Yoga for feet: toe yoga, foot strength and balance, and what yoga can and can't do for bunions and flat feet

Your feet do quiet work in every pose

Stronger toe muscles went with better balance in people over 60, and in older adults, weak toe muscles, foot pain and reduced feeling in the feet each went with more falls.

Sources 1, 2

Foot exercises build strength and balance a little

Training the small foot muscles improved arch measures, strength and balance tests in small trials, but not pain. No trial has tested toe yoga by that name, or yoga for the feet.

Sources 3, 4

Yoga helps balance a little, and hasn't been shown to prevent falls

In people over 60, yoga improved balance tests by a small amount, though the gains weren't robust in the newest review. Our yoga for balance guide covers falls.

Sources 5, 6

Toe yoga won't fix a bunion

The NHS says surgery is the only way to get rid of a bunion. Foot exercises may ease bunion pain, on low-certainty evidence; wide shoes and a podiatrist's advice help more.

Sources 7, 8

Flat feet are usually nothing to fix

The NHS says flat feet don't usually cause problems, and podiatrists say the height of the arch doesn't affect how well a foot works. Exercises can ease pain but won't change the shape of your feet.

Sources 9, 10

Bare feet suit most people, with exceptions

With numb feet or diabetes, wear shoes for standing poses and check your feet every day: an international guideline advises against going barefoot, even indoors.

Sources 11, 12

What the feet do

Every standing pose balances your body over your feet. The small muscles inside the foot support the arch and steady it, the toe muscles press the toes into the floor, and the calf and shin muscles move the ankle. A sun salutation takes the ankle through about 40 degrees of upward bend.

Source 13

Toe strength, foot pain and fallsEmerging evidence

In 9 studies of people over 60, mostly snapshots, stronger toe muscles went with better balance. In 14 studies that followed older adults over time, foot pain (about twice the odds of falling), reduced feeling in the feet (about one and a half times) and weak toe muscles (about one and a half to two times) each went with more falls. The studies varied in quality, and few allowed for other causes.

Sources 1, 2

Sore feet aren't part of getting older

The Royal College of Podiatry says "Painful and uncomfortable feet aren't a natural part of growing old", and that keeping active helps keep feet healthy. A podiatrist can help with most foot problems, and in many areas you can refer yourself.

Source 14

No trial of yoga for the feetMixed evidence

Our search found no study of yoga for flat feet, bunions, foot strength or toe control. Yoga can be one way to do the foot exercises below, before your standing poses.

Source 4

Training the small foot musclesEmerging evidence

In 13 trials, training the muscles inside the foot improved arch measures, balance, strength and how well people felt their feet worked, but didn't ease pain. A second review of 16 studies agreed on arch shape and moving balance. A third rated the evidence low certainty for push-off and very low for balance, and found no change in how the arch moves when you walk.

Sources 3, 15, 16

In older adults: small trials, mixed resultsMixed evidence

In 9 studies of adults aged 65 and over, of fair quality, foot strengthening improved strength, balance and mobility, with little effect on walking. In 33 active older adults, 12 weeks of supervised foot training strengthened the feet and reduced concern about falling, but didn't change walking speed. In 123 older adults, short-foot training added to leg strength training improved standing balance more than leg training alone.

Sources 17, 18, 19

Yoga and balance in older adultsEmerging evidence

In 6 trials of people over 60 (307 people), yoga improved balance tests by a small amount and mobility by a medium amount. In a 2026 review of 21 studies, the gains in balance while moving and in leg strength weren't robust once missing small studies were allowed for, and standing balance didn't clearly improve.

Sources 5, 6

Foot programmes and fallsEmerging evidence

In 305 older people with disabling foot pain, a podiatry programme of insoles, footwear advice and home foot and ankle exercises 3 times a week cut falls by 36% over a year. In a larger UK trial of 1,010 people, a similar programme reduced falls by 12%, which wasn't statistically significant, though fewer people fell twice or more. Across 8 trials, foot and ankle exercise improved balance and ankle flexibility, and only one counted fewer falls. Falls guidelines advise all older adults on falls prevention and activity; yoga hasn't been shown to prevent falls, as our yoga for balance guide explains.

Sources 20, 21, 22, 23

Toe yoga

Toe yoga trains control of the small foot muscles. No study has tested it by that name; it's part of what foot muscle programmes teach. Our editorial starting point: 5 to 10 slow repetitions of each part, once a day, sitting at first, then standing.

• Sit with your feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart.
• Lift your big toe while the other four stay on the floor. Lower it.
• Press your big toe down while you lift the other four. Lower them.
• Spread all ten toes as wide as you can, then relax.
• If a toe won't move on its own yet, help it with your hand at first.

Sources 3, 4

The short foot exercise

This draws your arch up without curling your toes, and works the main arch muscle more than towel curls do, but it takes practice. Our editorial starting point: 5 to 10 holds of 5 seconds, sitting first, then standing, then on one leg.

• Sit with your foot flat and your toes relaxed.
• Slide the ball of your big toe towards your heel, so the arch lifts, keeping your toes long and flat.
• Hold for 5 seconds, then relax.
• Spread your toes wide before the next one.

Sources 24, 19

Our editorial starting point

A few minutes of toe yoga, towel curls, ankle circles and calf raises before your standing poses, 3 or more times a week, as in the falls trial's home foot and ankle programme. Over 65, the NHS advises activities that improve strength, balance and flexibility on at least 2 days a week. Make balance poses harder slowly, near a wall.

Sources 20, 25

What a bunion isStrong evidence

A bunion (hallux valgus) is a big toe that angles towards the second toe, with a bony lump on the side of the foot. Podiatrists say it's mostly caused by an inherited foot shape, made worse by tight or narrow shoes, and more common in women: more than 15% of women in the UK have one.

Sources 7, 26

What you can and can't changeStrong evidence

The NHS says surgery is the only way to get rid of a bunion, and "You cannot get rid of bunions or stop them getting worse yourself". It suggests wide shoes with a low heel and soft sole, ice for up to 5 minutes, bunion pads and painkillers, and a GP or podiatrist can advise on insoles, toe spacers and splints. Surgery isn't done just to improve how feet look.

Sources 7, 26

Exercise: possibly less pain, on low-certainty evidenceMixed evidence

Across 18 studies of non-surgical treatments, the certainty was low, and less pain was more likely than a straighter toe. In 56 women, 3 months of foot mobilisation and exercises with a toe separator eased pain and improved function compared with a waiting list. In a 2023 pilot of shoes, insoles and foot exercises, too few women kept up the exercises for a full trial to work as planned.

Sources 8, 27, 28

A few degrees straighter? One small analysisMixed evidence

A 2026 network analysis of 11 small trials (401 people) reported that exercise reduced the bunion angle by about 3 degrees, more with taping or insoles. We read it as an abstract only, and its methods have been disputed in letters to the journal, so treat it with caution.

Source 29

Usually normalStrong evidence

The NHS says flat feet "do not usually cause any problems", "should not stop you doing any activities, including sports" and need no treatment if they aren't causing problems; most children's arches develop between 3 and 10. The Royal College of Podiatry says "A flat or low arched foot is not considered abnormal and the height of the arch does not have any bearing on how well a foot can function."

Sources 9, 10

If they hurtStrong evidence

A podiatrist or physiotherapist can advise on shoes, insoles, foot stretches, exercises and painkillers. The NHS says these "will not change the shape of your feet but can help with things like pain or stiffness".

Source 9

The short foot exercise and arch measuresMixed evidence

In 6 small trials (201 people with flat feet), the short foot exercise changed arch measures slightly, without making the foot muscles bigger. Four of 6 studies found the arch improved with 5 weeks or more, and in a network of 11 studies, programmes that also trained the hips and legs ranked best. A small change on an arch measure isn't the same as reshaping the foot.

Sources 24, 30, 31

What has the best evidenceEmerging evidence

In 101 people with heel pain for 10 months or more, a stretch of the sole before the first steps of the day beat a calf stretch at 8 weeks. In 48 people, heavy heel raises with a towel under the toes every second day gave better foot function at 3 months than stretching. A best practice guide puts stretching, taping and advice at the core of care. Our yoga for plantar fasciitis guide turns these into a class.

Sources 32, 33, 34

Bare feetMixed evidence

Yoga is usually practised barefoot, and no study has tested whether that matters for the feet. For most people, bare feet on a clean mat are fine. Verrucae are a virus that thrives on damp floors such as changing rooms, so use your own mat and cover a verruca with a plaster.

Sources 4, 35

Numb feet or diabetes: shoes for standing posesStrong evidence

The international diabetic foot guideline asks people with diabetes who are at risk of foot ulcers to protect their feet "by not walking barefoot, not walking in socks without shoes, or not walking in thin-soled slippers, whether indoors or outdoors". Diabetes UK says check your feet every day, "before you put your socks on in the morning and before you go to bed". Our suggestion: well-fitting shoes for standing poses, or chair yoga, and a foot check after each session. Our yoga for neuropathy guide has a class done in shoes.

Sources 11, 12, 36

Foot exercises with diabetesEmerging evidence

The same guideline suggests an 8 to 12 week foot and ankle exercise programme, ideally supervised, for people at low to moderate risk of ulcers, on low-certainty evidence, and says limited barefoot work belongs only inside such a supervised programme. Ask your diabetes foot team before starting barefoot foot exercises.

Source 11

Come up if your feet go numbMixed evidence

Thunderbolt pose (vajrasana, sitting on your heels) and hero pose (sitting between them) point the feet and press the shins into the floor. Published reports of harm from yoga include a case of damage to the nerves that lift both feet after kneeling in vajrasana. Sit high on a block, keep holds short, and come up at once if your feet tingle or go numb, as our hero pose page says.

Source 37

Call 999 or go to A&E

• Call 999 or go to A&E: after an injury, you heard a crack, the foot or ankle has changed shape or points at an odd angle, a bone is sticking out, there is a bad cut over it, you're in severe pain, or the toes look blue or white, feel numb or are cold to touch. These can mean a broken bone. Don't drive yourself.
• Call 999 or go to A&E: a foot or leg that is suddenly cold, pale, numb, weak or very painful without an injury. A sudden loss of blood supply is a vascular emergency.
• Call 999 or go to A&E: you have diabetes and a foot ulcer with a fever or signs of sepsis, an ulcer with poor circulation, or gangrene. NICE asks for these to go straight to hospital.
• Call 999 or go to A&E: a red, hot, swollen foot with a very high temperature, feeling hot, cold or shivery, a fast heartbeat or fast breathing, purple patches on the skin, dizziness or confusion.

Sources 38, 36

Contact a GP immediately

• Contact a GP immediately (or NHS 111 if you can't): severe burning foot pain that carries on even when you're resting, skin turning pale, shiny, smooth and dry, wounds or ulcers on your feet that don't heal, or toes that become cold and numb, then turn red and then black. The blood supply to the foot may be failing.

Source 38

Get help the same day

• Same day: you have diabetes and a new foot problem, such as an ulcer or wound, signs of infection, or a hot, swollen foot with a change in colour, even if it doesn't hurt. Contact your diabetes foot team or GP: NICE asks for these to reach a specialist foot service within 1 working day, and a suspected Charcot foot is kept off weight until it has been checked.
• Same day: skin on the foot that is painful, hot and swollen. It could be a skin infection (cellulitis).
• Same day: a sudden, very painful, hot, swollen, red joint, often the big toe but sometimes the middle of the foot (the midfoot) or the ankle, especially with a high temperature, feeling shivery or being unable to eat. It may be gout, but it could be a joint infection (septic arthritis), which is urgent.

Sources 12, 36

See a GP or podiatrist

• Pain that isn't better after 2 weeks of looking after it yourself, is getting worse, keeps coming back, or stops you doing normal things.
• Tingling or loss of feeling in the foot, or a foot that feels weak.
• Any foot pain if you have diabetes: foot problems can be more serious.
• Flat feet that are painful, stiff, weak or numb, that you didn't have before, or that affect only one foot, or flat feet and you often get foot or ankle injuries or have problems with walking or balance.
• A bunion that is getting worse, stopping you doing your normal activities, or still painful after a few weeks of home treatment, or a bunion and diabetes. You may be able to refer yourself to an NHS podiatrist.

Sources 9, 7, 36

During practice

Come out of kneeling poses at once if your feet go numb or tingle. Keep a wall or chair in reach for balance poses, and step out before you fall (our suggestion). Stop for chest pain, dizziness or unusual breathlessness. Call 999 (911 in the US) for chest pain that feels tight or like squeezing, or spreads to the arms, neck or jaw.

Sources 37, 39

"Toe yoga fixes bunions"Strong evidence

The NHS says you can't get rid of bunions or stop them getting worse yourself, and podiatrists say only surgery corrects the deformity. Foot exercises may ease pain, on low-certainty evidence, and no study has tested toe yoga.

Sources 7, 26, 8

"Yoga can rebuild fallen arches"Mixed evidence

Flat feet usually need no treatment, the arch height doesn't affect how well the foot works, and the NHS says exercises won't change the shape of your feet. Small trials found slight changes in arch measures, which isn't the same as reshaping the foot.

Sources 9, 10, 24

"Toe spacers straighten your toes"Mixed evidence

In the one positive trial, a toe separator was combined with 3 months of exercise and mobilisation. The NHS lists toe spacers among things a podiatrist may suggest to reduce bunion pain, not to cure it.

Sources 27, 7

"Going barefoot is always better for your feet"Mixed evidence

No study has tested barefoot yoga. Bare feet on a mat suit most people, but with numb feet or diabetes, an international guideline advises against going barefoot, even indoors.

Sources 4, 11

"Yoga will stop you falling"Mixed evidence

Yoga improves balance tests a little, not robustly in the newest review, and no trial has shown it prevents falls. A podiatry programme with foot exercises cut falls in one trial and not significantly in a larger one.

Sources 5, 6, 20, 21

"Sore feet are just part of getting older"Strong evidence

The Royal College of Podiatry says painful feet aren't a natural part of growing old, and foot pain went with more falls in older adults. See a GP or podiatrist.

Sources 14, 2