Sprained ankle

**white_flame** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 8:12am

2 days ago I twisted my ankle while jogging in the woods. Man, it ached, but I managed to get home on my own. I'm in excellent shape and I train on regular basis. It shocked me how easily you can get this kind of injury... I'm interested if there are some excersises for strengthening ankles and nearby ligaments. Maybe bjj practitioners could share something? I've been doing this excersise where you sit on your knees and then lie back, but that's about it.

**Teh El Macho** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 9:58am

Skipping does wonders for your ankles. Also, it's not just a matter of strenght but also flexibility. I strongly suggest you check the exrx.net page that covers the muscles involved in ankle articulartions.

In that website (links provided her), study both strenghtening and stretching exercises for plantar flexion (gastrocnemiums aka calf and soleus) and dorsal flexion (tibialis anterior). Pay attention to the article on dorsiflexion inflexibility (linked here.)

Almost everything you need to know in ankle strenghtening are on those links. Every major muscle involved is linked to a page containing both strenghtening and stretching exercises.

**isol8d** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 11:01am

If you have insurance, try to get to a podiatrist. Depending on how your feet are formed, you might be more prone to ankle injuries. Shoes, braces and orthotics can help, and they can recommend the best course of action.

**Wolf** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 11:49am

i have sprained my right ankle multiple times. First, you can't really strengthen ligaments. The best you can do is work on strengthening the muscles around the ankle and building up flexibility. But be very careful, after one sprain it becomes easier to re-sprain.

**Axelton** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 4:27pm

Wear an ankle brace when you run.

Thread over.

**white_flame** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 4:46pm

Thanks for the links Teh El Macho! Really good read...

**cyrijl** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 5:13pm

I would just like to stress what Wolf said about re-injury. I sprained both my ankles playing tenning over 10 years ago and they have never been the same. However, the more I exercise my legs, the less I twist my ankle (I use the exercises on exrx.net that macho has already pointed out). But it does happen more than the average person (from what I can gather)

Make sure you have proper footwear and give the ankle proper rest.

**Axelton** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 5:38pm

**** YO BITCHES WEAR ANKLE BRACES NUIFF SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIID!!! !!

**Teh El Macho** · Posted On: 10/14/2007 6:30pm

I wear ankle braces everytime I roll. But that's just some extra insurance if **** happens, which it's always bound to. Strenghtening and stretching the ankles is the key.

**white_flame** · Posted On: 1/10/2008 3:16pm

I just wanted to let you know that my ankle has only now recovered. As you can see it took almost 3 months. I started to train and sparr 2 weeks after the injury though. It's very possible that this might be the reason for the extended recovery. But then again I recall that the pain in my ankle was more severe when I hadn't been doing any workout for some time.