Art’s Favorite Foot & Ankle Exercises — Now in the SB Physio App
Train your foundation like an athlete. 🏃♂️🦶
At SB Physio, we don’t believe in generic rehab — especially when it comes to your feet and ankles. These are the foundation of every step, jump, cut, and change of direction. Whether you’re coming back from injury or pushing performance, targeted foot and ankle training changes everything.
Here are Dr. Art Van Leuven’s personal favorites — used daily with athletes and high-performers alike. And now? You can access these directly in the SB Physio App with clear video demos, customized routines, and direct messaging with your PT. 📲
🔁 Step Matrix with Foot Driver
A single-leg balance and rotation drill where the opposite foot reaches to drive the standing leg into internal or external rotation, then returns to center. It challenges control through the entire chain — foot, ankle, hip, and core — and trains the kind of stability that actually shows up in real-world movement.
🦶 Heel Raise with 1st Ray Bias + Peroneal Activation
Start seated, with a band under the ball of the big toe. Press down into the band as you lift your heel, keeping the arch engaged and the heel moving straight up — not drifting out. Once that’s consistent, progress to standing.
It’s a lot harder than it looks. Most people want to let the heel flare or lose lower body alignment. The challenge is keeping everything straight while driving power through the foot and engaging the peroneals. Great for ankle injuries, push-off mechanics, and preventing recurrent ankle sprains by training the peroneal nerve response.
🧱 Lateral Step-Up
Step up to the side, control your landing, and avoid letting the foot or knee collapse. It targets lateral hip and foot stability — and shows up in most of my return-to-sport progressions.
It’s also great for preventing recurrent ankle sprains. This drill helps retrain the peroneal nerve response — teaching the body how to react faster and stabilize when the ankle is at risk of rolling. Simple movement, but a lot of value.
🏒 Skater Hops
A sneaky exercise that builds the look — and function — of an athlete. Jump laterally from one foot to the other, stick the landing, and stay balanced.
It’s all about lateral power creation and shock absorption, training your body to generate force and then control it. Great for restoring push-off strength, dynamic balance, and confidence — especially after injury or during off-season prep.
These are the kinds of drills that show up again and again in rehab and performance work. They’re straightforward, effective, and easy to build on. You’ll find them all inside the SB Physio App — fully demoed, ready to use, and integrated into your plan when appropriate. ✅
