Yoga postures for the feet and toes can help you develop strength, balance and flexibility in those areas, or any combination of these objectives. As with all yoga postures, breathing and visualization play a crucial role.
Breathing and Visualizations
Conscious, deep, abdominal breathing serves several purposes in yoga, one of which is to relax the mind and body as it settles into a deep stretch or other yoga pose. As you breathe into a pose, yogis teach you to visualize your breath as energy, or chi, traveling to and from the area being stretched, opened or strengthened. In yoga for feet and toes, this means you would visualize your breath traveling to your toes as you inhale and from them as you exhale.
Flexibility
Sitting on the floor with your feet out in front of you, curl your toes as far as you can and then uncurl them as far back as you can. Repeat this several times, either breathing in when you flex and out when you extend, or taking a full breath in and out as you hold each position. You can also do this one foot at a time and then with both feet together. Similarly you can stretch the feet the same way by flexing at the ankles, pulling your toes toward your head, and then extending your feet at the ankles, pointing your toes away from you.
Strength
Sitting on the floor with your feet in front of you, rotate your feet in circles at the ankles, either one foot at a time or each foot separately and then both together. Rotate counterclockwise several times and then clockwise several times. Standing up, lift your ankles up off the ground and raise yourself onto your toes as you inhale. Take several full breaths as you hold this position before you lower yourself back down slowly and in a controlled manner as you exhale. Repeat this several times.
Balance
Sitting down, either on the floor or in a chair, bend your knee to bring one foot toward you and intertwine your fingers of the opposite hand with the toes. This spreads the toes apart, encouraging space between them. With more space between each toe, the feet have a wider and more stable stance. Standing up, lift one foot up so you're standing on just the other foot. As you balance yourself in this pose, bend the knee of the raised leg and pull that foot back behind you with the hand on the same side. Take several breaths in this position before slowly and in a controlled manner returning the other foot to the ground and then repeating the exercise on the opposite side.
