Use these two exercises for ankle pain in Ferndale, WA

Ankle Pain Exercises

What’s one of the most common musculoskeletal injuries in the U.S.? The answer is a sprained ankle. According to an article published in the Journal of Athletic Training in 2019, about 2 million ankle sprains occur in the U.S. general population every year. That means people dealing with ankle pain in Ferndale, Washington, aren’t alone. Physical therapy exercises can be useful for reducing the pain of ankle injuries, and there are two exercises in particular that you should use for treating ankle pain. 

1.   Towel stretch

Before you start moving a sore ankle, it’s helpful to gently stretch it. Stretching your ankle can benefit you by getting the blood moving in your ankle, decreasing tension and reducing pain. One exercise physical therapists often recommend to help with this is the towel stretch. 

Doing the towel stretch will require the use of a hand or dish towel. Before starting this exercise, you should sit down in a stable chair with your feet flat on the floor, and then roll up the towel and place the middle of it under the ball of your injured foot. To begin the stretch, straighten the injured leg. Then, slowly pull on the towel so that your foot bends back toward your knee. Be sure to keep your knee straight while you do this. Hold the stretch for 15 to 20 seconds, and then relax your ankle after this time has passed. You should continue to repeat these steps until you’ve stretched the ankle three to four times. 

2.   Ankle rotations with ball

After you’ve stretched your ankle, you can use it to do some strengthening exercises. These can help build up the strength in the muscles that support your ankle, which can help decrease pain. An example of an exercise your therapist might recommend for ankle strengthening is ankle rotations with a ball. 

To begin this therapeutic exercise, grab a golf ball or tennis ball, and sit down in a stable chair. Then place the ball under your injured foot. Slowly begin moving your ankle in clockwise circles while keeping the ball under your foot, and continue to rotate your ankle until you’ve completed five clockwise circles. Then, you can take a break for a few seconds. After the break, do five slow counterclockwise circles. To increase the difficulty of this exercise, you can try making bigger circles or moving your ankle faster, but make sure these movements don’t increase your pain. If they do, stop doing the exercise immediately. 

Visit Whatcom Physical Therapy in Ferndale, WA, for ankle pain treatment

Do you want to get rid of your ankle pain faster? Whatcom Physical Therapy in Ferndale is here to help you. Our team provides free screenings, and this service allows us to determine the cause and extent of your symptoms. We can also create a personalized treatment plan for your ankle pain. Our team will often use multiple therapy techniques in such a plan, and your plan might include methods like: 

Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment to begin getting our help with your ankle pain.