The ankle is one of the most important structures in our body as it helps us carry our body weight and move. However, the ankle is also prone to injury . It is therefore important to stabilize and strengthen it in order to prevent injuries or to get back into training quickly after an injury.
Why you should stabilize your ankle
Stabilizing your ankle: exercises to help you
These four exercises can help stabilize and strengthen your ankle :
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balance exercise
Stand on one leg, keeping the other in the air. Hold this position for 30 seconds. Then you change sides. Advanced users can also do the exercise with their eyes closed or on an unstable surface such as a soft mat or a folded towel. If you play ball games, you can of course also bounce a basketball or pass a ball with a partner.
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One Leg Landing
In addition to the static one-leg stand, you can also train the dynamic fall. To do this, stand on one leg and do a small jump forward or to the side and land on the same leg again. Try to cushion the landing as much as possible and quickly regain your balance.
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strengthening
Strengthening the muscles in the ankle also helps with active stabilization. For this exercise, stand with the balls of your feet on a step and slowly push yourself up on your toes. Hold the position for a few seconds and then slowly lower your heels back down so they are lower than the stair step. Repeat the exercise 10x. Advanced users can also do the exercise on one leg.
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mobilization
To improve ankle mobility, you can perform the following exercises. It is best to sit on a chair and keep your foot free in the air. Now slowly make as large circles as possible with your foot. Repeat the movement 10 times to the left and 10 times to the right. Then do the ankle exercise with the other foot. In addition to circular movements, you can also tighten and stretch your foot as much as possible. Follow the same exercise routine. It is best to do these exercises independently of your other training, as these ankle exercises can be very tiring for the muscles.
What else you can do to prevent injuries
In addition to exercises to improve balance and strengthen muscles, there are other measures that can help you prevent ankle injuries:
Appropriate footwear
You should definitely wear suitable and suitable shoes. These should fit well to give you the necessary stability when changing direction and starting. You should also change your shoes regularly, as the sole can lose cushioning and grip over time.
warm up
Before every training session and competition, you should warm up sufficiently to prepare your muscles and joints for the intense exertion. This can be, for example, jogging, running ABC and stretching the muscles.
Aids for stabilization such as bandages, orthoses or tape
Another way to stabilize your ankle is to use aids such as orthoses, bandages or tape. But be careful: Although these externally applied products stabilize your ankle passively from the outside, wearing them regularly reduces the body's own stabilization through the muscles.
The innovative bandage from Betterguards can help here: It works like a seat belt in a car and offers you full freedom of movement. But as soon as a critical movement occurs, it stiffens and thus stabilizes your ankle. Your muscles and sense of balance will continue to be trained during normal sporting activities.
