Exercises for peroneal paresis

To correct peroneal paresis and prevent secondary damage such as a pointed foot, exercises to strengthen the muscles and promote the sense of balance are essential. In the following, suitable exercises are presented as examples:

Balance exercises

1.) Tighten toes: The affected person lies flat on the floor in supine position. His legs are completely stretched out.

Now the affected person tries to pull his feet towards the head on both sides at the same time and hold this position as long as possible. The exercise should be repeated 5 times. Alternatively, the exercise can also be performed while sitting on a chair: The feet stand on the floor about hip-wide apart.

Now the patient tries to lift his toes off the floor. The heels remain on the floor. 2.)

Theraband: The affected person sits with stretched out legs in front of a wall bar. He supports his upper body with his hands behind his back. The affected foot is now fixed in a theraband, which forms a loop with one of the lower rungs.

The foot should be in dorsal extension as far as possible (lift the foot as high as possible). In this way the foot is actively moved against its malposition. 3.)

Foot swing: The patient stands upright. If the patient is unsure about standing, a chair can be placed to the left and right of him/her, so that the backrests can be used to hold on to the foot. Now the affected person lifts both heels off the floor at the same time so that he only stands on tiptoe.

He then uses the momentum to move from here into the opposite position (=heel position with toes pulled up). There should be 10 changes. 4.)

Flamingo: The affected person stands with the sick side on a soft or shaky surface such as a folded blanket or a ball cushion. Now bend the knee slightly and lift the non-affected foot slightly off the floor. The affected person tries to stand on one leg as long as possible.

In case of insecurity, a second person can be used to secure the foot or to hold on to it. 5.) Carpet edge: The patient stands in a corner of a thick carpet. Now the patient balances along the carpet edges once around the carpet. If he falls down, he starts again from the beginning.