We had a physical therapist come and speak at our quilt guild. Lots of helpful information... for the foot pedal have it where you would put your feet when you are comfortably sitting in a chair. You shouldn't have to stretch or reach for it. I'm forever chasing mine on my hardwood floor The rubbery rug gripper stuff works . I've also seen a thin piece of board with a small pieces of wood on 3 sides to keep the foot pedal corralled. An of course the stretch break every 20-30 minutes.. hard for us quilters to do... stop when we are on a roll. Hope you find something that helps..

I'm right there with you quilter2090, but my breaks after 20 minutes of quilting is usually on my heating pad on my bed. Unfortunately, I will be on 2 different narcotic pain medications for the rest of my life due to my back so my quilting is very slow going but I do love doing it.

Lady Diana suggested - 'I turned my pedal around where the higher end of the pedal was at the front of my foot.'
This is how I have always used the pedal, no problems unless it moves out of reach. If this is how you use it too, try turning it back-to-front [ to me ] and press down with your heel. It will feel different till you are used to it but may help. Also it has to be comfortably positioned

Thanks for all the suggestions! I have found that FMQ'ing on my 201 (in a period Art Deco cabinet) with knee control works beautifully. Right now I'm doing 22" practice squares, but when I get to a "real quilt" I'll probably need to set up a folding table behind the machine cabinet to reduce drag. That's a bummer because the Horn Quilter's Dream cabinet I bought last year has a hinged drop leaf in back that runs the length of the cabinet for that purpose. It also has a left front extension to put on when working on a large quilt. :-( I suppose when/if I get a new machine for that cabinet that has a start/stop button, I'll be able to use it again.

Turning my pedal doesn't work for me. It leaves me no way to rest my foot between stitching seams. I did turn my pedal for 30 years on my 1980's Necchi. I could then rest my heel on the back (actually front ;-) of the pedal and press down with the front of my to stitch. I think they have ruined pedal design on these new machines. It makes sewing harder without the start/stop feature many now have.

Taking frequent breaks to stretch and rotate my ankle really helps too. I'm going to try and find some ankle exercises to strengthen the muscles and tendons in that area. If anyone knows of any, please post.