Toes pointing out, problem for anyone else?

[mydogs]

I have damaged both of my ankles over the years and have completed physical therapy for both. While I can typically get one foot to have my toes pointing forward, I struggle with the other. I typically stretch often throughout the week so that helps and started to pay more attention to my day to day life. I noticed that there are times when my one foot will naturally point toes out, like when driving, vacuuming (I have no idea why), and during certain odd balancing moments.

I’ve been working to correct the toes out while driving and notice how uncomfortable it is. So I started to wonder if maybe that foot will never point forward while riding since it is just how I am built.

Does anyone else have this problem with one foot?
Will this be a potential problem when I reach 3rd or 4th level?

[Knubbsy]

Try working on releasing your hip flexors and strengthening your core/hip/upper legs, if they are tight and/or weak it can cause more rotation if you naturally turn out more. I naturally have a high degree of turn out for various reasons and my PT and pilates plan changed once we decided to address this. A lot more adductor work, quads, glutes (on top of normal “power house”/core work) and a lot of quality time with a foam roller and yoga strap.

Also make sure your saddle fits you properly, I do turn out more if the stirrup bar is too far forward or the twist is too wide and I start to pitch forward to compensate which throws everything off.

[Wicky]

Completely agree with Knubbsy.

[Magicboy]

Hip flexors have a lot to do with this issue, not just the ankle itself. Work on stretching your hamstrings, too

[Eventur4life]

what my trainer had me do when she was teaching me dressage cause i have the smae issue with my toes pointing out and heels in, she made me ride without stirrups and hold the irons against the horse were they would be if your foot was in them. this helped me SOOOOOOOOOO MUCHHHHHHH! another issue ki had when doing this though was my knees and ankles hurt SOOOO bad when i was done riding so i switched my stirrups from plain regular ones to the compositi flex. how it works is the foot pad moves with your foot to relieve pressure from your knees and ankles! works like a dream!!!

[CanteringCarrot]

I had this problem and it was mainly due to tightness in my hips. More core strength, stretching, and a saddle that fit me well definitely helped. I also have to be consciously aware of tightening myself and slipping into the old habit.

[Edre]

I have a very, very ugly “toe out” problem but it’s more related to the fact that as a tall rider on horses that didn’t take up my leg, I developed the habit of turning my toe out to close my calf/keep as much contact with the horse as possible.

I don’t know how much help this will be for you, but since it doesn’t actually relate with the ankle, it might be worth considering. For me, my toes both point forward when my leg is laying correctly. I think it’s very easy for riders to have their thigh and knee come off and roll “outward” which make it easy for the calf to roll back in contact with the horse/toe point out. To make this work, I need to almost think about taking my thigh off the saddle and when I set it back, think “femur in” - almost set it down pointed “in” a little further back behind me, and then pull it up into position. Added bonus, this corrects my tendency to curl my leg up. Once I have my femur in line, the knee/shin/toe falls into line as well - but to get them all “pointed forward” I almost need to overcorrect by thinking “point in”.

[KBC]

I really liked this little video to explain how to ‘fix’ this. https://dressagetraining.tv/stop-toes-turning/ of course if you have had damage then you may have some continuing issues. As everyone else says start with the hip!

[netg]

Keep in mind, all responses are assuming your feet are straight on your legs. With your discussion of ankle issues, I’m not sure if that is the case. I apologize for forgetting the medical term for it, but I know someone whose toes rotate out at the ankle, rather than being straight. It happens sometimes. If that’s the case, keep your LEGS correct and don’t worry so much about the toes. Toes forward is equitation defined for the average build to improve effectiveness.

[SnicklefritzG]

+1

Some people toe out naturally. I’m one of them. What netg said is exactly what I do - focus on the correctness of my leg. Then the foot doesn’t matter so much.

@netg

Keep in mind, all responses are assuming your feet are straight on your legs. With your discussion of ankle issues, I’m not sure if that is the case. I apologize for forgetting the medical term for it, but I know someone whose toes rotate out at the ankle, rather than being straight. It happens sometimes. If that’s the case, keep your LEGS correct and don’t worry so much about the toes. Toes forward is equitation defined for the average build to improve effectiveness.

[mydogs]

@SnicklefritzG

+1

Some people toe out naturally. I’m one of them. What netg said is exactly what I do - focus on the correctness of my leg. Then the foot doesn’t matter so much.

Do you worry about accidentally using the spur on your horse? I’m pretty short so my legs don’t typically go past the barrel on 75% of horses and my heels usually stop at the horse’s barrell

[SnicklefritzG]

When my toes point out too much, my knees tend to be pulled just slightly away from the saddle. That in turn makes it so my thighs aren’t in as much contact with the saddle as they could be.

When my legs are in the correct position,my toes tend to point out less than they normally would. My entire leg from hip to foot is more relaxed when the correct position comes from adjusting my legs rather than forcing my toes to go back in.

@mydogs

Do you worry about accidentally using the spur on your horse? I’m pretty short so my legs don’t typically go past the barrel on 75% of horses and my heels usually stop at the horse’s barrell