Ankle Exercises for Strength

In order to see how strong your ankles are, let's try this little test. You can soon see if ankle exercises can help strenghten your ankles.

Here's my disclaimer...If you have pain right now or have had surgery, you may not want to do this. I am not a doctor so I don't want anyone to get hurt trying to assess the status of their ankles.

Stand up straight with the back of a chair in front of you. Hold on to the back of the chair and raise up onto your toes then back to the floor. Perform this movement 15 times.

If you can't do this exercise, then you most likely need to start an ankle strengthening program.

If you can do the movement, you can move into a more aggressive ankle improvement program.

This simple test will give you an idea of the strength of your ankles and feet.

Keep in mind that your entire body is being held up by your feet and ankles. Any weaknesses will make you walk in an unnatural manner which could cause many problems in your back and legs.

The information I will give pertains to my own exercise program and the ankle exercises I have discovered that have helped me to strenghten my own ankles.

Almost any kind of movement will help to put heat into your joints and muscles.

I have a few exercises that are quite simple that I use for my ankles.

Some people will do these movements while sitting on a chair and others will do them standing up. This is totally up to you.

• Begin with your left foot off the floor in a flat to the floor configuration. Now rotate your foot in a circular manner to the left, from full up to full down positions. Rotate 15 times.
• Do the same exercise but rotate to the right. 15 times
• With your left foot in the same starting position as above, pull the toes back toward your knee, then push them down toward the floor. Repeat 15 times.
• Now do the above exercise with the right foot. 15 times.
• Standing up straight with your hands on the back of a chair, feet flat on the floor, raise yourself up on your toes and hold for 5 seconds, then back to starting position. Do this movement 15 times.
• Still holding on to the chair, feet flat, roll your feet so you are resting on the outside of the left foot and the inside of the right foot. Come back to center and go to the other side. Perform this 15 times.

These few ankle exercises will get your ankles warmed up and ready for the actual ankle strengthening exercises.

Each day when you wake up and stand on your feet, you should look down and thank them for taking such good care of you. Your feet and ankles hold up your entire body, hour after hour and day after day.

If you don't take good care of them you could end up with any number of bad foot and ankle problems.

Ankle exercises are a very good place to start, good for your ankles and good for your feet. By getting that blood flowing during exercise; healthy, oxygen filled blood is healing all of the cells in your feet and ankles.

When you are taking a bath, or at various times during the day, rub and massage your ankles and feet. This keeps the blood flowing and helps relax all the muscles.

Don't take your ankles for granted, they need as much attention as any other part of your body.

To do the following exercises, you will need an item that will raise your feet about 2 inches off the floor and will be soft enough to allow side to side movement. A towel that is folded up can do the job, a flatened out yoga mat can also work. If you have a Bosu or cushioned disk, that would be ideal.

1. Stand straight up holding on to the back of a chair, your feet, facing straight ahead, on which ever raising item you have with your heels hanging over the back of the item. Now raise up on your toes and then down to let your heels touch the floor or as close as you can get. Raise back up on your toes and do this movement 15 times.
2. In the same position as above, turn your toes outward and raise up and down 15 times.
3. In the same position as above, turn your toes inward to almost touch the toes. Raise up and down 15 times.

Once you complete that set do some stretching, here's how:

1. Stand facing a wall about 10 inches away. Place your right foot at an angle to the wall with the ball of your foot about 6 inches up from the floor. Push forward until you feel the stretch in the back of your ankle. Don't push too hard just to get a good stretch.
2. Do the same exercise, except use your left foot.

For this exercise you will need a belt.

1. Sitting on a chair or on the floor if you can, place the belt around your right foot on the ball of your foot. Pull back to put pressure on the foot and then rotate the foot to the right and then to the left in a circular motion, keeping pressure on the ankle. Rotate 15 times in each direction.
2. Now do the left foot in the same manner. 15 times
3. In the same position as above, move the ankle from left to right and then right to left. Keeping pressure on the ankle. Do this movement on both feet 15 times.
4. In the same position push the toes forward while pulling back on the belt. Perform this on each foot 15 times.

Perform these ankle exercise 5 times a week, for best results.

Walking is a great form of exercise if done correctly. Of course we all walk throughout our days, but that really won't accomplish much to strenghten your ankles.

I know many people who go out into their neighborhoods and walk on the roads. This is fine but only walking on a flat surface will only help a few of your ankle muscles.

In your feet and ankles are many, many muscles that need to be worked or they become stiff and lose their strength.

If you move your ankle in a circular motion you can feel all the muscles working. These muscles must be exercised in various ways to keep them in good condition.

If you can, take long walks in the woods where there are rock and tree limbs for you to walk on and walk around. By continually stepping sideways and moving the foot up and down, you will start to feel more stability and strength in your ankles.

If you only have hard, flat surfaces to walk on, keep walking, but do other exercise to help build up al those other muscles.

Don't forget to take the stairs whenever possible. This movement will quickly help to put muscle into your feet and ankles.

There is only one way to have strong ankles, you have to exercise them. You need to take care of them everyday and if you feel something is not right, see your doctor.

Just a few things to remember:

• Make sure your shoes fit correctly
• Give them a massage everyday to keep the blood flowing
• Perform warm-up exercises
• Try and complete your ankle strengthening exercises 5 times a week
• Walk on uneven surfaces if possible