Don't Dare have Dorsiflexor Doldrums! Here's a new idea to Strengthen Dorsiflexion

Climbing

Most children (not the gravitationally insecure but most of the rest) love to climb.I have an angle adjustable climbing wall in my room (not pictured here) that I love.So do the kids.Dorsiflexion is not required in climbing…but it sure makes it easier.On playgrounds there are lots of opportunities to encourage climbing. Take advantage of them.In my pictures, I have the pretend climbing wall/mat fairly upright. You can slant it lower to decrease the difficulty.

My real climbing wall in my room has hand grips and foot holds.It was impossible to photograph for this app.But on it, I can angle the wall to make the difficulty much easier.I can climb behind the child and help emphasize dorsiflexion in foot placement both verbally but also physically if required.Without Dorsiflexion the foot is not positioned to allow the bottom of the foot/shoe to make contact with the wall.Note:Dorsiflexion is attained in the initial foot placement on the wall to get the foot set up for push off. The actual push off to climb higher requires plantarflexion at the ankle, not dorsiflexion.