4 Exercises for the Tibialis Posterior

The Tibialis Posterior is a muscle that lines the inside (medial) part of the lower leg along the shin. Its insertion is on 2 bones; the navicular and the medial cuneiform. It’s an important stabilizer of the arch and it plantarflexes and inverts the ankle. It commonly gets weak and can cause irritation. I also find that ‘plantar fasciitis’ is often diagnosed, but it’s the tibialis posterior that is really the problem.

If you are stiff in the ankle and you are missing dorsiflexion, typically the foot will evert when walking and can cause the foot to whip back to the midline. This is one movement that can irritate this muscle. Also, dancers that are on point a lot can develop tendonitis of this muscle. 

Here is a simple way you can test it for yourself:

Here is a way to calm down the muscle:

Here is a seated exercise to begin to strengthen it:

When it has calmed down, you can progress to a standing exercise:

Then you can add some movement in standing:

And then add some rotation: