How to Touch Your Toes

Co-authored by Steve Bergeron

Last Updated: March 2, 2023 References

Touching your toes is a great stretch for after you have completed any number of cardio exercises, and it’s also a great indicator of overall flexibility. With some other stretches leading up to it and regular practice, you will be able to touch your toes in no time.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Stretching the Relevant Muscles

1
Stretch your lower back. Many people don’t consider the muscle groups in their lower back when considering flexibility, but you can stretch these muscles to help avoid strains for any number of exercises. The cat-camel stretch is a great way to stretch lower back muscles. Simply get down on all fours and alternate between rounding your back toward the ceiling and pushing your stomach toward the floor while lifting your buttocks.^{[1]
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Research source} Hold each position for 15-30 seconds at a degree where you feel a nice stretch but no discomfort.^{[2]
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Research source} The alternating concave and convex postures will help stretch out several of your lower back muscles.
- For several other lower back stretches, you can consult How to Do a Lower Back Stretch Safely.
2
Stretch your hips. A great hip flexor stretch consists of getting down on one knee as though you were proposing in a traditional fashion, and then leaning forward to put weight on the front leg to stretch the hip flexors in the lowered leg.^{[3]
X
Trustworthy Source
Mayo Clinic
Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals
Go to source} You want to hold the position for roughly 30 seconds before switching legs and completing the exercise again.^{[4]
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Trustworthy Source
Mayo Clinic
Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals
Go to source}
- If you’re working on total flexibility, you can find other great hip stretches at How to Perform Hip Flexor Stretches.
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3
Stretch your hamstrings. Though stretching several muscle groups helps, you are most likely to feel the stretch of touching your toes in your hamstrings. You can easily stretch your hamstrings by laying on the floor next to a wall corner or doorframe and placing the heel of one foot up on the wall before slowly straightening the knee until your feel a good stretch without discomfort.^{[5]
X
Trustworthy Source
Mayo Clinic
Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals
Go to source} Hold this stretch for 30 seconds before switching to the other leg and repeating.^{[6]
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Trustworthy Source
Mayo Clinic
Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals
Go to source}
- Since stretching your hamstrings is so integral to touching your toes, you may also want to look at some of the other exercises elaborated at How to Stretch Hamstrings.
4
Stretch your calves. Next to your hamstrings, your calves are the second largest muscle group you’ll feel while touching your toes. You can stretch your calves in a similar fashion to the hip flexor stretch, but this time remain stranding and keep the heel of your back foot firmly planted while leaning forward on the opposite foot.^{[7]
X
Trustworthy Source
Mayo Clinic
Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals
Go to source} You also want to hold this stretch for 30 seconds before switching legs.
- Make sure you don’t rotate your feet at all, and it may also help to brace against a wall in front of you with your hands.^{[8]
  X
  Trustworthy Source
  Mayo Clinic
  Educational website from one of the world's leading hospitals
  Go to source}
- For this and additional methods for stretching your calves, you can consult How to Stretch Your Calves.
5
Massage your plantar fascia. The above calf stretch is also good for one’s plantar fascia, but in addition to this, you can also massage these tissues on the bottom of the foot by placing a hard ball such as a lacrosse ball or baseball on the floor under the arch of your foot and rolling it side to side and back and forth with your foot for up to two minutes. You want to place some weight down onto the foot in order to feel the muscles stretch but not enough to cause any discomfort.
6
Touch Your Toes. Once you have warmed up and stretched all of the component muscle groups needed to reach your toes, you should find it much easier to reach them, or at least get closer than you previously were able.
7
Do stretching after a warm-up or exercise. When muscles have been properly warmed up there is better blood supply to the connective tissues, which can prevent injuries during stretching. Studies also show reduced performance after stretching, so now the recommendation is the opposite of what it used to be; only stretch after you exercise and if you're not planning on doing any serious exercise, be sure to warm up before you stretch.^{[9]
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Trustworthy Source
PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health
Go to source}^{[10]
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Research source}

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Touching Your Toes while Sitting

1
Lay on the floor with your legs straight out and your toes pointing toward the ceiling. Now that you’ve done all of the necessary stretches, you can work on actually reaching those toes. Begin by laying flat on the floor with your toes pointed up.
2
Put your arms straight above your head. This may look as though you’re reaching for the ceiling, but some people find it easier to lower into the stretch with their arms rather than lunge them forward toward their feet.
3
Complete a sit up. Stretch farther forward the way you would at the top of a sit up but without returning to the ground.
4
Touch your toes. Now that you’ve reached the full extension of your stretch, you should be able to touch your toes. However, don’t strain if you can’t. It can take several weeks or more of these various stretches before you can actually reach your toes.
5
Hold for 20-30 Seconds. Hold the position for as long as you can without straining up to 30 seconds. You may also choose to repeat touching your toes multiples times as part of your exercise routine.
- Always perform the exercise in a controlled, steady fashion and without darting your hands toward your feet because that will only lead to strains.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Touching Your Toes while Standing

1
Squat down toward ground. Now that you’ve touched your toes while sitting, try doing it from a standing position, which many people find more difficult. Begin by squatting down. This position will look like a frog-like squat with your knees bent and your back arched.^{[11]
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Research source}
2
Place your fingers on your toes. Since this method requires starting with your fingers on your toes, then straightening your legs out after, put your fingers on your toes while squatting.
- Some may find it easier to place their fingers under their toes in order to actually grip their toes instead of touching them alone.
3
Raise your buttocks and straighten your knees. Stand up slowly, but keep your fingers on/under your feet.^{[12]
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Research source} Contract your core muscles to keep your lower back supported and lift the pelvic floor muscles and keep them braced before lifting up. As you lift, you will especially feel the stretch in your glutes and hamstrings. Try to reach the point where both your legs and back are straight.
4
Hold this position for 15-20 seconds. Hold the position but don’t strain yourself. Keep your head in line with your spine. Additionally, if you can’t quite reach the point where your legs are straight, hold it at a position where you feel a nice stretch without discomfort. The full extension will come in increments with continued attempts.
- Once you can easily touch your toes, the next step in this stretching exercise is to build up to doing it with your palms flat on the ground just in front of your feet as opposed to simply touching your toes.
5
Repeat it multiple times. As with touching your toes while sitting, you may choose to do this stretch several times over the course of your stretching routine.

Expert Q&A

Question

How can I get more flexible over time?

Steve Bergeron
Personal Trainer & Strength Coach
Steve Bergeron is a Personal Trainer, Strength Coach, and the Co-Owner of AMP Fitness in Boston, Massachusetts. With over a decade of experience, Steve specializes in educating, guiding, and empowering his clients to develop healthy habits and reach their individual fitness goals. He holds a BS in Exercise Physiology and is an NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Coach (CSCS), ASCM Health and Fitness Specialist (HFS), Strong First Kettlebell Coach (SFG), and Certified Functional Movement Screen Specialist (FMS). AMP Fitness’ mission is to create a community that is inclusive and gives people the tools and support they need to succeed.

Steve Bergeron

Personal Trainer & Strength Coach

Expert Answer

When it comes to mobility, the challenge is in understanding what your unique movement capabilities are in relationship to your skeleton and your muscular system. For mobility, it isn't always how long your muscles are stretching. While it can be beneficial for short term changes, if you're looking for long term mobility gains over time, what we typically recommend is moving more and taking a more holistic approach to your fitness regimen and working on core control and core strength along with using exercises that follow a full range of motion. One of our general rules of thumb when it comes to mobility and movement is over time if you don't use it, you lose it. So you have to make sure that you are moving your body.
Question

I can touch my toes but feel it in may hamstrings. Is that normal?

Community Answer

Don't try to go all the way down on your first day, instead you start small and stretch your hands to your knees and gradually stretch further each time.
Question

What are the benefits of being able to do this?

Community Answer

Being flexible makes you healthier and stronger.