Did you know that the feet make up 25% of all the bones in your body? In fact, there are over 200 muscles, ligaments, and tendons in the feet. We depend on our feet perhaps more than any other body part and on average they carry us for 115,000 miles in a lifetime.
Foot exercises are designed to keep your feet, and in turn, your whole body, from an injury.
The Importance of Looking After Your Feet
Maintaining good foot health is a foundational element of positive physical well-being.
Most movement starts in the feet, so if they feel sore the pain will oftentimes radiate throughout the entire body affecting areas such as our spine and joints.
Fortunately, many common foot issues are preventable simply by taking three key precautionary measures:
- Practicing foot-specific exercises to build strength and flexibility
- Maintaining a good standard of hygiene
- Wearing well-fitting and supportive footwear
In this article, we will show you how proper exercise can help keep your feet happy and healthy.
Why Should You Exercise Your Feet?
When designing a full-body workout routine, it’s important to devote a little time to each and every body part. While many of us are good at exercising our arms, legs, and core, few of us pay attention to our feet.
Incorporating foot exercises into your routine will help you to build strength, develop flexibility and improve the range of motion in your feet. This can help to enhance your overall foot health by reducing muscle soreness and stiffness and by preventing toe cramps.
Fit and strong feet also face a much lower risk of injury. This is important when you consider that nine in ten people will suffer from a foot problem at some point in their life.
Planning Your Foot Workout
Of all the exercises, experts agree that walking is the best way to keep your feet healthy and fit. ·
This is because walking puts each foot through its full range of motion and helps the muscles and ligaments stay supple and flexible. If you can, try to aim for a daily average step count of about 10,000.
When it comes to exercising your feet, you will need to select activities that help to build strength and flexibility respectively. For strength training, some good exercises include pencil pick-ups and standing heel lifts. Practicing resistance training and stretching can be a great way to develop flexibility.
Foot Exercises- What to Know Before You Start
Before cracking ahead with your foot exercise regime, don’t forget to talk to your doctor or physical therapist if you have a physical injury or if you have suffered from achy feet and ankles, arthritis, or diabetes.
Take it slow and focus on improving gradually over time as going too hard too fast can result in an injury.
5 Quick & Easy Foot Exercises
If you would like to make your feet fitter and healthier, check out this infographic guide from Gabor Shoes Ireland which lays out a number of simple foot exercises which can be easily incorporated into a full-body workout.
These exercises don’t require any complicated equipment so you can do them in the comfort of your own home or at the gym.
Foot Exercise Infographic:
Read the infographic below to learn more.
*This is a Guest Post submitted by Paula Casey and edited by Johnathan
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