How to Spread Your Toes and Other Foot Saving Tricks

Feet. Different people have different relationships with their feet. Some people love them, some hate them, some don’t think about them unless they hurt. Here is another perspective: our feet are the foundation upon which we stand. If you have a faulty foundation, the whole tower will tumble down. Giving your feet some love will affect how the rest of your body moves and feels.

If your arches fall, you might experience tightness in your outer calves. This can lead to knee pain, hip pain, or even neck and shoulder pain. How your foot hits the ground affects how the rest of your body moves. We are Master Compensators. We’re going to move our body, even if it isn’t with proper alignment, muscle engagement, or efficiency.

Do you ever think about how your feet hit the ground when you walk? Or whether your toes are squished or have room to spread in your shoes? In my decades of looking at feet, both as a yoga instructor and an acupuncturist, I have seen it all. Bunions, hammer toes, crossed toes, “frozen” toes, swollen joints, etc.

These conditions don’t happen overnight but often after years of cramming your feet into small spaces, sometimes due to genetics, or due to other circumstances like arthritis or injury. Creating space between your toes, as well as other strengthening toe, foot, and ankle exercises can improve your balance, stability, and how your feet feel.

Why should you care?

As I said, many people don’t care about their feet until they hurt. Once your feet hurt it becomes harder to walk, which can lead to a more sedentary lifestyle. As we age this can lead to muscle and bone loss, and possibly more pain in other parts of the body. If you give your feet some love before they hurt, you might save yourself from a downward spiral.

Also, you need your feet for balance, whether you are walking, running, or taking stairs. How your foot hits the floor affects everything else. If your feet are unstable, you’re more likely to fall and possibly break something. The more confidence you have standing on your feet, the more likely you are to prevent falls.

The condition of your feet affects the rest of your body. I once bought beautiful comfortable shoes that hurt my back every time I wore them. My feet felt fine in the shoes (and they were so pretty!), but something about these shoes bothered my back. Your feet are the foundation upon which everything else stands.

Notice and work with what you have

I find it useful to look at your feet and notice your starting place. Do your toes align forward or are they criss crossing? Are they squished together when you are barefoot or is there space between your toes? Is there space between certain toes and not others? Are some toes straight while others curl? Do your pinky toes tuck under your fourth toes? Do your arches fall or do you stand toward the outsides of your feet? Simply observe what is and get to know the feet that you have. You can look at them in the mirror for a little distance and perspective.

Then stand with your feet hip to shoulder distance apart (whichever is more comfortable) and bring them parallel. If you drew a line from the center of your ankle through the space between your 2nd and 3rd toes, those two lines should be parallel to each other. It might feel like your feet are turned inward.

Lift your ten toes off the floor. Notice if some toes lift easier than others. Press downward through the inner and outer ball of the foot and inner and outer heel equally. Those four points press into the floor as you lift your toes. Try to lift and lower all ten toes 5-10 times to strengthen the arches of your feet and get mobility in your toes.

Spread your toes

Now try to spread them apart after you lift them. Notice if it’s easier to spread some toes more than others. Maybe you can’t spread them at all. I find it’s easier to spread your toes when you also spread your fingers. I don’t know why that helps, but it does. Sometimes you need to stare at your toes and do a little Jedi Mind Trick to get them to move. This isn’t always as successful, but it feels like you’re trying.

When you spread your toes, move your toes away from the midline of each foot. Your big toes try to move toward each other (not always easy), and your pinky toes move away from each other. Everything else (ideally) creates space in between.

Spreading your toes strengthens the muscles of your feet. It also creates a wider base on which to stand. The wider your toes can spread, the more stable you’ll feel on your feet. We use our toes for balance and when you have control over what you do with them, you have more control over your balance.

If you have bunions or hammer toes, this will be challenging, but still worth trying. You may never get your toes to realign to parallel, but every little bit helps. You may notice no difference for a few weeks of daily practice, but after a month, you will start to feel a change in your feet. It took you years for your feet to get to be the way they are. Change won’t happen overnight.

Towel scrunches

This is exactly what is sounds like. Place a washcloth under your foot and use your toes to scrunch up the washcloth under your foot. This will strengthen the arch of your foot as well as create dexterity in your toes.

Soon you’ll be picking up pens, hair ties, forks, and more with your toes. No bending over needed! Plus you can show off your balance skills as you balance on one leg and pick things up with the other. I’m not sure who else will care, but it’s still fun.

Point, flex, and circle

These last exercises can be done lying down. You can do them with or without a resistance band. I find without the band to be plenty challenging, but is something to work towards.

Lie down on your back. Pull your right knee into your chest and extend the left leg along the floor. Focusing on the right foot, spread your toes, flex your foot, and extend your right heel toward the ceiling. Then spread your toes, point your foot, and bend the knee. Repeat this 3-5 times, articulating through the foot so you move the heel, ball of the foot, then toes (or same in reverse).

Then keep the leg extended and rotate the ankle, making three circles in one direction, then three circles in the other direction. You can do this with the leg straight up, out to the right (supported in your hand), and across to the left with your right hip on the floor. This creates a wonderful stretch for the upper and lower leg as well.

Love your feet

As I said earlier, everyone has a different relationship with their feet. I have always loved my feet, probably since my dance days, but that’s because they don’t hurt, they move easily, and they carry me wherever I go. I have spent years barefoot, between modern dancing, swimming, and yoga. I have learned how to take care of my feet and I am passing that knowledge on to you.

You can love your feet, even if they hurt, or don’t look the way you think they should. Giving them care, not just cosmetically, but internally, can change your relationship with your feet. What if starting today, you referred to them lovingly? All you need to do is decide that you love your feet just as they are. It might take time to convice your heart of that love, and that’s okay.

Maybe you start by being grateful for your feet and all they do for you. Find gratitude for something specific that only your feet can do for you. Send your feet a little love, see how they feel, and how you feel about them. Changing your mindset is within your power, and you are allowed to use it.

Practicing yoga off the mat

I wrote a couple of books! Living Yoga guides you through the Yamas and Niyamas, 10 yogic principles on how to lead a heart centered life by taking your yoga practice off the mat. Intentional Eating applies these principles (and others) to your relationship with food. If you’ve ever struggled with emotional eating, this book might help.

Click the graphic below to learn more or purchase the book(s)!