ATG Foot, Ankle, Achilles & Shin Guide 

Best foot exercise for my feet: trail running in barefoot shoes. I tried so many rehab/strengthenjng exercises to stabilize my ankles and fox my flat feet. After only a few weeks of running rough trails in barefoot shoes, my arch was stronger than ever before. (Starting slowly to allow time for build up is important.) Everthin Ben teaches also helpes me to substancially work on bullet proofing and increase my athleticism. Thank you!

I have benefitted SO MUCH from your videos and training techniques. I have worked in PT and been a certified trainer since 95 but you continue to create content that is new to me and I think some of the best available. THANK YOU!

Mr. Kneesovertoesguy, I sprained my ankle seven weeks ago and just got out of my boot. Hours after the injury it looked like i had a tennis ball in my ankle. I really appreciate you making this video since I can now exercise to regain strength and movement in my ankle. Thank you!

Bens videos are absolutely amazing! There’s a lot of people on RU-vid that do not know what they are talking about but he really does and he’s amazin!

Hello Ben, I ruptured my achilles back in March playing basketball :( Dunno if I will ever get back to where I was. I’m doing a fair amount of rehab and things. I just hope I can get my flexibility back in my left ankle (the achilles is tight post surgery). I’m stretching it and doing a fair amount to strengthen it. Your exercises and book are helping me a lot, Thank you.

Thank you Ben for your love and enthusiasm. This may help others to begin trading the tib. Leaning on the wall with and toe lifting is super simple and great and a TiB bar is really amazing but hear is something that I’ve been using. Set yourself up on the floor legs out but seated on your butt. Hook a decent band around an anchor point then slip it over your forefoot bellow your toes. Create enough stretch in the band by pulling yourself back against the band. Then begin the fun of stretching the toes back towards the tib. Dorsiflexion. The range of movement is pretty good. I’ve rehabbed my shattered talas to the point where I’m running and working a Cossack squat.

Thanks for everything you've done Ben! My knees are better than they were ever before now in my 30s. I wish I knew about this in my teens when my knee problems started due to Basketball. You are outworking everybody also in the RU-vid game by replying to every single comment and giving out free advice! 💪

This is amazing! I‘ve been waiting for foot shaped Basketball Shoes for years! Heck I played in running shoes so my feet would stop hurting. I got very wide feet and even a mortons neuroma from too narrow shoes. I bought all the typical ‚wide foot friendly‘ basketball shoes but they were all still so narrow. I really hope these are performers! I would advertise the heck out of them.

I've used my backpack handle loaded with textbooks/ laptops for weight for single leg tib raises. It works pretty well when your feet can hang from a decently high surface

Thanks. Your content helped me not sprain my ankles any more, but someone stomped on my ankle while playing soccer. This really helps. if you did a series on rehabing each joint it would be super useful. thanks

This video literally has come out at the perfect time for me because I was watching many of your past videos to do with the mobility. I started from the shoulders and finished at the calf. Now you helped me finish the whole training plan

It helps! Thank you for these exercises, Ben!

I had really bad shin splints and you're split squads and nordic curls helped alot with that. Now i got real bad insertional achilles tendinopathy, where i will have 3 days of pain in the right heel after playing basketbal. Finding out of course you have a video for movement around the foot. Big ups and trusting the KOT process!

I love you guys and you've helped a 30 year old guy go from feeling like an old man to a child I'm in Australia and been wanting to buy some of your products to support you guys but the shipping is Ludacrisly expensive. 200 dollar shipping for a 300 dollar cart makes it so I can't justify buying things from you guys and I'm forced to use people who charge normal shipping rates Keep up the amazing work guys and thank you for everything you do for everyone!

52 yrs young and bunions from years of cowboy boots and dress shoes… been wearing wide toe box shoes for years now but the damage was already done. Got your big toe spacers as they look to be a better design than what I’ve tried to date (most are not good at all)… let’s see if I can make progress. Thanks for all you do bud!

Great information about Dr. Gabe Mirkin recanting the RICE regimen. I've always been an advocate for motion.

Thanks Ben! I ruptured my patellar tendon 20 months ago. I did my first standing flat ground backflip a few weeks ago since being injured. I’m on my way towards dunking again which will be very soon! I’ve religiously been hitting the sled everyday (along with some others), and the progress is life changing. A literal tear came down my face after backflipping. I didn’t think I’d ever recover as this was my first major injury of my life.

Thanks for the video man! This definitely gave me the answers to why I have been so injured during my last 3 years in the 100m sprint. Did your system (DENSE) for 4 weeks and I have never felt better. Did some plyos last week where I might have jammed my feet into the ground a bit too hard and can now barely walk without my achilleas hurting. Definitely completing the 12 weeks of DENSE now because I was feeling just fine and thought "Hey! I'm good to go now!" and forced it a bit too hard. Sometimes you just have to have patience hahahah!

Hi Ben, I’ve been having pain in my gastrocnemius, soleus and shins. The pain in my calf muscles hurts when I touch my calf and my shin pain is in the inside of my leg like you pointed out in the video which you had. Most of the time I find it very painful to run or jump at times and often results in me having to stop my training. I’ve had this pain since the May/June last year but it has progressively got worse to not being able to walk or stand without pain. I took months off to let it recover and heal but the pain got so bad I decided to go to a sports physio to get it resolved and they diagnosed the injury as achillies tendinitis. I did the stretching and strengthening exercises they gave me and for a period of time it felt better but the pain in my legs came back and it has been irritating me since, especially the shin pain on the inside of leg. I’ve found it very hard to get back to my sport which is sprinting and was wondering if you knew how to get the pain resolved to help me get back to 100% and running back on the track pain free.

Thank you for your fantastic content. Love your kids' toys in the background :)

This is def helping trying to get my ankle back to normal from playing bball and defender got underneath my landing. Ended up rolling it bad.

Best trainer in the WORLD. By FAR. 👌

Thank you very much for the tip. I will give it a shot and report back to you.

Thank u soooo much for ur help blessings always

Recovering from an ankle sprain. Going HARD on your protocol and thank you for your efforts to educate us!!! Please let me know when you release your shoe in size 15!!!! Merry Christmas, Ben!

Hey Ben, love your content, have you ever considered doing a video on hip and shoulder impingements? I know they are common and those are two things I happen to be dealing with right now

You know I definitely didn't take this guy serious when I first saw his videos but I'm going through his playlist and started doing some of the movements and I'll be damned if they didn't start actually feeling better.

Just doing tib raises and sissy squats with the help of a wall and door frame has been huge for me, really want to get a bar for nordic curls so I can strengthen the hammies through bodyweight movement

Thank you Ben 😊

Great video. Would like to see a similar video about the spine/low back.

🍿Thanks and Happy New year🍻

Hey Ben! Your content is ground breaking and so helpful! I was curious what your thoughts are on five fingers compared to your training shoes?

Hi Ben, I have been a big fan of your videos since a long time now, keep up the good work!! I am also suffering from inner shin splint pain for the last year... Nothing seems to be helping. Can you maybe tell me more about how you overcame this issue?

Brilliant Ben thank you again some day would love to do an atg seminar here in Auckland talk soon

Just take all my money Ben!!! 🤣🔥💯 I do a lot of your stuff and it is helping me a lot.

I’ve had pain in the outside of my leg when I go for a walk, doctor had no idea, podiatrist tried to sell me a $900 orthotic. I’m now convinced it’s the tib… flat ground no pain, any incline = pain. Same movement as the tib raise. I’ve started doing these exercises, hopefully I’ll see some progress soon!!

Awesome that you put a lot of emphasis on foot health! However, just a big toe spacer is not optimal. Considering how strong the big toe is relative to the other toes, so it will push all the other toes in. Something like CorrectToes is however really good to get full toesplay and help the metatarsals and the toes restore to the natural position. You should definitely try it! (30min of active use/day first week is best then increase gradually). Love your content! /Will

Great video! For the shin splints, would you recommend all three moves or any of them in particular? Thank you so much!

Hi, I’m from Canada currently living in China for about 8 years now. If you need any help with anything about your products I’d be happy to help. Your videos are really changing my life, I hope I can help spread the word about your amazing findings and I’m hoping to dunk the ball again in my 30’s like I taught myself how in my late teens.

Thank you Sir!!

Thanks for the Achilles stuff! Not as much research online about protecting that tendon. Before I watched this, I was doing alot of deficit-calf raises, getting strong in that bottom, stretched out position. Curious if you have thoughts on that. Will be incorporating some bent knee calf raises from here on out!

Thank you Ben

Great, loving your work. Do you have any ideas related to the talus bone and it perhaps limiting forward range of motion on one ankle, and how to improve it? Thanks.

really useful and helpful 非常有用

You’re my hero

This is a good video. I thought I had arthritis of my big toe, but it turned out to be a different injury. I have a fracture of the navicular bone of my foot. That's why I can't do Bulgarian squats.

THANKYOU👣

I've been watching for ages i love the information you give out. I'm looking for a bit of advice that maybe isisn't as easy to find online, its for my recent High ankle sprain (Syndesmosis). I'm trying to not over do it as its been bad(up and down like a heartbead monitor) for about 2 months. Just looking to see if there's any good way to measure the progress since im a rock climber and my feet and ankles are quit important over all and id love to comeback to the sport any tips to get it back to health

Ben changed my life ❤ "Hope this helps" 😂.

Hi Ben. Love you content and particularly interested in foot guides. Would you have any ATG advice for how to deal with plantar fasciitis? I've been struggling with this for over a year now and it's quite mentally and physically debilitating!

Damn ben looking stacked 💪

Hi, thank you for getting back to me. I have tried the seated calf raise with a dumbbell before which helped a bit but I’ll try find a gym with a machine of that. I will definitely try out the KOT Calf Raise, thanks. I’m guessing these exercises will help mostly with the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles but will these exercises help with the inside of the leg shin pain also?

Hey there! I've been dealing with some serious ankle mobility issues and it's been quite a struggle. Trying to touch my knees to a wall while kneeling is a real challenge for me. I have to keep my feet about 2-3 centimeters away from the wall just to make contact with my knees! It feels like all the muscles around my shin bone and the right side of my calves are blocking my movement. I think it all stems from the numerous ankle sprains I had during my younger years, between ages 6 to 14, from playing sports like football, basketball, and table tennis. Even though those sprains healed pretty quickly, i think they've left me with some lasting mobility issues. To tackle this, I've been religiously doing calf stretches for about six minutes every day, along with some ankle joint mobilization exercises and tibial rotations with a band under my right toe. But progress has been frustratingly slow. So I am trying to implentate flossing my ankles daily, aiming for 100 reps with variations such as lifting the toes towards me, rotating right, and rotating left, with sets of 10 repetitions each. Today was my first attempt, and although I encountered significant discomfort around the 50-rep mark, I pushed through to complete 89 reps on my right and 90 reps on my left. I will continiung this exercise every day now. Hopefully i will see results. Oh, and by the way, wearing barefoot shoes for the past three years has really helped with those annoying foot cramps I used to get from regular shoes. My ultimate goal is to regain enough ankle mobility to resume activities like jogging without experiencing the intense strain and tightness in my shin bone and calvs after just a short run (with short i mean like 4-6 min. Additionally, being able to comfortably perform a squat would be a significant milestone. Maybe you will see this post. I will update it every one or two weeks. See ya

Would love to see your shoe come in more sizes in the future!! I’m a women’s 9.5, I just moved to Alta shoes which have so far been way better than anything else I’ve tried. But it’s seriously HARD to find good shoes shaped like a foot

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this the first year where both my ankles have been sprained an boy has it been hard to recover them. thank you for this video. i think due to previous sprains when i skateboard and even before I skated i was a fat kid and my ankle would randomly give out and get sprain.

Hi man, I love your videos.. Especially the way you "challange" conventional treatment methods ( I say "challange" because I feel you are more educating the system as a whole than anything else).. Anyway.. Here's my question. My gf has chronic ankle instability and I would please like any advice. I went through numerous sources that stray from conventional therapy.. Anything from chondroitin and glucosamine supplements, and to stray away from ankle straps because it weakens the surround supporting muscles, in your experience.. How would you approach chronic ankle instability?

Should I always wear a floss band for the pain after a slight ankle sprain when I walk around? Or is it only necessary when doing the ankle exercises? Love your content btw

Hey Kneesovertoesguy, Respect for all your work and I love your knoweledge and videos. I'm 17 and grown mentally sick, because I suffer from retrcoalcaneal bursitis (without bone spur) and midportion Achilles Tendinopathy. Im using Kinesio Tapes, compression socks and sometimes extremely high heel lifts. What should I do. I spend a lot of money on physios, but its a hard thing. Both injuries to fix contradicts each other. I lost all of my left foot ankle mobility I had which is saddening, I used to have amazing feet... Do you may have a tip for me? It seems like there is not a lot of data about this bursitis. Its horrible.

Merry Christmas Eve Knees over toes !

Do I still need to do FHL calf raises from knee ability zero (i.e. leaning forward against a wall for support/stretch) if I have a smith machine that I do standing calf raises while elevated on a platform with my heels off the edge to get a deeper stretch? Similarly, you mentioned how seated calf raises may not be as good without a dedicated machine due to lacking load, and while I don't have access to a dedicated seated calf machine, if I use the smith machine (with a bar pad for comfort on my knee/mid-thigh) I can load up very heavy weight so would you still recommend doing standing KOT calf raises if I can do seated ones with the smith machine? From what I can tell, the knees don't really go as far over the toes when doing a seated calf raise (in a machine, smith machine, or free weights) compared to doing a standing KOT calf raise, so are both standing KOT and seated calf raises necessary for someone dealing with knee pain or is the primary goal for that type of calf raises to train the soleus and Achilles and then do things like patrick steps and ATG split squats to more directly address knees over toe ability? More generally, if someone has access to a typical gym setup with free weights (barbell, plates, dumbbells, bench, & rack), smith machine, height-adjustable cable machine, ankle/foot straps (can do tib raises and other exercises via cable machine or attaching dumbbell to ball of foot) but none of the more specific ATG equipment like a seated calf or tib machine/bar would you still recommend doing the zero-equipment options or is swapping in some machine or free weight variations even better since load can be more consistently tracked and progressed?

love your videos and insight on healing persistent joint injuries but i was curious if you have ever touched on joints in the arms rather than legs, ive had an issue with golfers elbow for about 5 years now and though its not something i couldnt live with im nearing the point of considering surgery due to the persistent popping/clicking that slowly causes a painful inflammation buildup in my inner elbow when lifting anything over 15 lbs or when doing a flexed curling motion with no weight whatsoever. i havent seen you post any videos on elbow injury but i figured it wouldnt hurt to ask if i may have just missed them

Wow those shoes look very nice. Any chance there will mid-top and hi-top versions?

Skateboarding for 25 years left me with two blown ankles. Looking forward to trying some of these techniques.

hey ben, i am a jiujitsu athlete and 3 weeks ago i had a knee injury. my knee rotated internally with the bodyweight of a guy on top of it. i think it was a tibiofibular dislocation with an lcl sprain, i did not get mri yet so i am not sure, but ive been struggling with tibiofibular dislocations for years now and espetially in my sport is really bothering me. is there anything i can do to stop that from happening? i saw your videos about the stretch with the 45 degree bench and i tried it today for the first time. it feels good even though i am still recovering from that injury, didnt get back to training yet, hope to be able to do so soon. much love and thank you for your precious content

Hi Ben, I for some reason always get pain on the outside of my lower leg just above the ankle in the tendon. I don't have any achillies or tibialis anterior pain can't find a reason or cure to this anywhere would appreciate your diagnosis. Thank you and keep up the great work!

The second I switched from RICE to MEAT protocol, ALL my injuries healed much faster, and allowed me to return to or continue training.

I recommend exercise with shoes off. Depending on where and when and how. I run with no shoes at times when possible and conditions permit. Walk without shoes, start there, do not go full bore you can mess your foot up. Wear some other spacer with shoes off even. Shoes have to be shaped rite. But purpose shoes for certain sports need to be accommodated when needed, or trained in too. My foot lengthened 1 full size when going minimal/no shoes. I was that previous size for 15 years and magically went a full size more in about 8 months or less. On a paper measurement device. I need to try the flossing. I do tib raises. Cheers Where was the video about elbow pain. I did your weight in hand (hammer), left right tilts and front back tilts. Fixed my tennis elbow that persisted for 3 full years. Now my boss could use that info, golf is painful now.

Love the channel. Can you ever make your shoes with a wide variation? I have tried barefoot shoes and the only ones that fit are wide barefoot shoes and I’d love to buy your basketball shoes but I can’t until they are wide as they will still squish my feet and limit performance.

Foot is underrated AF. What do you think about regular standing calf raises with deep stretch and straight leg?

Barefoot shoes are the best. Got BeLenka ones. I've no backward treadmill, I get in front of my e-scooter, pull brakes and drag it backwards

I’ve been having bad inner shin splints when playing basketball and I’ve been doing the exercises. I also have high arches, so do you think inserts would help with that? And if so would you recommend cushion inserts or inserts with high arch support?

Yes big king

Is it possible you could do a short guide of exercises for those who suffer with SI joint issues in the hip?

Just bought the floss. How long do you keep it on your ankle? And is that the only exercise you use it for?

Hello Ben, whats your diet like and what do you recommend someone to do when they are trying to figure out what their needs are when it comes to diet to achieve their goals? And i dont mean diet in the short term sense i mean diet as a long term lifestyle. I would say mine goals are similar if not the same as yours.

Amazing sir❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

I've been sled pulling and doing tibialis raises for about a year now. It is amazing. knees are pretty much pain free now I'm wondering about the flossing. Whats the difference if I use a pair of knee wraps to do the floss rather than buying those bands?

Thanks for all the info, Shoe wise I’ve been searching for wideshoes size 15 but wasn’t successfull. The basketball shoes you recommend are great. Do you Know any wideshoe/natural shaped shoe brand that offers sizes up to 15US (48EU) ? Thanks

I too have a decade old right ankle sprain from basketball and the ankle on that side pops and makes weird noises, and has limited dorsiflexion compared to the left which has tons of it. The tib raises with IsoTib have helped but I'm still missing that real healing, particularly for split squats and being able to squat deep. Maybe Floss Bands are indeed the answer!

Hey there - I’ve been really enjoying your videos and exercises, but I have anterior ankle impingement in my right ankle, and is limiting my ability to walk backwards and get into some of the exercises. Do you have any suggestions for how to work through that impingement and still do your program?

For your knee walking backwards 10 minutes set, do you recommend using or not using a knee brace on the injured knee at the start of this program? Thank you

Do you still recommend the exercises that were in the ankle protocol video or does the seated calf raise trump all of them?

What's up Ben. I sprained my ankle a few weeks ago. Does the tib bar help out with the pain at all?

Hey Ben, are there any inversion and eversion exercises that you use for a more complete ankle bulletproof protocol to protect against sprains?

Hi Mr Patrick Been learning a lot from these videos since I got some tendinitis some months ago, that's why I wanna start with knee ability zero or maybe ATG zero, I can surely can walk, is that enough to know if my Achilles will handle the program? Thanks

🔥🔥🔥 🔥🔥🔥

Hey Ben, I had tight rope surgery on my right ankle in October and am hoping to be healthy for basketball in February. Will these exercises help relieve pain around my tendon, and provide me with strength to be able to push off the toe and run full speed again?

This type of training transformed me as an athlete. In football now I can ride challenges, take impact and hits. Minimal recovery as well, just some swimming and stretching 🫡⚽️

Hey Ben, When you injured your ankles years ago did you tear any ligaments or tendon? I’m in rehab now after a fall from a baker scaffold incident. I tore two ligaments in each ankle and a partial tendon tear. The PT is trying to strengthen all muscles leading to and around the ankle , plus the feet. Do you think that is possible to stop my ankle from rolling ? On the right side I have chronic ankle instability. I’m a carpenter. Thanks

It is actually wild now how different my feet look in comparison to people who haven’t been wearing barefoot or wide toe box shoes for 2 years My toes can splay out like hands!

bad heel spurs and retro calcaneal heel bursitis in both feet. mass of calcified achilles on back of both heels. about to go through achilles debridement of both feet. hoping ATG can offer some good therapy to get me back to working my ass off

hey man, do you guys do special orders for larger sizes? i’m a size 15 but i’ve been suffering ankle sprains for a while

What do u think about muscle relaxants as an adjunct to this kind of rehab? Can it help to enhance recovery?

It's hard for my to even get into that position that you showed for calf raises. I have very limited ankle mobility and tight calves, especially after the ankle injury I had a few years ago. I can get into a slightly knees over toes position without pain, but I find it impossible to keep my heels down if I get my knees any further forward. Do you suggest I work on mobility before trying the calf raises, or should I ease myself into it with my limited mobility, slowly getting my knees further forward as I progress?

For the utilisation of the big toe spacer, would you get a person to wear this full time if possible? How about during exercise/ during runs? Thanks!

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Super curious about those basketball shoes. The fit would be similar to those of barefoot shoes not like basketball shoes were we have to size up a whole size huh. Also what’s that traction pattern looking like

Can I do ankle workouts with the floss on? What are the benefits? I’m 25 and had a bad ankle sprain about 2 years ago that has stopped me from playing soccer, I just want to get back on the pitch!

I got one of those sisyphos sled's with wheels from walmart just a week ago for $399 delivered. I see the same model for 999 to 1299 other places. I just found this yt and ben and wow I love my sled and great results so fast!!!!! Thanks so much!!!!!!! I want to get ATG treadmill next.