Once the ankle has suffered an injury, the risk of a reinjury is dramatically increased. Some athletes end up with an unstable ankle, which leads them to sprain it over and over again. Use the training program described below to avoid new injuries.
Why you should train for ankle stability
Ankle injuries can result in reduced control, balance, and stability. Therefore, training exercises to stabilise the ankle will reduce the risk of reinjury. Anyone who has previously injured their ankle should complete exercises that challenge the ankle for at least 10 weeks to regain normal function. Studies have shown that this type of training can halve the risk of sustaining a new ankle injury.
Never too late
If you have sustained an ankle injury, we recommend that you perform these exercises for 10 minutes, 5 days a week over a 10 weeks-time to obtain the best results. However, whether or not such training has a preventative effect for those who have never before had an ankle injury is unknown.
The program consists of 3 levels of progression. When you master the program on all 3 levels, it is important to continue training them regularly to maintain their effect.
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Single-leg balance3 x 10-15 seconds
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Single-leg balance on towel3 x 10-15 seconds
