Improve Ankle Mobility with Toe Extension

A lot of runners and athletes focus on ankle dorsiflexion, but forget the importance of toe extension. In particular the great toe (1st) needs a good amount of extension, max of 80-90 degrees in relation to the forefoot to have good push off for running and jumping. Dr. Nicole Surdyka shows a simple warm up for your toes in below's video. Need help returning to running or sport? Contact us!

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TOE EXTENSION MOBILITY ————— This simple exercise is a really nice way to feel a stretch in your big toe and the bottom of your foot. . This stretch feels especially good when I wake up in the morning after playing soccer or doing a sprint workout the day before. . Make sure you curl your toes under to feel it! . Note: we are most likely not affecting the actual tissue at all here. The plantar fascia is super thick and fibrous, and a simple stretch like this is probably not going to create any changes in its length. I simply love how this feels after playing soccer, and thought I’d share it with you all! . I also like this for developing great toe extension tolerance. No need to crank at it and force extension here, simply go to a tolerable range and gradually progress.

A post shared by Nicole Surdyka PT, DPT, CSCS (@dr.nicolept) on May 28, 2019 at 5:59pm PDT