If you have had an ankle sprain at some point in your life, you are not alone. These ankle instability exercises are here to help get you back to your normal. Acute ankle sprains are among one of the most common musculoskeletal injuries. Of these injuries, up to 70% of individuals develop residual disability, which may include chronic ankle instability.
Many times, the recovery for an ankle sprain uses the overprescribed RICE method: rest, ice, compression, and elevation. After treatment, it’s often recommended slowly returning to your normal activities. Unfortunately, this presents a problem depending on the severity of the ankle sprain. When sprained, there is actual tearing of ligaments that is healed by your body by less quality tissue. If you don’t work on stability and proprioception of that foot and ankle, you often lose the ability to stabilize at that joint. Therefore, movement not RICE is the key.
The focus of these ankle instability exercises is not on the initial, acute stage of injury but rather the return to function stage. Additionally, these are great if you have been dealing with chronic ankle sprains for a long time. Their main focus is on balance, stability, and proprioception. Make sure to wear no shoes and you can always progress to a softer surface or eyes closed to increase the difficulty.
