Foot strengthening improves balance in elderly.

Members do not see these Ads. Sign Up.

A research paper (1) has just shown that increasing the ability to lift the midfoot upwards, against resistance placed on top of the foot during the doming exercises ,improves balance in older people during tasks like "get up and go."

This is in contrast to another piece of recent research that found that foot strengthening did not improve gait speed in older people.

(1)
BMC Geriatr. 2025 Sep 29;25:732. doi: 10.1186/s12877-025-06407-5
Zhangqi Lai 1,#,
Effects of intrinsic foot muscle training combined with the lower extremity resistance training on postural stability in older adults: a randomised controlled trial

PMCID: PMC12482463 PMID: 41023675
Conclusion

Compared with regular intervention programme, additional short-foot training militated extra effect on improving static postural stability, mobility, foot muscle strength and morphology in the elderly.


Image below . Note B . Increased ability to generate midfoot lift against resistance across the top of the foot gave better balance(B) , increased pulling ability in test A , didn't .

 

Lai et al 2025 ( above) teaches that the short foot exercise can improve isometric doming ability ( image B above )and increase foot strength and that increased arch doming ability, as measured by a non reliant measuring device placed across the top of the foot, is directly related to improved postural balance measures such as the "timed up and go test."

The short foot exercise, where the midfoot is lifted by muscular contraction against the downward force of gravity acting through the tibia, has been demonstrated to strengthen the intrinsic foot muscles but also heavily involves the tibialis anterior and peroneal muscles.

In any event, progressive short foot exercising, going from seated short foot, to 2 footed weight bearing, to doing the short foot exercise whilst balanced on one leg ,gives older exercisers better balance as measured by the Timed up and go test, and Berg Balance Test . Better scores in these exercises are closely correlated to reduce falls and repeat falls.

From previous work by the group under discussion, we know that faster walking speed in the over 65 age group is not related to reduce falls but increased falls. Wang et al 2021

"Conclusion: Elderly people with poor TUGT( timed up and go) performance, weaker GS (grip strength)but quicker WS(walking speed) need to be given high priority toward fall prevention strategies for higher risks and frequencies. "

This is in contrast to the over 84 age group where the opposite is true ,that is faster walking speeds ->reduced falls.

What's the easiest way of improving upward force generation in the midfoot area? Probably by practicing generating upward force in the midfoot area by lifting/doming against resistance placed across the top of the foot ! In my view that means using the patented Novabow system. I have to declare a financial interest in this system, I invented it.

 

This should read "non resilient measuring device."

Lai et al 2025 is about the short foot exercise and how it improves balance ability and therefore may reduce falls in the elderly.

Experts in training the foot musculature recommend a progression when using the short foot exercise moving from seated, to double leg standing, to single leg standing . This progression makes the short foot exercise, where the midfoot is lifted upwards, more challenging. The foot muscles contract lifting the midfoot against the downward forces transmitted to the talus by the tibia. That is to say, the midfoot is lifted against forces pushing down on the top of the foot.

Research shows that the short foot exercises activates a lot of muscles not just the intrinsic foot muscles. However, if we concentrate on these we can see that contraction of the the abductor hallucis muscle both shortens the foot and lifts the midfoot by pushing the base of the 1st phalanx of the big toe against the head of the 1st metatarsal, but contraction of this muscle also plantarflexes the hallux ( The abductor hallucis is a major plantar flexor with 60% having an insertion on the medial sesamoid giving mechanical advantage for this action)