Ankle And Toe Flexibility

[Impala]

It has been clear to me since the beginning that I don't have the flexibility in my feet necessary for wearing HIGH heels. 

The last months I have been watching many people's natural flexibility and comparing it to my own. It seems other people that don't wear heels at all (male and female) often have much more flexibility.

 

I posted some pictures of my feet, bent the maximum I can. I am not able to make a full 180 degrees bend, while some people can do it naturally, and even further, like an extra picture I added.

 

My toes' flexibility is also very limited compared to other people. I can't keep my big toe flat on the ground while making a big arch with my feet. This causes pain and discomfort when wearing HIGH heels.

 

The fourth picture is of a pair of heels that I can wear comfortably. You can see that they are not really HIGH, but still I can't bend my legs any further back. Higher heels are quite impossible for me to comfortably walk in...

 

My big question: Is there any way of increasing the flexibility of my ankles and toes? I have already tried stretching on my ankles but I don't seem to make much progress. I have worn heels for 1,5 years and my flexibility is still not much bigger than it was in the beginning. I would love to wear the HIGH heels I see on the street every day but I know I just can't right now...

 

I hope you can help me! Thanks.

[Dr. Shoe]

Firstly, no one can bend their feet 180 degrees, 90 is about the maximum! LOL

 

There is no good answer to this. You will probably have to hurt yourself a little to get it or not bother. It is frustrating to see all those lovely shoes you'd love to wear but you're probably physically unable to. I have a similar problem in that I can't get the shoes in my size but at least you have a better chance of getting into them than I ever will LOL.

 

What you can do is to get a pair that is only just too high for you and wear them as long as you can. You will find that you will gradually stretch out the tendons so that you can wear them for longer periods. It will take years rather than months but it's worth persevering.

[SleekHeels]

If you're using the third photo as your benchmark, that's pretty extreme. Realistically I don't think you need to aim for more than that in your ankle. In your first photo the line along the front of your shin and along the top of your foot looks good, and shows that you have enough flexibility in your ankle to wear a reasonably high heel.

 

As for your toes, for sure you do have limited flexibility, and from the "pain and discomfort" you describe, it really doesn't sound like a good idea to force them way beyond your comfort zone. Dr Shoe's advice to gradually stretch out the tendons over a long period of time sounds like a good approach.

 

It seems other people that don't wear heels at all (male and female) often have much more flexibility.

 

That would make sense, walking in heels tends to restrict the foot's natural flexibility, less energy is absorbed by the foot and more is transmitted up the leg, which is why some heel-wearers get knee problems. Getting yourself a good pair of flats and doing plenty of walking would most likely use the mechanism of your foot properly and encourage flexibility and strength. I think this would be better than trying to force yourself to walk around in heels all the time. I do a lot of walking in flats and I think it really helps keep my feet in good shape for wearing heels too.

 

If you sit on a chair with your bare feet flat on the floor and your shins vertical (your knees directly above your ankles), are you able to do the following:

1. Raise your toes up off the floor, keeping the rest of the sole of your foot on the floor?
2. Raise your heels up of the floor, keeping your toes and the balls of your feet on the floor?

If this doesn't cause you pain, maybe you could do these as gentle regular exercises, combined with plenty of walking in flats, and see if you notice any improvement over time. (Once you're comfortable you could even try them standing instead of sitting). But if it's very uncomfortable and does cause you pain maybe you should consult a physiotherapist for a professional assessment.

 

I'm by no means an expert, but I hope there's something helpful for you.

 

 

 

[Steve63130]

Good advice above. I'm in the same situation as you are, in that my foot's flexibility is limited, too. I can wear 3 to 3.5 inch heels just fine, but any higher than that and it's past my comfort zone. The only difference between you and me is that I don't have any desire to wear anything higher. I've tried and I just can't do it, and it's not worth the discomfort, aggravation, and potential risk for me to go that route. I have decided to be happy where I am. You might reconsider and just be thankful that you can wear shoes like that black pair in the fourth photo. They're gorgeous!

 

Steve

[Histiletto]

Hey! jorisken123,

I have also marveled at the people who can wear single soled 7" heels or the ballet heels and their sizing isn't any greater than 9US/39EU/7UK. Certainly with their feet fully extended vertically in a standing position, the ball joints of their toes seem to be directly under their ankle and yet they can still stand erect while their knee action is also still functioning as though they were wearing flats.

Your concern may take a lot more high heeled sampling of different heights and brands. High heeled footwear doesn't always have the same sloping from the heel of the foot to the toe ball joints for the same height of heels. Therefore, what seems to be a height limit in one pair of heels, could be due to an inferior shaping or sloping of the foot-bed as far as your feet are concerned. In another pair of heels, your limits could be raised. I've worn some 5.5" heels that I could barely walk in, out alone stand. Then I've worn other 5.5" heels that properly supported my arches and felt so comfortable that they made walking a pleasure. It's just finding the best heels for your feet and like Dr. Shoe, SleekHeels, & Steve63130 have mentioned, there are some different ways to approach your concerns. So whether you get some extremely high heels that you really like and force yourself to wear them for a time, do more exercises to increase your agility, or some other program -- be aware, the extent of your success depends on what the construction of your feet can take and what you are willing to put up with for whatever achievement may be realized. Good luck with how you decide to proceed and keep us informed of your experience.

[Impala]

Thanks for the replies.

 

The example picture I posted was indeed quite extreme, I added a new one to this comment. So do you think I would ever be able to reach this?

 

It seems most people are able to bend their toes this way

But for me this is just impossible. So the same question is valid here: Could this flexibility ever be withing my reach?

[Shyheels]

Certainly you can become more flexible but it takes time, dedication and patience. 

 

There are many stretches you can do for foot and ankle flexibility.

 

I recommend the Runner's World Yoga book by Jean Crouch. It has been around a long time  (late 70s) but is still available, generally used and cheaply, on Amazon, and has a lot of excellent stretches and photos and instructions, and - very important - intermediate positions which you can use until you acquire greater flexibility. There is a whole chapter on feet and ankles. I really don't think you could go wrong.

[mlroseplant]

I used to have the same problem as you, but maybe not as severe. I started off in very moderate heel heights, not because I couldn't wear higher, but because I wasn't brave enough to do so in public. As I got bolder, of course I bought higher and higher shoes, until one day, I bought a pair of shoes that I thought I could never really wear. They're not all that impressive by the numbers--4 1/4 inch heel, no platform, but last summer, my toes and ankles would ache quite badly after walking in them only a few city blocks. They fit well, but they were just too high for me.

 

Still, I did not give up on them. over the course of several months, I worked my way from being able to walk only a short distance to being able to walk quite a long way and/or wear them all day. In fact, they are now one of my more comfortable pairs of shoes. It can be done, but it is a long process. I am now working my way up to 5 inch and 5 1/4 inch. The limiting factor is ankle flexibility. However, I've made significant progress, and I am very close to being ready to wear such high shoes in public. Good luck!

[RonC]

Quite honestly, I like the aesthetics of the heel you call "not very high" better to being with - I know, I'm likely in the minority here on that.  But to me, it is a more attractive height.  I like those sandals!  I tend to have some similar issues with heels too high.  I can handle 4 inches, but above that, it seems that my ankle doesn't bend enough either.  The pair I just bought, posted on the new shoes thread, is 4.5", and I am having discomfort walking in the, especially in the ball of the foot area.

[SleekHeels]

Quite honestly, I like the aesthetics of the heel you call "not very high" better to being with - I know, I'm likely in the minority here on that.  But to me, it is a more attractive height.

 

I get what you mean RonC, personally I like a straight line all the way down the front of the shin to the toe-line of the shoe. When the heel is so high that the front of the ankle bulges out beyond that line, personally I find that a bit too contorted and not so appealing (though I can understand that others might like that). Having said that, I'm not keen on what might be called a "medium heel" that doesn't extend the ankle enough. I guess that puts my heel-height sweet-spot between 3½" and 4½". The higher end of that can feel a little teetery if I haven't worn them for a while, but I can just about manage to walk elegantly in them. Anything lower than 3½" and I'd find flats more attractive and rather wear those.

 

Jorisken123, going back to your original photos, it looks like maybe you have some flexibility in your ankles and some in your toes but not at the same time, is that right? If so I guess you have to work on both aspects together. In your 4th photo wearing the sandals it's apparent that your ankle seems comfortable with that heel height but your big toe is trying to straighten out, so that seems to be the limiting factor. If that's the case and those sandals are painful you should go a little lower (even just ½" can make a big difference if it's right on your limit). I still also stand by what I suggested before that walking in flats can be beneficial too. My concern would be that if it's not just the tendons that need stretching but that your pain is due to some kind of arthritis condition (that younger people can experience too), trying to push through the pain could do damage, and you should really seek professional guidance. I'm not trying to make you worry, it's just important that you find out what's right for you.

[RonC]

SleekHeels, I never paid attention to that line.  I'll have to look for that!  

[Impala]

Sleekeels, as even my sister doesn't know about my heeling, I wear flats almost all the time. It happens only once every few days that I am really home alone for a decent enough amount of time to wear heels... 

My toes don't hurt in those sandals, but if I go higher it starts to get difficult.

 

I absolutely love the sight of 5 inch heels. I can't take my eyes of them when I spot a pair in public. That's why I would love to wear that height.

 

I have one pair of heels that I would call HIGH. I will take some pictures of how I can stand, but not easily walk in them the next time I can (as mentioned before, that could take a while)

 

I will look further into those stretching exercises. I hope that I'm not too late, since I stopped growing already.

[Shyheels]

It is never too late to take up stretching and not a bad thing to do whether you are interested in wearing heels or not. You mention having stopped growing so by that I assume you are quite young. Even quite creaky people decades older than you can take up stretching and notice quite remarkable changes in their flexibility. As I say, it takes dedication, patience and time but even in a couple of weeks you should start to see improvement.

[Pumped]

Stretch your legs going up 1/4"-1/2" at a time. When I first started wearing size 10 heels a 3" with no platform they about killed me. As I got used to wearing them I bought a bit taller heel and wore them until they were comfortable. Today I can wear a 5" heel with no platform. Some days it is a stretch, most of the time it is no trouble at all. I am looking for a 5 1/2" heel now to see if I can stretch a bit more, bit I believe I have reached my limit.  3" to 4" to 4 1/2" I adjusted quickly, but that last 1/2" to a 5" heel has taken some time. My guess age has some to do with it too. A twenty year old will adjust faster and perhaps farther than a fifty year old.

[Histiletto]

Quite some time ago, my foot was injured by a fall and I needed some surgery to use it again. However the surgery left me with a 35% foot disability. After the cast came off my big toe wouldn't bend upward at all and my ankle only had an up and down movement of about 20 degrees with only a slight side to side movement. Under this condition, walking in heels would have been impossible. Before the accident I could walk in 6" heeled single soled pumps quite efficiently, which also meant I had still a couple of pairs to wear. I remember the first time after the cast period, I tried to put my pumps on the injured foot. It was like bending two inches of a nine inch sizeable tree branch into the toe box. It felt like I had broken the ball joint to bend my big toe into the needed position, but it was just the stiffness that caused the pain. For several days and nights, I would force my foot back into the 6" high heel pumps for as long as I could take the pain. Since I was on crutches to get around any way, I decided to try walking in heels again, even though I hadn't really borne any weight on that foot. At first, I couldn't make my ankle pivot enough to land my step, out alone stand up-right in them, but I was determined. So placing the heels with my feet in them on the ground with the support of crutches to stand, I moved the knee of the injured foot back and forward to make the ankle pivot more up and down to accommodate the high heeled slope and again start getting use to bearing my weight. It took about 9 weeks to 3 months on crutches doing this procedure to the point I could adequately move about in heels, but I still couldn't bear all the weight yet nor would my foot pivot down enough to walk in heels. It took another 3 months of physical therapy and my determination to quit using the crutches at all, but I had a noticeably bad limp to contend with - even when being barefooted. For several more years of a personal rehab, I eventually lost most of the obvious limp and the side to side movement of my foot improved a little, but it still hurts when it is forced to move that way. The best news is that I can walk in my 6" single soled pumps, not as efficiently as before the fall, but well enough to enjoy their use.

This, by no means, says others will experience equal results with their circumstances. However, who knows what personal achievements one can realize by actively pursuing their humanly possible dreams/goals. Just remember other's goals are just as important in helping you to fully realize yours. "Happy Heeling!"

[Lvemadomina]

I don't know if this extra info might help but, heat treat your feet lol. By that I mean when you're stretching for flexibility, maybe try doing it standing on a heating pad or something. Heat expands and so should the muscles in your foot. It could speed the process up a little for ya.