Yoga is known for twisting the body into many pretzel-like poses, so understandably this can cause toe cramps from time to time. For the most part, however, yoga can help relieve and even prevent toe cramps, especially if you experience nighttime cramping or cramping following exercise. Just be careful to start out slow so that you don't injure yourself.
Toe Cramp Causes
The specific cause of toe cramps isn't known. What is known is that cramping coincides with other conditions, such as nutritional deficiencies of potassium or magnesium, dehydration, overexertion, alcoholism, age, pregnancy and taking certain drugs, such as diuretics or morphine. Pointing your toes too hard can also cause toe cramps.
Yoga Massage
To alleviate the pain from toe cramps and to prevent them from coming back, perform yoga massage. While warming up for and cooling down from your yoga session, place your foot on a tennis ball and roll it back and forth. This will massage the insole and prevent the tightening in the arch that so often results in toe cramps.
Poses for Toe Cramps
During your yoga routine, perform specific poses to prevent or treat toe cramps. In fact, any pose that requires you to lie on your stomach on the floor -- so the tops of your feet, your shins, hands and forehead bear the brunt of your weight -- should be performed with a towel rolled up and place under the tops of your feet, by your ankles. Examples of poses that can be modified in this way include child's pose and hero's pose. Downward facing dog is another pose you can do that stretches your arches and calves, helping prevent cramping. These poses can even be performed in the midst of toe cramps to help them go away.
Caution
Though toe cramping is generally not serious, if it occurs during the day and persists for no reason at all, it could be an indication of hardened arteries or thrombophlebitis, a kind of vein inflammation. If you have cramping in your legs, feet or toes with no outward cause and have swelling, pain in the calf or the sensation of heat, see your doctor immediately.
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