ANKLE EXERCISES

JOINT CARTILAGE , LIGAMENTS AND MUSCLES.

After spraining your ankle, ankle exercises are essential.

First the subluxated bone(s) in the ankle (usually the talus or calaneus) must be corrected with a chiropractic adjustment, then simple mobilising ankle exercises are vital to keep the joint supple and free. It also helps disperse fluid that builds up after a sprain.

Use of a natural anti-inflammatory like olive oil (taken internally) is also recommended. Frequently the cartilage is injured in the sprain, and to prevent the possibility of arthritis setting in, we need to use as many different modalities as possible: adjustment of the subluxation, mobilisation of the joint, exercise, anti-arthritis nutrition ... for more about the benefits of olive oil, click here.

ALPHABET EXERCISES

Sit deep in a chair, with your leg stretched out in front of you, and a bare foot. Imagine that you are going to trace the letters of the alphabet (start with caps) in the air with your big toe. Dorsiflex your foot (bring your toes towards your head), and then trace out a capital A. Do five letters every time you have cup of tea, or drink of water.

This exercise is ACTIVE. You are using the muscles of the leg to move the foot. You could do it passively by hooking a bicycle tube under the forefoot and pulling your foot into dorsiflexion, using your hands. Then allow gravity to drop the foot again.

LIGAMENTS

Gentle stretching of sprained ligaments is important. The alphabet ankle exercises are equally effective for your ligaments.

"If it's not fun, it's not worth doing. And it doesn't have to be silly. It can be hard work and it can be edgy. It can be a lot of things. But it can also be fun."

Robert Redford

MUSCLES

An ankle sprain often strains muscles and their tendons. Most particularly the muscles on the side of your lower leg (called the Peronei; there are three, Longus, Brevis and Tertius) together with the gastrocnemius and its Achilles tendon.

To exercise the Peronei, lie on the floor and hook your kapot bicycle tube over your foot, and the other end over some fixed point on the other side of your foot. Start by pulling the toes towards your head against the pull of the tube, then do it an an angle. They are difficult muscles to stretch without putting undue stress on the injured joints.

To exercise the Gastrocnemius mucles (and its oft forgotten companion the Soleus), whilst standing on a hard floor, go up on your toes. Start on both feet, gradually putting more weight on the injured foot. Do this regularly through the day.

To make it more difficult, stand on the ball of your foot on a step. (Both feet to begin with.) Go up on your toes, and then sink deep, before going up again. Do it with the ankle guard on to begin.

To stretch the Achilles, stand with your injured leg about a metre from a wall. Put the other foot forwards. Reaching forwards, keeping your heel on the ground, stretch the achilles,

first with the knee straight, and
then slightly bent.

Buy yourself a wobble board to do proprioception training after an ankle injury. Start with sports shoes to give the ankle support, but graduate as soon as possible to bare feet.

Walking

Walking is of course the best outdoor exercise to begin with. Normally we would suggest that you don't walk on tarmac or concrete, but in this instance we do. That ankle can turn again VERY easily if the ankle ligaments have been torn. So do it on a level surface, with an ankle support and good shoes.

How do I know? Because I've done it myself, excruciating pain all over again.

Then graduate to level grass, finally removing the ankle guard and even your shoes. This immediate contact between your foot and the ground gives your foot intimate contact with the brain in what we call proprioception. Actually, it's training your brain!

For more about the benefits of walking, click here.

Go from ANKLE EXERCISES back to SPRAINED ANKLE.

footer for ankle exercises page