Important Foot Care Tips for Triathletes and Runners
Feet tend to be the neglected area when it comes to strength and conditioning: shoulders, backs, glutes and hamstrings tend to get a lot of attention but we rarely think about what is going on with our feet.
I often ask athletes if they have rolled their feet and the response is usually no, why should I do that? Or oh, I am not sure what I should be doing. Rolling your feet is a really easy way to keep feet in good condition and as a prehab for foot conditions such as plantar fasciitis.
If you are a triathlete, here is why you need your feet to be in top condition for race day:
You want good plantar flexion for swimming
To be stable and help turn the pedals on the bike
To able to absorb the ground impact on the run
That’s a lot of movement and work for the foot for one race on top of all the training load it gets too.
Why should I roll my feet?
The fascia that goes from the bottom of the feet runs all the way up into our body. If the fascia is tight in your feet, then this can affect your calves, hamstrings, shoulders, back and more and can cause a reduction in power that you produce when training and racing.
Think of it like a stretchy band: if the band is able to stretch and come back in again, great. But if the band gets rumpled and tight on one end, then it can’t fully stretch out and come back in again as easily. By gently rolling out the fascia, this release can help keep the elasticity in the feet and body and therefore keep the generation of power when you move.
An easy way to keep your foot mobile is to roll it out using a ball. But how should you do it and what ball to use?
What sort of ball do I need to roll my feet?
Well that depends on what you like for your feet and what you have in the house. Anything can be used from a small spiky ball, a golf ball or a lacrosse ball. Just try something to get started with and you can then decide which feels best on your feet.
I tend to use a big hard spiky ball to wake my feet up a bit and then use a golf ball to target little knots.
If you are new to rolling your feet, a softer spiky ball can be good to start with so you don’t give your feet a shock.
When should I roll my feet?
Anytime during the day and as many times a week as you can!
If you know you get sore feet when you run or you’re prone to having tight calves, then a bit of rolling pre training is a great warm up for the feet, especially if you have been wearing stiff shoes all day.
Post training is a great way to give the foot a bit of recovery and to get some blood flowing back into the muscles.
How do I roll my feet?
Foot rolling for runners and athletes
Technique:
Grab a ball of your choice.
Start by putting your foot onto the middle of the ball, roll SLOWLY forwards and backwards keeping pressure on the ball. Do this for 1-2 mins.
Then find any points that you feel might need a bit more attention and spend some time pausing and pushing up and down on those spots. Make sure the ball is still underneath you and hasn’t travelled out in front, this will challenge your standing leg more.
Put the ball underneath the ball of your foot with your heel on the floor, roll the foot from side to side over the ball trying to get as much movement into the foot as possible.
Change so that the ball is underneath your heel and then roll the heel from side to side around the ball.
That’s it. Repeat as many times in the week as you can.
I find leaving the ball around the house helps, it’s a visual reminder when you walk into the room to take care of your feet and also it’s easy to grab if you have a few mins in between calls.
