Ankle Sprain

Ankle pain is extremely common in the sporting community and can be fixed with minimal treatment. Depending on your diagnosis it can be as little as change the amount of exercise you are doing or wearing a night splint

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When to start exercises for ankle sprains

Most people can start ankle rehabilitation exercises within three days after the ankle injury, if it’s not too severe. But there’s no set timetable. Listen to your own body, and follow your doctor’s advice.

For the first few days, you’ll need to rest and apply an ice pack to your injured ankle for 10 to 15 minutes every few hours. Don’t let the ice touch your skin and don’t leave it on so long that it burns you.

For many people, the rest period is about three days. After that, you can gradually increase the use of your ankle and begin a program of home exercises or physical therapy.

For non-athletes, doctor-prescribed home exercises alone may be just as good as a supervised exercise program. A 2007 study of 102 people who had sprained ankles showed no major difference to recovery after one year from a supervised exercise program compared to standard care with unsupervised home exercises.

Discuss rehabilitation exercises with your doctor and do your own research to help you decide which treatment is best for you.

Types of exercises for a sprained ankle

range of motion
stretching
strengthening
balance and control

Exercises

How to do the exercises

"Alphabet" exercise

slide 1 of 10, "Alphabet" exercise,

Trace the alphabet with your toe. This helps your ankle move in all directions.

Side-to-side knee swing exercise

slide 2 of 10, Side-to-side knee swing exercise,

Sit in a chair with your foot flat on the floor.
Slowly move your knee from side to side. Keep your foot pressed flat.
Continue this exercise for 2 to 3 minutes.

Towel curl

slide 3 of 10, Towel curl,

While sitting, place your foot on a towel on the floor. Scrunch the towel toward you with your toes.
Then use your toes to push the towel away from you.
To make this exercise more challenging you can put something on the other end of the towel. A can of soup is about the right weight for this.

Towel stretch

slide 4 of 10, Towel stretch,

Sit with your legs extended and knees straight.
Place a towel around your foot just under the toes.
Hold each end of the towel in each hand, with your hands above your knees.
Pull back with the towel so that your foot stretches toward you.
Hold the position for at least 15 to 30 seconds.
Repeat 2 to 4 times a session. Do up to 5 sessions a day.

Ankle eversion exercise

slide 5 of 10, Ankle eversion exercise,

Start by sitting with your foot flat on the floor. Push your foot outward against a wall or a piece of furniture that doesn't move. Hold for about 6 seconds, and relax. Repeat 8 to 12 times.
After you feel comfortable with this, try using rubber tubing looped around the outside of your feet for resistance. Push your foot out to the side against the tubing, and then count to 10 as you slowly bring your foot back to the middle. Repeat 8 to 12 times.

Isometric opposition exercises

slide 6 of 10, Isometric opposition exercises,

While sitting, put your feet together flat on the floor.
Press your injured foot inward against your other foot. Hold for about 6 seconds, and relax. Repeat 8 to 12 times.
Then place the heel of your other foot on top of the injured one. Push down with the top heel while trying to push up with your injured foot. Hold for about 6 seconds, and relax. Repeat 8 to 12 times.

Resisted ankle inversion

slide 7 of 10, Resisted ankle inversion,

Sit on the floor with your good leg crossed over your other leg.
Hold both ends of an exercise band and loop the band around the inside of your affected foot. Then press your other foot against the band.
Keeping your legs crossed, slowly push your affected foot against the band so that foot moves away from your other foot. Then slowly relax.
Repeat 8 to 12 times.

Resisted ankle eversion

slide 8 of 10, Resisted ankle eversion,

Sit on the floor with your legs straight.
Hold both ends of an exercise band and loop the band around the outside of your affected foot. Then press your other foot against the band.
Keeping your leg straight, slowly push your affected foot outward against the band and away from your other foot without letting your leg rotate. Then slowly relax.
Repeat 8 to 12 times.

Resisted ankle dorsiflexion

slide 9 of 10, Resisted ankle dorsiflexion,

Tie the ends of an exercise band together to form a loop. Attach one end of the loop to a secure object or shut a door on it to hold it in place. (Or you can have someone hold one end of the loop to provide resistance.)
While sitting on the floor or in a chair, loop the other end of the band over the top of your affected foot.
Keeping your knee and leg straight, slowly flex your foot to pull back on the exercise band, and then slowly relax.
Repeat 8 to 12 times.

Single-leg balance

slide 10 of 10, Single-leg balance,

Stand on a flat surface with your arms stretched out to your sides like you are making the letter "T." Then lift your good leg off the floor, bending it at the knee. If you are not steady on your feet, use one hand to hold on to a chair, counter, or wall.
Standing on the leg with your affected ankle, keep that knee straight. Try to balance on that leg for up to 30 seconds. Then rest for up to 10 seconds.
Repeat 6 to 8 times.
When you can balance on your affected leg for 30 seconds with your eyes open, try to balance on it with your eyes closed.
When you can do this exercise with your eyes closed for 30 seconds and with ease and no pain, try standing on a pillow or piece of foam, and repeat steps 1 through 4.