Why the 'No Knees Over Toes' Rule is Holding You Back in Yoga and Fitness 🏋️♀️
You’ve probably heard about the myth that your knees can't go past your toes during exercises, Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana) or squats in particular, has been widely circulated in the yoga and fitness industry for years. This myth has caused many people to modify their form during asana or while working out, which can actually cause more harm than good.
This myth can be traced back to a study conducted in 1963 by Dr. Karl Klein. The study showed that placing too much weight on your toes during exercises like squats could increase the pressure on your knee joint, potentially causing injury.
However, Dr. Karl Klein study had many flaws:
- the test was a small sample size of participants
- showing no correlation between deep squatting and injury risk
- the study did not account for the participants' individual body mechanics or form during the exercises
Contrary to popular belief, there’s been mounting new research and training methods demonstrating it's actually safe and biomechanically efficient to allow your knees to move past your toes during your asana or performing a squat. In fact, many positions like lunges or Cossack squat require your knees to move over your toes to be achieved correctly. To execute this position with proper form, you need to have sufficient ankle mobility. Practicing this pose can enhance your overall technique, alleviate pressure on your knee joint, and effectively engage your glutes and quads.
Consider walking up the stairs, you probably do this movement many times throughout your day 💡 letting your knee past over your toes!
Everyone's body is unique and may require some work to be able to accomplish certain movements, such as my demonstration in the photo above where my heel is down. Dorsiflexion is the movement of your foot upwards towards your shin, and it is an essential aspect of proper ankle mobility necessary for allowing your knees to go past your toes. If you have difficulty keeping your heel down, start by stretching your calves (which can often limit dorsiflexion) and incorporating foam rolling into your routine to improve your ankle mobility.
Using your joints to their full range-of-motion can stimulate the production of synovial fluid, which helps to keep the joints lubricated and healthy. However, if you neglect to work on your ankle mobility, your body may signal to your joints not to move through their full range-of-motion, which can lead to stiffness and limited mobility over time.
As you work on your ankle range-of-motion, you can begin to deepen your lunge or squats while keeping a stable and neutral spine. This involves engaging your core muscles to maintain a long spine rather than a rounded one, and evenly distributing your weight between your toes and heels.
I’d like to emphasize that each individual has their own unique body mechanics, and as a result, some may not be able to move their knees past their toes. In my own personal experience, while in a lunge position, I found that I needed to focus on releasing my calf muscles more often to improve my dorsiflexion range-of-motion.
I invite you to test lunge or squat for yourself, as always, just make sure to warm up your body first - jumping jacks are great!
Help spread the word and share this blog post with your inner circle so they too can become aware of this myth and learn the truth about proper exercise form.
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