Big Foot
When I ask my local groups for requests, everyone wants hip, low back and pelvis classes. Never, in a decade of teaching, have I been asked for a toe class, and yet many people struggle to move their toes at all.
I get it. Toes are not terribly exciting; they don’t have the charisma of a buff bicep or toned thighs and you are not going to break a sweat moving them alone. But there might be more interest if there was greater understanding about the connection between our toe mobility and low back, hip and pelvic floor function.
It isn’t intuitively obvious what our mobile toes do for us, but they are key, particularly the big toe, in our ability to generate power when we walk and run.
If you compare a human foot with the foot of our closest relative, the chimpanzee, you will note that the chimp's big toe is more like our thumb in appearance and position, perfect for grasping and climbing. In contrast, human big toes are heftier than our other toes and aligned with the rest of the foot. Along with these beefier big toes we also have beefier behinds when compared with our closest ape relatives and both these things are key to our ability to walk and run in an upright position.
Our big gluteal (butt) muscles are the most powerful of a group of muscles that extend the leg backwards and this power is transmitted through the foot and toes which push back against the ground and move us forwards.
To enable a powerful push-off against the ground our big toes need to be able to extend - that is move closer to the top of the foot.
Big Toe Extension with the foot fixed
Big Toe Extension with the toe fixed (push-off phase of walking or running)
When you are able to adequately extend the toes, the foot stiffens. Try it - If you lift your toes you should see and feel a tightening along the bottom of the foot. This stiffening of the foot creates a rigid structure to powerfully push off from when you are walking or running. A lack of toe extension means less power, less gluteal and leg muscle use and less extension at the hip and knee - the actions that ideally push the leg backwards to move you forwards.
Circling back to the beginning, what does this mean for you if you are dealing with hip, low back or pelvic floor stuff?
Well, strong gluteal muscles, used regularly as you walk, are your low back and pelvic floor’s best friend.
Strong glutes anchor your sacrum (the flat bone at the back of the pelvis) to give your pelvic floor something to contract against. When the glutes are weaker or underused, the pelvic floor is not able to generate strong contractions. Furthermore, if you don’t use your gluteal and other hip muscles to extend the leg backwards when you walk, you might end up overusing your low back: arching it repeatedly to swing your leg backwards when you walk.
Now, limited toe extension is not the only thing that could be hampering your ability to use your gluteal and other hip muscles, but there is an important relationship between them and it is rarely discussed:
adequate big toe extension < strong push-off when walking < strong gluteal muscles < stronger pelvic floor contractions & happier back
So I invite you to test out both your toe mobility and strength. It is best to do this standing if you can.
Bend down and lift your big toe using your fingers - this gives you an idea of the range of motion of the toe (but not the strength).
Now can you actively lift all of the toes off the floor at once?
Can you lift the big toe on its own while keeping the others down? And vice versa?
If you cannot lift your big toe on its own, bend down and use your hands to lift the toe and then let go, seeing if you can keep the toe off the ground at least a little bit.
If you struggle with any of these, simply keep practising. Also, consider your footwear: I am a fan of wide, minimal and flexible footwear to encourage foot and toe movement naturally as you walk. Minimal shoes might not be glamorous, as my fashionable sister gleefully points out, but your low back will thank you!
I would love to know how you get on