Bunions are an enlargement of the great toe or hallux joint on the feet that is generally associated with the deviation in the position of the great toe or hallux. They are very common. The bunion may or might not be painful and it never appears good and in most cases presents an issue for the fitting of shoes. They do usually tend to be inherited and can be caused by using footwear which might be too tight. These are more prevalent in women and this may be as a result of the type of footwear. They can be painful within the joint because of arthritis like symptoms and they also is usually painful from pressure from the footwear on the bunion.

Can exercises improve bunions? They might be able to, however they are not likely to help make the bony enlargement go away and they might help improve the angle of the big toe or hallux somewhat. The best way to make the bunion go away is with surgery. No amount of exercising is going to make that go down. The amount of pressure creating the bunion and resulting in the big toe to deviate way exceeds what any exercise is likely to change. Even so, in spite of this, the exercises that you often see advised are still probably worth carrying out since they should help keep your joint mobile and flexible which is a positive thing. That increase in the range of movement of the joint could go a long way to helping pain that frequently occurs inside the joint. The type of bunion exercises that can be most beneficial are the ones which stretch and move the joints through its full range of motion in all directions. Often exercises for helping strengthen the arch muscles of the foot will also be useful. Even if surgical procedures are used, the exercises pre and post the surgery will benefit the treatment.