for stronger and more pain-free feet.
As always, these blog posts are meant to be for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for medical advice. Stronger Performance Physical Therapy LLC and Dr. Sarah Barbosa, PT, DPT are not responsible for any outcome that results from you trying advice you found online. Seek an in-person evaluation to get a a diagnosis and treatment specific to your condition.
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