The Talus
This month we are looking at a unique bone called the talus, which is part of the ankle and foot complex. “Talus” is Latin for “ankle, heel”, which is appropriate because the talus is the bone that connects the ankle to the heel. Anatomically, the talus is considered one of the 26 bones of the foot. But I like to think of the talus as its own territory…neutral…property neither of the ankle nor the foot. But the bone that connects your ankle to your foot.
The image above (left) shows the location of your right talus - relative to the rest of the body. The image above (right) is a close-up view of your right ankle, talus, and foot. The talus is coloured green in this image.
The talus’s shape is difficult to describe. Functionally, though, it is a weight-bearing and weight-distributing bone. Weight-bearing in that the entire weight of the body rests squarely on the talus. And weight-distributing in that the talus then distributes some of this weight to the heel and the rest of the weight towards the arch of our foot.
The talus is involved in three different joints - a joint being where two bones meet. The main joint is the ankle. The two principal movements of the ankle joint are dorsiflexion (bringing your toes up towards your nose) and plantar flexion (pointing your toes and foot like a ballerina). You could be forgiven for thinking that the ankle also allows you to turn your foot in and out, but those actions occur between the numerous bones of the foot, not at the ankle.
The talus is a distinctive bone in that no muscles attach to it. Nearly every bone in the body has at least one muscle attaching to it. Not the talus. The talus is muscle-free! But it is heavily fortified with ligaments and surrounding bones.
Occasionally in our clinic, a client will present with difficulty or pain in moving their ankle joint. And upon examination, we might find a talus that is a wee bit out of place. A talus can jut too far forward or too far backward. And with “a little of this and a little of that” your RMT can help ease the talus back to its natural position and restore normal ankle movement.
The image above (left) shows the location of your right talus - relative to the rest of the body. The image above (right) is a close-up view of your right ankle, talus, and foot. The talus is coloured green in this image.
The talus’s shape is difficult to describe. Functionally, though, it is a weight-bearing and weight-distributing bone. Weight-bearing in that the entire weight of the body rests squarely on the talus. And weight-distributing in that the talus then distributes some of this weight to the heel and the rest of the weight towards the arch of our foot.
The talus is involved in three different joints - a joint being where two bones meet. The main joint is the ankle. The two principal movements of the ankle joint are dorsiflexion (bringing your toes up towards your nose) and plantar flexion (pointing your toes and foot like a ballerina). You could be forgiven for thinking that the ankle also allows you to turn your foot in and out, but those actions occur between the numerous bones of the foot, not at the ankle.
The talus is a distinctive bone in that no muscles attach to it. Nearly every bone in the body has at least one muscle attaching to it. Not the talus. The talus is muscle-free! But it is heavily fortified with ligaments and surrounding bones.
Occasionally in our clinic, a client will present with difficulty or pain in moving their ankle joint. And upon examination, we might find a talus that is a wee bit out of place. A talus can jut too far forward or too far backward. And with “a little of this and a little of that” your RMT can help ease the talus back to its natural position and restore normal ankle movement.