Abductor Hallucis Stretches

The abductor hallucis muscle moves your big toe away from your second toe, which extends from the inner part of your heel bone, crosses over the arch of your foot and inserts in the lateral part of the first joint of the big toe. When you get foot cramps or a muscle strain in the foot, the abductor hallucis could contribute to pain. Although stretching may seem to alleviate pain and discomfort, it may not help with the healing process. The type of stretching you do depends on your muscle's condition.

  1. Static Stretching

    • Static stretching is holding the muscle stretch for a period of time, usually between 20 to 30 seconds. Although this technique may alleviate foot cramps, it may not be the best way to warm up before you go out for a run. Static stretching reduces neural activity to your muscles, which enhances relaxation and reduces strength output. However, after a hard workout session, you can stretch the abductor hallucis by standing on a stair step on the balls of your feet with your heels hanging off the edge of the step. Stand tall while holding onto a handrail and exhale slowly as you lower your heels and raise your toes off the step. You should feel a stretch in your calves and the bottom of your feet, including the abductor hallucis.

    Dynamic Stretching

    • Dynamic stretching involves moving your joints and muscles within their range of motion repetitively, stimulating nerve activity to wake and warm up the muscles. Although dynamic stretching is supposed to simulate the activity or sport that you're going to play, isolating the abductor hallucis to move dynamically may not be practical because it works with other muscles in your foot to move the foot and ankle. Therefore, dynamic stretching exercises should include all muscles in the foot and leg. Sample exercises include front and back lunges and stationary high knee marches to simulate running strides. However, isolation dynamic stretching is ideal for those who are recovering from a foot injury or surgery to improve neural function of the foot. One common exercise that stretches and strengthens the abductor hallucis dynamically is the toe curl on a rug. By scrunching up your big toe repetitively, you're lengthening and shortening the abductor hallucis while strengthening the arch of your foot to avoid over-pronation -- or the collapse of the foot's arch when you walk.

    Massage Therapy

    • When stretching isn't enough to alleviate tightness in the abductor hallucis, massage therapy can enhance its flexibility and soothe the tenderness. Tight and painful abductor hallucis may be caused by trigger points along your plantar fascia, which is a sheathe of strong connective tissue that runs along the bottom of the arch of your foot. Start at the middle of your foot by pressing your thumb against it. Then gently stroke toward the ball of the foot and toward the lateral part of your big toe. Flex your toes toward your shin to expose more of the muscle and fascia, which helps you go deeper into the stretch. After massaging for a few minutes, stretch your toes and foot dynamically.

    Contraindications

    • A pulled muscle, including the abductor hallucis, should not be stretched because stretching creates tension, which doesn't allow the muscle to heal well, says Rolfer and massage therapist Todd Hargrove of Better Movement. You may need to avoid placing pressure on the foot until the muscle heals. Check with a qualified medical professional before attempting to stretch on your own. Doing the right exercises can speed up the healing process.