The importance of your big toe?

It is also known as your 1^st metatarsal phalangeal joint and one of 5 toes on your foot but the importance of its function cannot be minimized.  Ideally it has to bend 70 degrees for optimal movement, and function.

Think about what happens if it is stiff and does not move properly?

How do you push off when running? Or perform lunges?  What if you have a bunion or toe boney deformity?  Consider how that will effect how your foot and thus proximally your lower leg will function as a result

If your  big toe is stiff, it can cause compensation in other parts of your foot and ankle or further up your leg to accommodate for this movement loss.  We need to also consider if this is a structural or boney loss of movement due to an old injury, bunion or foot posture in other part of your foot that could be contributing to this range of motion loss

How do you know if you big toe is moving enough?

Can you lift your big toe to 70 degrees without moving your other toes or ankle? Can you perform a lunge on both legs and keep your alignment of knee and hip and keep your balance in your bare feet?

What can you do to increase your toe mobility?

Excursion: Put your toe up the wall against the skirting board, slide your toe down the wall to the floor and then bend you knee to touch the wall?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWSIpO6bp74

Is it equal bilaterally?  What is limiting your ability to do this? Does your knee move out or in?

If you fail the test, it becomes your exercise, so doing the above exercise can help re-gain big toe movement, plantar facia mobility, and ankle excursion.  Other exercises to try is kneeling with toes tucked under and sit back on your heel

or also try some standing toga-lates type exercises that can be prescribed by a qualified health practitioner.

Please take all this advice with a word of caution, respect pain and be mindful that your toe range of motion and loss there of, can be caused by other issues in your feet and may need to be assessed by a physiotherapist or other health care practitioner that has a specialty in feet.[wdi_feed id=”1″]