Most children love playing soccer – and that’s great. What isn’t so good is if they put their foot health at risk thanks to kicking the ball incorrectly. Toe-kicking is a very common bad habit, but it’s one that you can to get them out of if you know how.
What’s the problem with toe-kicking?
- The pressure placed on a small, bony area of the foot is large, since the contact area is small. This significantly increases the risk of bruising and other impact injuries like nail trauma. Growth plate injury can also result from jarring as the toe hits the ball.
- If, as often happens with young soccer players, your child misses their aim and ends up kicking thin air, toe-kicking may result in strained muscles when there is, unexpectedly, no resistance to their foot’s swing.
- Toe-kicking also makes it harder to place the ball accurately, which is bad news whether your child is aiming to pass to a team-mate or shooting for goal.
How can you help your child to kick correctly?
It’s not only soccer coaches who can help kids break the toe-kicking habit; you can do a lot to help them, too. If you’re unsure, take your child along to your podiatrist and ask them for advice.
- Take your child outside, into a safe yard with no litter or thorny branches, and kick the ball around with them, reminding them to “kick with their laces” rather than their toes.
- Ask your child to stand close to the ball when kicking, since this will make it more natural to kick with the upper part of the foot rather than poking the ball with the toe.