Strengthen Your Arches

strengthening the arches can improve running with flat feetTry some simple exercises to strengthen your arch muscles. Exercise will not only strengthen the muscles that run along each side of your foot but will also lengthen those muscles, ultimately building your arch support.

Here a couple of exercises that are known to strengthen the arches:

  • Toe Curling: Take a few minutes every day to sit down with your bare feet on the floor, then curl your toes. Try to perform around 30 curls for a minute each day.
  • Point and Flex: Take a few minutes a day to work on pointing and flexing your feet. Simply sit down on a soft floor or pad and stretch your legs straight out in front of you. Make sure that you keep good alignment from the toes to the ankle and the ankle to the knee. Then, point the toes and the top part of the arch away from yourself as much as you can. Avoid pulling your heel back towards you in order to point your toes; this can strain rather than lengthen. You want to feel the muscles in the front of the foot move the toes rather than move them by pulling your heel back towards you. This exercise builds arch support and reduces the amount of pain you feel when running.