# Can you touch your toes without bending your knees? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 5, 2002, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405 "2002-05-05T18:10:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2002, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405/41 "2002-05-06T20:26:41Z")
Well shucks, I’m chunky and I can touch the floor with the palms of my hands (with no knee-bending) no trouble at all. I can also do the splits without any stretching beforehand. 'Course, I _did_ take 10 years of ballet, which probably counts for something. But still, I haven’t even really stretched out in over 5 years! ---
**Author:** ![JessEnigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/cdc98d/32.png) [@JessEnigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JessEnigma)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2002, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405/42 "2002-05-06T20:46:45Z")
Bah, I can’t turn cartwheels any more. It doesn’t feel the same as it did back when I was little. I get dizzy and/or just tip over whenever I try. I can do splits, though. Again, when I was little, I could sit in a split and touch my forehead to the ground, but it’s been 7 years since I took ballet and actually stretched on a regular basis. jessica ---
**Author:** ![Lodrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c4cdca/32.png) [@Lodrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lodrain)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2002, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405/43 "2002-05-06T20:50:56Z")
Sure, I can touch my toes. I can almost palm the floor, too - I suppose that’s what ‘warming up’ is for. I can put one leg behind my hear, but _two?!?_ Fugeddaboudit. Splits? Well, I get pretty close to touching the floor, but it’s still not a proper split. ---
**Author:** ![Dread\_Pirate\_Jimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dread_pirate_jimbo/32/3897_2.png) [@Dread\_Pirate\_Jimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dread_Pirate_Jimbo)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2002, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405/44 "2002-05-06T21:20:28Z")
I’ve always been pretty flexible and could easily get my palms to the floor in my youth. I still stretch a little in my advanced age to keep me limber for curling (Yeah, I’m a true Canadian stereotype) and can still get my fingers down, but not quite my palms. ---
**Author:** ![porcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ac91a4/32.png) [@porcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/porcupine)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2002, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405/45 "2002-05-06T21:58:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Nacho4Sara \* > \*\*I’m pretty flexible, but I could always touch my toes. Short legs and all. \*\* 😕 Having proportionally short legs makes it easier to touch the floor, not harder. ---
**Author:** ![JohnBckWLD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d6d6ee/32.png) [@JohnBckWLD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnBckWLD)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2002, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405/46 "2002-05-07T00:42:27Z")
I guess it helps to wear a 16/37 dress shirt [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-touch-your-toes-without-bending-your-knees/107405.md?page=2)