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"It Starts with the Feet"

By Bruce Kelly

People and trainers work on all areas and parts of the body but frequently neglect perhaps the most important area of the body: the foot/ankle complex. If you believe that a structure, in this case the body, is only as strong as it's foundation then you had better start integrating some sort of ankle/foot work into your programming.

The body works as an integrated kinetic chain which means that truly nothing works in isolation. When we are standing virtually all movement starts with forces generated from the ground up, transferred through our legs, hips, core and finally to our upper extremities if the movement involves them.

The key is all of this movement, though, is how well our ankle/foot control and transfer this energy. If our feet and ankles don't have the appropriate strength, mobility, and proprioceptive capacity then it impacts everything further up the kinetic change. At the least this is inefficient; in a worse case scenario, it leads to injury i.e. ACL injuries.

So everyone is saying, what should I do about this? I understand the issue but my exercise routine is jam packed as it is without adding additional work. There are several ways you can integrate ankle/foot work into your exercise routine as well as your activities of daily living.

The first thing I would look at is your footwear. Much of the footwear we currently wear ,including so-called performance athletic footwear, is probably detrimental to optimal foot/ankle function. This footwear eliminates much of the functional stabilization and mobility capacity of the foot and ankle in the name of protection. But is it really protection or is it harming the ability of the foot and ankle to properly do their jobs. I would argue that it is doing exactly that: decreasing functionality. Do you honestly think that wearing high heels is good for your ankle and foot especially your Achilles tendon complex?

Some athletes and performers have intuitively understood the important role of the foot/ankle in their activities and have done most, if not all, of their performing/exercise/practice in bare feet or minimalist footwear. Just look at dancers, martial artists, gymnasts, and power lifters for a few examples. They understand the role strong feet and ankles play in their respective activities and that restrictive/excessive footwear can inhibit the proper functioning of their feet.

So what do the rest of us do? I suggest that you start incorporating some barefoot training into either your daily activities or your exercise program. In other words, when you first get up in the morning walk around in your bare feet or stocking feet for the first part of your day before you go off for work, school,etc. Start out gradually i.e. 5-10 minutes may be enough at first and then build up your tolerance slowly. If you haven't been barefoot in a while you will be surprised at the amount of muscle soreness you can induce by going barefoot.

If you want to incorporate some barefoot training into your exercise routine I would suggest integrating it into your dynamic warmup. If you aren't doing a dynamic warmup/mobility work/movement prep as part of your routine you should be and this is an easy way to strengthen your feet and ankles without adding additional time to your routine.

There are obviously some specific movements that you can add to your warmup routine to enhance ankle/foot function: toe/heel walks, squatting/lunging movements, leg swings, and marches are just a few examples of movements that enhance ankle/foot function in a multitude of ways.

I hope this article makes you think that any structure (your body) is only as strong as it's foundation (your feet and ankles) and that there are time efficient ways to strengthen your feet and ankles which will help you move better in your daily activities as well as decrease the chance of orthopaedic issues whether it be knee, hip or low back. None of these joints work in isolation but depend on the proper functioning of the other joints in the kinetic chain in order to do their tasks properly.

About the Author:

Bruce Kelly, MS, CSCS, NSCA-CPT, NASM-PES has written articles for sportspecific.com, completetrackandfield.com as well as local publications. He has been a fitness professional/performance enhancement coach for nearly 20 years. He owns a Fitness Together training studio franchise in Media, Pa. His website is www.ftswarthmore.com.