Bunions are an enlargement of the big toe or hallux joint on the feet that is frequently involved with a deviation in the position of the great toe or hallux. They are very widespread. The bunion may or might not be painful and it never looks good and almost always creates an issue for the fitting of shoes. They do tend to be hereditary and can be the result of using shoes which are too restricted. They are more common in females and this could possibly be because of the type of footwear. They are often painful inside the joint as a result of arthritis like symptoms and they also might be painful due to pressure from the shoe on the bunion.
Can exercises improve bunions? They might be able to, however they are not going to really make the bony enlargement disappear but they could help improve the angle of the big toe or hallux somewhat. The only way to make the lump go away is with surgery. No level of exercising is will make that go away. The level of force producing the bunion and causing the big toe to deviate way exceeds what any exercise is going to undo. However, with that said, the exercises that you frequently see advised are still probably worth doing as they may help keep the joint mobile and flexible which is a good thing. That improvement in the range of motion of the joint may go a long way to reducing pain that often develops within the joint. The sort of bunion exercises which are most useful are the ones that stretch and move the joints through its full range of motion in all directions. Sometimes exercises for helping strengthen the arch muscles of the foot are also effective. Even when surgery is used, the exercises pre and post the surgery will help with the recovery.