Toe Walking? Jump Higher and Keep the Heels Down 👦🏽 🦶🏾 | Toe Walker PT #49

👋🏽 Hi, I’m Amy Sturkey, a retired pediatric physical therapist with over 35 years of experience. 🟣 Trampoline Jump Challenge for Toe Walking | Mykael #49 🦶🏾 In this video, I’m back with my co-instructor Mykael 👦🏾 — an 8-year-old child with persistent toe walking. His toe walking increases when he is anxious, tired, sick, or emotionally dysregulated. Toe walking also runs strongly in his family, with his father, grandfather, and uncles all toe walking as well. One activity I frequently used at the beginning of Mykael’s therapy sessions was jumping on a trampoline. Trampoline activities can be a fun way to warm up the muscles before stretching and other therapeutic activities. Warm muscles often tolerate stretching better than cold muscles. In this game, Mykael jumps back and forth over a pool noodle while I gradually raise it higher and higher. We start with the noodle near ankle height and continue increasing the challenge. Throughout the activity, I encourage him to keep his heels down while generating enough power to clear the obstacle. 🟣 The challenge requires: 🔹 heel contact during jumping 🔹 ankle dorsiflexion 🔹 forward movement of the shins over the feet 🔹 lower extremity strength and power 🔹 balance and coordination 🔹 motor planning To keep things fun and motivating, I repeatedly tell Mykael that the next height will be "impossible." He strongly disagrees. 😄 As the obstacle gets higher, he continues to surprise me by maintaining heel contact while successfully clearing the noodle. The activity becomes a playful way to encourage the movement patterns we often want to see in children who toe walk. 🧠 Skills Addressed 🔹 ankle mobility 🔹 heel contact awareness 🔹 balance and coordination 🔹 jumping skills 🔹 motor planning 🔹 lower extremity strengthening 🏡 Home Ideas If your child enjoys jumping activities: 🔹 start with a low obstacle 🔹 focus on safe landings and heel contact 🔹 gradually increase the height as appropriate 🔹 turn the activity into a game 🔹 stop if the child becomes unsafe or overly fatigued 🕒 Timestamps 0:00 – Intro 0:15 – “I’m going to crush it!” 0:24 – Trampoline warm-up activity 0:35 – Beginning at ankle height 0:47 – Increasing the challenge 0:57 – “This is impossible!” 1:04 – Higher and higher jumps 1:11 – Why I like this activity for toe walking 1:22 – Final challenge 1:31 – Wrap-up ⚠️ Disclaimer This video is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. It would be unethical for me to provide specific treatment recommendations for a child I have not personally evaluated. 📧 Contact [amysturkey@gmail.com](mailto:amysturkey@gmail.com) 🦶🏾 Toe Walking Video Series (Mykael) Watch the full playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAkJbMrHyKjP470frDXaGDv2XrtEqPEUx 📚 Books by Amy Sturkey “A is for Autism” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071F4FFTB “D is for Down Syndrome” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079P8HH49 “C is for Cerebral Palsy” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/B088TSJCYP “A is for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QH9H5HR “A is for Anxiety” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09LXQ3W6V “P is for Poop and Pee Accidents” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BLSRJ483 “Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Hips” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998156736 “Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Knees” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/0998156760 “Pediatric Physical Therapy Strengthening Exercises for the Ankles” → https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08TX2ZCFD 🌍 Captions & Translations Subtitles are available and can be auto-translated for your language 🌍👧🏽👦🏻👩🏾‍🦱👨🏼‍🦱