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You may have great mobility that allows you to move your body’s muscles and joints through a full range of motion. This assists in performing everyday activities and makes you less susceptible to injuries. In general, you’re likely physically healthy, but if your ankle is no longer as mobile, you may need to restore it to its previous flexibility.

What is Ankle Mobility and What Restricts It?

Joint mobility is the ability of joints to move through their normal motion ranges for daily activities. However, specific joints require varying movements to achieve a comfortable range of motion, with your ankle requiring four primary ones for full mobility.

Ankle Mobility

The most common ankle movements allow you to point and flex your feet — plantar flexion and dorsiflexion. The other two — inversion and eversion — allow your joint to rotate your feet inward and outward.

When your ankle loses its ability to bend, it usually involves the foot’s deep flexion or the dorsiflexion movement. While flexibility exercises offer short-term muscular benefits, mobility exercises based on dynamic movements and motor control target joints to improve their motion range.

Restrictions

An ankle sprain restricts movement due to ligament damage. Most are injuries that recover with protection, rest, anti-inflammatories and elevation. However, you could develop recurrences and long-term mobility issues if you don’t sufficiently treat and rehabilitate your ankle.

In certain cases, scar tissue around the ligament may further restrict your range of motion. Repeated injury and aging may cause ankle arthritis, creating further mobility issues. Regular exercise can improve the symptoms of ankle damage.

Some Ankle Mobility Exercises That Could Help   

You don’t need to have troublesome ankles to pay closer attention to them. Try incorporating gentle ankle exercises into your standard warmup and cool-down routines to strengthen your joints and keep them mobile. If you have constant issues, try these regularly to improve your mobility.

1. Seated Ankle Circles

• Sit on the floor and extend your right leg.
• Bend your left leg to an inverted V shape.
• Loop your left arm under your knee and lift your left foot off the ground. Your leg will rest on your left arm.
• Turn your left leg in slow circles, first clockwise and then counterclockwise. Alternate between pointing your toes and raising your foot upward toward your leg.
• Continue each exercise — which involves all four primary ankle movements between them — for 15 to 20 seconds.
• When completed, switch your legs and repeat the exercises.

2. Standing Ankle Circles

• Stand with your feet slightly apart under your hips.
• Apply your body weight to your left foot and raise your right foot by bending your knee so only your toes are on the floor.
• With your right foot’s toes touching the ground, move the other foot in a clockwise circular motion, stretching the ankle.
• Continue in that direction for 15 to 20 seconds, then change the direction to anti-clockwise for a similar period.
• When done, repeat the process with your other side.

3. Standing Heel Lifts

• Like with the standing ankle circles, stand with your feet apart. Have a chair or wall close by if you’re worried about balance.
• With your legs as straight as possible, raise both heels off the floor so you settle on the balls of your feet.
• Slowly lower both heels to the floor while maintaining balance — control is essential to strengthen your muscles.
• Complete 10 lifts at a time, then pause before repeating. Pause again and complete a third set.
• If you like, hold some free weights while doing the exercise to add resistance and improve your ankle mobility.

4. Static Lunges

• Place your right foot a full stride in front of your left.
• Keep your back straight while bending your left knee to almost touch the floor and raising it again.
• Repeat the process 10 times before switching your feet and doing another 10 in that position.

5. Walking Lunges

• Start by taking a full lunge forward with your right foot.
• Bend your right knee 90 degrees while lowering your left leg.
• Hold the position for two to three seconds with your left thigh almost parallel to the ground.
• Follow the pause by stepping forward with your left leg and then lunging forward as you did with your right leg.
• Complete 10 lunges per leg.

6. Single-Leg Plank Ankle Stretch

• Position yourself in the plank or raised push-up position with your feet together and palms downward directly under your shoulders.
• Lift your right foot and rest it on your left heel.
• Angle your left heel backward toward the floor until you feel your left calf stretching.
• Pause in that position for one or two seconds before rocking your left heel forward, aiming to position it past your toes.
• Repeat the process for 30 to 45 seconds before doing the same with your opposite side.

7. Ankle Flexion — Plantar

• Use a resistance band to strengthen your ankle’s plantar flexion movement for this exercise.
• Sit on the floor and bend your right leg at the knee with your heel on the ground.
• Keep your left leg straight on the ground and loop the resistance band around your left foot.
• Hold one end of the band in each hand and point your left foot’s toes slowly forward.
• You’ll feel the band tighten. Then, bring your foot back again, releasing the tension.
• Continue for 30 to 45 seconds and then swap legs. Do three cycles with each leg.

8. Ankle Flexion — Dorsi

• Use a resistance band to exercise your ankle’s dorsiflexion movement.
• Secure the band around a table leg and sit on the floor within reach.
• Wrap it around your right foot, with your right leg straight and your left one bent at the knee.
• Point the toes on your right foot upward, causing resistance from the band. Return to your original position to loosen the band.
• Continue for 30 to 45 seconds and then switch to the other foot. Complete three cycles with each leg.

Use Ankle Mobility Exercises Regularly

Get the best results by performing these exercises as often as possible, plus before and after workouts. Alternatively, if you’re focusing on your ankles for other reasons, consider completing at least one mobility exercise daily unless your joints indicate otherwise. At least three times weekly is the charm.