The e-cise I am going to present today is the one that I personally do every day. I also add it to almost all of my clients’ menus. It is called Supine Foot Circles and Point Flexes.
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I have to confess that initially I really disliked it. It used to hurt my ankles and I had to build up the number of repetitions very slowly. Now my ankles hurt if I don’t do it for a while – and for a good reason.
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The reason is that it is a very important exercise to restore and strengthen our ankles and help the muscles of the foot, ankle, and lower leg in facilitating the proper gait pattern.
- Lie on your back with one leg extended and the other one bend at the knee.
- Clasp your hands behind the bent knee and pull it towards your chest.
- Flex the foot of the extended leg and keep the thigh muscle tight thru the whole exercise.
- The bent leg should be parallel to the floor.
- Circle the foot of the bent leg 20 times one direction, then 20 times the other direction.
- The movement should be slow and deliberate – you want to circle the foot with a maximum range of motion.
- After you finish with circles, pull the toes towards your shin to flex and then point the foot forward. Repeat this motion 20 times.
- Switch legs and do the same on the other side.
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This simple exercise may feel more difficult than you think. It will also feel good to restore the proper ankle function.
Try it for a few days a see how it feels. If for any reason it does not feel good or generates pain, use your own judgment. You can either stop it altogether or start with shorter time and gradually increase it.
Your body is an ultimate judge of what works for you and what does not.
Please let me know if you have any questions about this e-cise, whether you liked it or not, and what you experienced doing it.
Be Upright, Be Happy, Live Pain Free.
2 Responses
Hi, I did this exercise and unbelievable how difficult was, I can’t describe the amount of pain have in my keens and ankles when I do it, what is really concerning me is the cracks I hear when I turn my feet (whether right or left or back and forth), I don’t know if this is an issue related to my knee, foot or hips , I do 40 each sequence, I think I will shorten it and increase it when it gets better
The pain you experience is a sure sign of how misaligned your knee and ankle joints are. And of how underused the lower leg muscles are as well. The proper course of action would be – as you already figured out on your own – to start slowly. Try doing five moves each direction and see how your body reacts to this load. If it feels OK, continue 5 times daily for a week or two, and then start adding 1-2 more times gradually. It may take you several weeks or even a few months to reach 40.