Athletes must return to pre-injury levels of strength and motor control to reduce future risk of injury. Quick support drills, dynamic landings, and cutting drills are examples of exercises that demand high levels of ankle proprioception, similar to the demands of the sports they want to return back to. Here are multiple ways in which you can improve proprioception of the ankle: -First I perform a forward lunge onto the center of the blue side of the bosu ball. -Then I begin to step slightly lateral of midline. This will increase demand of my evertors. Be very careful not to deviate too far from midline. The last thing you want to do is give yourself another ankle sprain! -Then I train my ankle in another plane, the frontal plane, which is is done by performing a lateral step onto the bosu ball. -The final exercise here is jumping onto the bosu ball. Notice how I begin very close to the bosu ball. With each repetition I start to increase my jump distance and velocity, which will increase the demand of my ankle stabilizers to stick the landing. -A common mistake is a lack of variability and challenge for the individual. Make sure to vary the speed and intensity of this exercise to keep it challenging! Well that’s a wrap; hope you enjoyed this ankle series! Let us know if there are any other topics you would like us to address!
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