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Old 01-05-14, 09:15 AM  
DesertHeat
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Improving height of demi-pointe?

I'd like to improve my ability to stand on the ball of my foot (which I think is called demi-pointe in barre/ballet based workouts?) When I try to do exercises that require this position, my height is very shallow and my heel is barely off of the floor. I tried this even sitting down with no weight bearing on my feet, and the range of motion is poor. I have flat feet and overpronate, are my feet just not structured to be able to do this?

Any suggestions or techniques that you have tried to get better at this?
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Old 01-05-14, 09:59 AM  
PLS
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Missouri
If you have not had any major injuries to your feet or any congenital defects, then yes you should be able to improve this movement in your feet/ankles. I overpronate and have had 2 serious ankle injuries in my lifetime and my range of motion and strength in my feet has improved with consistent strengthening. I work in PT with the elderly so I exercise my feet and ankle daily at work- heel raises and toe raises- both seated and standing, ankle circles, rolling up a towel using your toes, wrapping a band around the ball of your feet and pushing against the resistance. You can google ankle and foot exercises and find a lot of strengthening to work on. I would start with seated work to get the range of motion and add in standing to improve the strength. Your ROM should improve but it will require patience and consistent work. It took a year after my last injury to get my ankle/foot rom back to what it should be and I am finally no longer turning my ankle when my foot hits uneven surfaces.

Hope that helps.
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Old 01-05-14, 12:11 PM  
NotThatGirl
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
This may not be very helpful (because I don't remember enough to be specific about the an individual workout and because the idea of buying a whole season of something for a couple of episodes is not really cost effeective but...) I seem to remember there being some Classical Stretch episodes where Miranda either works the feet or mentions how something is really good for the feet (along the lines of how people should work them out more because it's important to keep them strong or something). Maybe Jackie or someone else who is more familiar with the specific episodes can chime in but I thought it was worth mentioning. Perhaps this is a way to supplement the exercises already mentioned??
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Old 01-05-14, 02:04 PM  
starbelly
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Netherlands
Have you tried using a tennis ball to help loosen your feet up? Rolling a ball under your foot can help to make your feet more mobile. This video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPCd7QadEEs can give you an idea of how to approach it. If your feet are very sensitive you can always sit down to reduce the pressure. This video demonstrates more advanced moves http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edeVW8ms2N4

Another suggestion is to check out Katy Bowman's Every Woman's Guide to Foot Pain Relief. She has a lot of good stretches in there for feet and calves.

I have extremely flat feet yet they are also very flexible so flatness does not mean that you cannot go high in demi-pointe. You may feel that the problem is in your feet, but it might actually be in your calves. Try pointing and flexing your feet while articulating through the movement (from the flexed position extend the ball of the foot first and then point your toes). You can work on your foot flexibility any time of day so you can see changes fairly quickly. Some people are more flexible than others, but maintaining/ increasing flexibility is possible at any stage in life. Just proceed slowly and listen to your body.
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Old 01-05-14, 06:08 PM  
msladybug
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Tendonosis in the arch of my foot had me shuffling like an old man, with no toe mobility at all, no calf strength...and no flexibility in the tendon of my feet. Some of the techniques they used for my in PT might help you.

What PT did with me to restore the toe mobility is use a "pin and stretch" technique to loosen the tendon. With one hand I would press lightly on the tendon, right next to the ball of the foot. Then I would to move my big toe upward toward the shin, using my own foot muscle to do it. If your finger is in the right spot you should be able to feel the tendon when you move your toe. Be gentle. Don't force. You can also your your hand to gently pull the toes toward your shins. Be gentle always.

Something I do is a standing exercise. Stand on both feet, keep the ball of both feet in contact with the floor. With your weight on your left foot, raise the heal of your right foot up as much as possible while maintaining pressure to the ball of the foot. Then shift your weight to to the right foot by raising your left foot up while lowing your right heal. Switch back and forth like that. It should look a lot like what it looks like when people are on those old stepping machines, stepping in place, with weight change.

Now that I have restored toe mobility, I'm currently working on calf strength, and restoring function to the tendon. I don't have the strength to raise up on one foot while standing. So in PT they have me raise up onto the balls of both feet, then shift my weight to one leg and lower onto that leg....raise again with both...shift to the other side...then lower on that side.

(If you can't get up onto both feet, you could try leaning onto the back of a couch to take some weight off, then once your feet are in position, take some of the weight off the couch, and just hold that position.)
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Old 01-05-14, 06:53 PM  
PrairieGem
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Quote:
Another suggestion is to check out Katy Bowman's Every Woman's Guide to Foot Pain Relief. She has a lot of good stretches in there for feet and calves.
Starbelly, thanks for this recommendation! I hadn't heard of it before, and I have *dreadfully* achy feet. Just put a hold on it at my library!
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Old 01-05-14, 07:05 PM  
herya
 
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Europe
The simplest way is just to walk on your toes around the house all the time, do raises when you brush your teeth or wash up, and do point-flex/ankle roll exercises when you're seated or in bed. It strengthens your calves and stretches your feet. That's assuming that you are not injured and you just need to build up to it!

I used to teach Irish dancing where being high on your toes a big part of the execution and look, and that's what we were doing all the time. I retired years ago but I can still stand not only on the balls of my feet but even on the pads of my toes. My calves are very developed though to allow it.
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Old 01-05-14, 07:17 PM  
BunnyHop
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Quote:
Originally Posted by PrairieGem View Post
Starbelly, thanks for this recommendation! I hadn't heard of it before, and I have *dreadfully* achy feet. Just put a hold on it at my library!
Thanks from me too! (Small miracle, our library has a copy!)
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Old 01-06-14, 04:27 PM  
DesertHeat
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Thank you everyone that replied, I have a lot of homework to do!
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Old 01-09-14, 04:50 PM  
starbelly
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Netherlands
I was just browsing My Yoga Online when I noticed this video http://www.myyogaonline.com/videos/p...tone-your-feet I really like Anita Seiz for her foam rolling video on the site and this video shows you how to massage and release the feet. She also uses the wall to help improve foot strength and mobility. It's free for MYO subscribers (free trials are pretty easy to find or you can PM me and I will send you one) and only $5 for the ipad version.
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ball of the foot, demi pointe, foot pain, katy bowman

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