Fascia training for the feet

Since our feet are often pressed into sturdy shoes with rigid soles, the soles of the feet are hardly massaged, cramps and tension occur, and mobility decreases. It can therefore help against many foot complaints to stretch the muscles, tendons and fascia of the sole of the foot and thus keep them soft and flexible. Simple training equipment such as a foot fascia roller, a tennis ball or a hedgehog ball, that’s all you need to achieve a big effect.

• Sitting barefoot on a tennis ball, hedgehog ball or a special foot fascia roller, roll your foot back and forth from toes to heel. Apply light pressure to the ball or roller.
• Then switch sides. If you feel slight pain, the pressure is strong enough.
• Advanced users perform the exercise while standing and apply more pressure with their body weight downwards over the foot. Roll until the slight pain subsides. Tilt your foot slightly inwards and outwards. This also mobilizes the inner and outer fascia.

The toes also play an important role for the entire foot: If they are tense and immobile, this can be noticeable right down to the heel. Therefore, the toes should also be trained.

• While sitting or standing, place your front foot on the ball and “grab” it with your toes.
• Then roll your foot sideways over the ball from the big toe to the little toe, approximately at the level of the metatarsophalangeal joints.
• This also makes the foot more mobile overall.

• Since the calf and Achilles tendon also play closely with the foot, they should also be stretched.
• To do this, sit on the floor with your leg stretched out and bend your other leg.
• Place the small fascia roller or a small ball under the calf of the outstretched leg and roll over it with light pressure.
• To massage the calf muscles even more, you can alternately rotate the leg slightly inwards and outwards from the hip.
• This relieves the pressure on the Achilles tendon and relaxes the calf muscles and thus also the foot, while at the same time it can prevent painful and long-term injuries to the tendon.

The heel or “heel” is an important part of the rear foot. It is our natural heel, which is subjected to heavy strain with every step. The heel hits the ground first when walking and therefore has to withstand a lot of pressure in a relatively small area – many times a day.

The cause of pain can be overload, a break or even irritation and inflammation of tendons. The Achilles tendon, the strongest tendon in our body, attaches to the back of the heel. It connects the muscles of the calf with the foot and ensures optimal interaction with every step.

The so-called plantar fascia attaches to the heel on the underside of the foot. It runs over the entire sole of the foot, which is why it is also called the plantar tendon. Painful irritations are particularly common here. Spurs are also very common in the area where the tendons attach. This is an inflammatory ossification as a result of overloading or misalignment.

When we talk about the rear foot, orthopedists mean the back part of the foot, which consists of two bones: the heel bone and the ankle bone above it. Various muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia are closely linked to this. The hindfoot is often responsible for foot misalignments, which can affect the toes and cause problems throughout the foot.