How to Strengthen Ankles: A Guide for Athletes of All Levels

Whether you’re a weekend warrior, a professional athlete or somewhere in between, you know how frustrating it can be to experience frequent sprained ankles and other injuries. If your everyday activities or athletic performance is suffering, learning how to strengthen your ankles can help. The right exercises can improve stability and reduce your risk of future injuries, so you can stay in the game and keep doing the things you love.  

In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of strengthening your ankles, share exercises that can help and address what a history of ankle sprains means for your ankle strength. 

While ankle strengthening exercises provide many benefits, acute ankle injuries or worsening symptoms should be treated promptly to prevent long-term complications. At The Bone and Joint Surgery Clinic, we’ve been providing expert care and treatment of foot and ankle injuries to Raleigh and Triangle area residents for decades. We invite you to contact us to request an appointment with one of our orthopedic specialists. 

What Exercises Can Help Strengthen Ankles?

To be most effective, an ankle-strengthening routine should focus on three key areas: mobility, strength and balance.

 Mobility exercises include:

• Ankle alphabet. This involves sitting or lying down and tracing the alphabet in the air using your foot, which helps improve ankle control and range of motion.
• Towel stretch. Sit with your leg extended, wrap a towel around your foot and use it to gently pull your toes toward your body. This stretches the calf and ankle and helps improve flexibility. 

Strengthening exercises include:

• Calf raises. Rise onto your toes and lower back down slowly. This strengthens the calves and the muscles that support the ankle. 
• Towel curls. Place a towel on the floor and grab and scrunch it with your toes. This strengthens the small muscles in your feet that support ankle stability. 

Balance and stability exercises include:

• Single-leg balance. Stand on one foot for 20–30 seconds then switch sides. This exercise helps improve balance, stability and ankle control. 
• Forward reach balance drill. This involves balancing on one foot while reaching forward with the opposite arm. This exercise challenges stability in a functional way, improving coordination and ankle control. 
• Tandem walk. A tandem walk is when you walk heel-to-toe in a straight line, which improves dynamic balance, enhances coordination and helps reduce fall risk.

What Are the Benefits of Strengthening Your Ankles?

Strong ankles provide many benefits, including serving as a stable foundation for almost every movement you make. 

Benefits of strengthening your ankles include:

• Better balance and stability. Ankle muscles help maintain balance and stability during movement, which is essential when running, jumping, changing direction or walking on uneven surfaces. 
• Reduced risk of injury. Strong ankles act as shock absorbers, helping the body withstand sudden movements and awkward landings. This helps decrease the likelihood of ankle sprains and related injuries.
• Improved athletic performance. Strong, stable ankles provide better control during cutting, pivoting, sprinting and jumping movements, which contributes to more confidence during training and competition.
• Support for the lower body. Ankle weakness can place additional stress on the knees and hips, which may lead to discomfort or injury elsewhere. Healthy, strong ankles help promote better biomechanics.

Can a History of Ankle Sprains Weaken Your Ankles?

Recurring ankle sprains can contribute to ongoing weakness and instability. 

This happens because sprains stretch or tear ligaments, the connective tissues that stabilize your joints. Without proper rehabilitation, the damaged ligaments and surrounding muscles may not fully recover to their original strength. 

After a sprain, you may also experience reduced proprioception – your body’s awareness of joint position, movement and orientation in space. This can increase the risk of future injuries.

It’s important not to dismiss ankle injuries. Proper care can help prevent long-term complications like persistent discomfort and ongoing instability.

Can Ankle Braces or Tape Help Strengthen Ankles?

Ankle braces and athletic tape can help with injury prevention and recovery, but they cannot strengthen the ankle or repair underlying mobility issues. 

What these resources do is provide support and joint stability during physical activity, which may help limit the excessive ankle movement that can lead to sprains. 

Though many athletes use braces or tape when returning to sports after an injury, or during activities that involve lots of jumping, cutting and quick direction changes, these tools are not meant to replace strengthening exercises. 

Addressing the underlying causes of ankle instability with a reliable exercise program is recommended. 

For Expert Care and Treatment of Injuries, See Our Team of Orthopedic Specialists at the Raleigh Bone and Joint Surgery Clinic

Recurring ankle sprains can lead to long-term ankle weakness if not properly rehabilitated.

The good news is, strengthening your ankles with the appropriate exercises can help you build resilient ankles, improve your athletic performance and reduce your risk of future injuries. 

If you have an acute ankle injury or worsening symptoms, however, it’s essential to get prompt evaluation and treatment to prevent long-term complications.  

At the Raleigh Bone and Joint Surgery Clinic, our team of orthopedic specialists has been providing expert care of foot and ankle injuries to Raleigh and Triangle area residents for decades. We encourage you to contact us to schedule an appointment.