Mike Varshavski, DO, more commonly known as “Dr. Mike” to his 25 million social media followers, spends his days seeing patients as well as dispensing health wisdom and battling medical misinformation online. But one thing he always makes sure to squeeze into his weeks: toe yoga.
“When we’re thinking about healthy feet, it’s not just about making sure the foot is healthy for the sake of the foot,” he says. “The foot is representative of the entire body.”
Dr. Varshavski explains that cultivating strength, flexibility, coordination, and control in your feet is a way to build a strong foundation from the ground up. Because the muscles in your feet are so small, they’re more predisposed to injury if they’re put under an unusual amount of strain. So if you go for a tough run, your hamstrings might be able to handle it, but your foot muscles and tendons might be screaming. That can make you less stable on your feet, which can lead to injury.
“Whenever we have issues in the foot, it usually also ends up translating to joints higher up, including the ankle, the knee, the hip, and the low back,” Dr. Varshavski says.
Ramping up an exercise routine slowly so your feet don’t get overtaxed is crucial here. But a great way to give your foot health a head start is toe yoga, which “helps develop neuromuscular control of the foot, and neuromuscular control is incredibly important when it comes to injury prevention,” he says. Research shows that doing toe yoga can reduce foot pain and improve balance, which is correlated with reducing injuries.
If you haven’t heard of toe yoga before, it refers to exercises specifically meant to stretch and strengthen your toes, feet, and ankles.
“It’s really just about being able to independently move each part of the foot,” Dr. Varshavski says. “A lot of the time that’s hard for people. We neglect the foot when it comes to training. It’s a very common weak spot for folks, especially when running long distances. And one that you can train out pretty quickly as well.”
“When we’re thinking about healthy feet, it’s not just about making sure the foot is healthy for the sake of the foot. The foot is representative of the entire body.” —Mike Varshavski, DO
There are all sorts of toe yoga exercises out there, but Dr. Varshavski’s preferred exercise couldn’t be simpler:
Stand with your feet hip-width apart.
Raise up your big toes while keeping your other four toes on the floor. Hold this position for 3 seconds.
Then, reverse the movement: Keep your big toes on the floor while raising your other toes off the floor. Hold this position for 3 seconds.
Continue alternating for 60 seconds.
Dr. Varshavski likes to do this 1-minute routine right when he gets out of the shower. “[After a shower] you’re probably going to be looking at your toes, maybe cutting your toenails—that’s a good time to do toe yoga,” he says. “For me, three times a week is my standard, unless I’m rehabbing an injury. Then I’m doing it pretty much every day.”
The goal is for toe yoga to help prevent foot injuries in the first place. But you should also take care of your feet before, during, and after exercise. That includes making sure you’ve got properly fitting and supportive footwear—Dr. Varshavski prefers the Brooks Ghost Max 2 ($150) for the cushioning it delivers to his feet and knees. [Editor’s note: Dr. Varshavski has a current partnership with Brooks.]
He recommends making sure your footwear fits properly by standing and walking in them because your toes spread out when you put your weight on them.
While exercising—out on a run, for example—take advantage of that toe yoga-amped neuromuscular control by keeping your eyes ahead of you so you can react to your terrain. And if you are experiencing any pain, back off.
Once you’re done with your workout, change out of your sweaty socks to prevent fungi growing on your nails or in between your toes (ick!). And most importantly, if you have a concern about foot pain, talk to your doctor to prevent a small problem from becoming larger.
“Getting your feet happy means discussing your feet with your primary care physician at the earliest sign of discomfort so you can be preventive as opposed to reactive,” he says. “Don’t let the problem progress and get significantly worse, where then you’re left in a hard spot where it’s surgery or nothing. A lot of times we can be proactive.”
