Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Foot Strengthening: The Basics of Metatarsal Doming or Metatarsal Arcing




     Foot strengthening has finally hit mainstream. It has been ignored by podiatrists, personal trainors, physical therapists and orthopedists for years. The foot gradually weakens over the years of use. The foot gradually weakens with the use of shoes and orthotic devices. Injuries to the foot and ankle speed the weakening process. Surgeries to the foot add more insult to injury.

     Yet, finally, the process seems to be reversing. Shoes are being made to exercise your feet. Barefoot running is encouraged by some as a way to strengthen your feet. More and more exercises are being introduced to safely strengthen feet. One of our videos which I would encourage you to read is on balancing exercies, a great way of strengthening your feet. This video gets down to the most basic of all foot strengthening exercises called metatarsal arcing or doming. We have taught this fpr 30 years and should be a basic routine exercise for all interested in strengthening their feet.



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9 comments:

  1. AnonymousNovember 19, 2010 at 7:51 PM

    I'm a follower on Google, buy can't remember my password - - anyway, great info. with this doming technique - - no towels to pull makes it simpler. Doug Potter

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousApril 27, 2011 at 9:47 PM

    I've been having metatarsal pain in one foot for the past couple months. I'm glad I found this, and am excited to try it to see if it helps. Strengthening always seems like the best solution to an orthopedic problem but I've never heard about foot strengthening. I figured there had to be some way to strengthen the foot so that it would help. Thanks for sharing this.

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  3. AnonymousJune 5, 2013 at 7:14 PM

    Will metatarsal doming reverse the spreading of my feet that seems to have occurred as a result of my pregnancy?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dr Richard BlakeJune 5, 2013 at 8:04 PM

      I am not sure but it is one of the best exercises to try to stop the spread. Rich

      Delete
    2. UnknownJune 9, 2015 at 2:20 PM

      I'm in the same boat, did this help?
      Have you found any foot solutions to help your feet postpartum?

      Delete
  4. AnonymousOctober 23, 2016 at 8:18 PM

    I've been told by one podiatrist that I have a dropped 3rd metatarsal. Another podiatrist told me that the metatarsal is just abnormally long and bearing most of the weight at the ball of my foot. Even with orthodics and padding, it's very painful and you can feel the bone against the skin. Would this arcing be beneficial for this condition? I just don't want to make it worse. Thank you for your time. Gea

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dr Richard BlakeDecember 9, 2016 at 5:45 PM

    Gea, so sorry for the delay, a group of comments were buried. Definitely the metatarsal doming is great. Also, off weight the 3rd metatarsal with padding. You typically start the process with a small longitudinal metatarsal arch pad and place it just behind (towards the arch) of the sore spot. Hope that helps. Rich

    ReplyDelete

Thank you very much for leaving a comment. Due to my time restraints, some comments may not be answered.I will answer questions that I feel will help the community as a whole.. I can only answer medical questions in a general form. No specific answers can be given. Please consult a podiatrist, therapist, orthopedist, or sports medicine physician in your area for specific questions.