Should my toes curl when I point my feet?

[Matty boy]

I took up gymnastics a few years ago and over the last year I have been stretching and strengthening my feet with a theraband to improve my toe point.  The strength and flexibility has increased to the extent that my toes now curl when I point them.  Although I am really pleased with the aesthetic appearence of my feet now, a few people have told me that my toes should remain straight when pointed.  The problem is that I find it impossible to keep them straight when I point them, they almost curl up like a fist.  Can anyone advise me on the correct way to point the feet?

[Karl Kallio]

It's sport-specific.  Ask a gymnast, a diver, a ballet dancer, a synchronized swimmer etc to describe the perfect toe point and each description will be a bit different.

 

I think that to get straight pointy toes you might want to try putting your foot in "barbie position" first (Kind of like the permanent high-heel position that barbie dolls have).  That should cue you on how to point without curling.

 

*** unless you are mounting one toe on top of another (as in the strong toe pushes the weak toe down)  that is curling toes too and I think most disciplines agree that that is to be avoided.

[GoldenEagle]

As a competitive spring board diver it was more important that we just be able to point our feet.

 

As a competitive swimmer, pointing your feet was more important while swimming down the lane. Curling your toes came into play while in "Streamline position" after pushing off of the wall or from a dive off of the starting block. (Sidenote: "Streamline position" is similar to hollow body hold except: A)  One hand is on top of the other above your head. B) Your are squeezing your ears with your shoulders caps with your arms locked out C)Your scapulae are retracted D) Your eyes are looking down at the thick black centerline)

 

To keep your toes from curling you need to point your foot and relax the muscles of your foot. Once you start to flex the muscles of your feet is when you start to curl your toes.

[Karl Kallio]

 

As a competitive spring board diver it was more important that we just be able to point our feet.

I remember a conversation I heard between a diver and a synchro swimmer comparing toe points....it went like this

 

SS:  OMG your toe point is so pretty, even though you are a boy!

 

D: Hey wait no! this is a manly toe point

 

SS: If you externally rotated your feet you could get your ankles together and your legs would look longer.

 

D:  If my ankles are together I can't see though the gap...and why on earth do I need to make my legs look longer?

 

SS:  Who looks through the gap in their ankles?

[David McManamon]

There is no "correct" way to point your feet as noted already, it is sport specific.  You should be able to relax or curl your toes as you choose while pointing your feet so then it is just a matter of choosing the aesthetic you prefer and developing it.  Personally I think the full banana arch looks the best, a good example can be found in images of Sasha Bachmann.

[Matty boy]

Thanks for your comments. Maybe I'm obsessing a bit but I've always thought that a good toe point really makes a difference.  I agree with you dmcmanam on the full arch, Sasha Bachmann has amazing feet!! That's definately what I was aiming to achieve.