As a Physiotherapist, a lack of ankle mobility is easily one of the most overlooked root causes of general leg dysfunction.
Any number of issues, ranging from Achilles tendon pain, ankle impingement, bunions, flat feet, navicular bone dysfunction and even simple ankle sprains, can be linked in some way to simple ankle joint restrictions.
The idea is that a lack of basic ankle range of motion forces the entire leg to compensate as it tries to work around a restriction. And any sustained change in loading may cause tissue to become irritated, sore, and potentially vulnerable to damage when exposed to sport and activity.
For example, a large majority of the non-traumatic knee pain I treat has some link to a restricted ankle. In this instance, a lack of range below the knee can force the knee to move differently.
In short, a lack of natural ankle mobility could set your ankle - and everything around it - up for dysfunction.
So with this in mind, we each must have a specific set of mobility exercises that address our own ankle restrictions.
But where do you start?
In this video, I go through 13 ankle mobility exercises that address common limitations to normal ankle dorsiflexion.
These range from ankle joint capsule stretches to surrounding muscle stretches, and even an exercise to help unglue any tight skin tissue!
Have a go and let me know which exercise hit the spot for you!
- Grant
Time Stamps
- 0:00 Intro
- 0:39 Pre-test Baseline
- 2:07 Banded Ankle Stretch
- 4:00 Soleus Stretch
- 5:55 Gastrocnemius Stretch
- 7:15 Foam Roller Calf Mobility + BONE SAW
- 10:53 Banded Deep Squat Practice
- 13:06 Elevated Split Squat
- 15:03 Tibialis Posterior Ball Mobility
- 16:32 Peroneal Ball Mobility
- 17:17 Tibialis Anterior Ball Mobility
- 19:52 Ankle Voodoo Floss
- 22:39 Heel Skin Sliding Surfaces
- 25:55 Lateral Malleolus Mobilisation
- 28:38 The Perils of Heeled Shoes
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If you'd like help uncovering the underlying cause of your ankle dysfunction, consider booking an online Telehealth consultation with Grant here!
