Blog-asana: Words on Yoga
Building the Base: Yoga for the Feet
Hope you had a very happy Earth Day, yogis! We're taking time today to consider the extremities that let us interact with the earth we walk and live and work and play on, our feet.
Of the 206 bones every human body has, 26 of them are in the feet. To support these, the feet contain over 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments, to keep the 33 total joints stable and mobile. Not bad for something we stand on all day.
The longest of the ligaments in the foot, called the plantar faschia, extends along the bottom sole of the foot. This is the thing that acts up the most when abused with poorly-fitting shoes or over too many long distance runs. It attaches to the front of the curved bulb of the heel and runs all the way up to the metatarcal bones, which are the beginnings of the bones that reach forward to support the toes.
The plantar faschia is connected all the way up through the body via the posterior chain, a group of muscles that run along the back of the body all the way from the calves to the deltoids. These muscles are mostly involved with holding our skeletons upright, and lifting and carrying anything we might pick up from below waist hight. These are big, powerful muscles capable of carrying heavy loads and propelling us across long distances, and they all rest on the alignment of the tiny muscles, bones and ligaments in the feet.
There are many asana that engage the posterior chain (downward-facing dog, locust, mountain, and staff), but fewer that focus on the development and care of the feet. Here are a few of them, along with some tips for maintaining healthy feet and toes away from your mat.
Virasana - hero pose - can stretch both the tops and bottoms of the feet if the base for it is built correctly. When you sit on your heels, press the tops of your feet flat into your mat and curl your toes up. This will stretch the joints in the toes as well as the faschia along the top of the foot. For a plantar faschia stretch, press the balls of your feet and your toes into the mat and sit up on your heels. Press back with the toes as if you wanted to tug the mat out from under your knees. This can be a bit intense the first time you do it, so use a block to ease in to any lingering tension and remember to breathe.
Tadasana - mountain pose - forces the focus to the entire bottom surface of the foot. When standing, spread the toes as wide apart as you can and look for a gripping sensation as you press the pad of each toe into the mat. Feel your weight moving down evenly into the ball and heel of the foot. Do NOT press into either the arch or the rim of the feet - this can aggravate pronation and cause ankle injury. Keep this groundedness in all standing poses, especially in balances like eagle and tree.
Toe play! It might sound weird, but playing with your toes works wonders for the health of your feet. When in dhandasana, or any other forward bend that lets the hands reach toward the feet, lace the fingers in between the toes to stretch and space them out. Work the toes around in circles with the hands to stretch into the inside and outside edges of the feet, and pull or push on them gently for a deeper stretch.
When away from your mat, remember to free the feet! Make sure your shoes leave plenty of room in the toe box for the front of the foot. When you walk, your toes need to have enough space to bend and flex, rather than being held stationary by a tight-fitting rubber sole or upper. If possible, wear seperate shoes or no shoes at all while at home, and roomy, relaxed shoes while at work. If you sit at a desk, take them off! We won't tell anyone.
Don't forget that your feet are the product of thousands of generations of evolution. They are perfect at doing everything you could ask them to do, so take care of them and they'll happily take you anywhere.
Namaste.
Of the 206 bones every human body has, 26 of them are in the feet. To support these, the feet contain over 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments, to keep the 33 total joints stable and mobile. Not bad for something we stand on all day.
The longest of the ligaments in the foot, called the plantar faschia, extends along the bottom sole of the foot. This is the thing that acts up the most when abused with poorly-fitting shoes or over too many long distance runs. It attaches to the front of the curved bulb of the heel and runs all the way up to the metatarcal bones, which are the beginnings of the bones that reach forward to support the toes.
The plantar faschia is connected all the way up through the body via the posterior chain, a group of muscles that run along the back of the body all the way from the calves to the deltoids. These muscles are mostly involved with holding our skeletons upright, and lifting and carrying anything we might pick up from below waist hight. These are big, powerful muscles capable of carrying heavy loads and propelling us across long distances, and they all rest on the alignment of the tiny muscles, bones and ligaments in the feet.
There are many asana that engage the posterior chain (downward-facing dog, locust, mountain, and staff), but fewer that focus on the development and care of the feet. Here are a few of them, along with some tips for maintaining healthy feet and toes away from your mat.
Virasana - hero pose - can stretch both the tops and bottoms of the feet if the base for it is built correctly. When you sit on your heels, press the tops of your feet flat into your mat and curl your toes up. This will stretch the joints in the toes as well as the faschia along the top of the foot. For a plantar faschia stretch, press the balls of your feet and your toes into the mat and sit up on your heels. Press back with the toes as if you wanted to tug the mat out from under your knees. This can be a bit intense the first time you do it, so use a block to ease in to any lingering tension and remember to breathe.
Tadasana - mountain pose - forces the focus to the entire bottom surface of the foot. When standing, spread the toes as wide apart as you can and look for a gripping sensation as you press the pad of each toe into the mat. Feel your weight moving down evenly into the ball and heel of the foot. Do NOT press into either the arch or the rim of the feet - this can aggravate pronation and cause ankle injury. Keep this groundedness in all standing poses, especially in balances like eagle and tree.
Toe play! It might sound weird, but playing with your toes works wonders for the health of your feet. When in dhandasana, or any other forward bend that lets the hands reach toward the feet, lace the fingers in between the toes to stretch and space them out. Work the toes around in circles with the hands to stretch into the inside and outside edges of the feet, and pull or push on them gently for a deeper stretch.
When away from your mat, remember to free the feet! Make sure your shoes leave plenty of room in the toe box for the front of the foot. When you walk, your toes need to have enough space to bend and flex, rather than being held stationary by a tight-fitting rubber sole or upper. If possible, wear seperate shoes or no shoes at all while at home, and roomy, relaxed shoes while at work. If you sit at a desk, take them off! We won't tell anyone.
Don't forget that your feet are the product of thousands of generations of evolution. They are perfect at doing everything you could ask them to do, so take care of them and they'll happily take you anywhere.
Namaste.