Six years ago, I found myself facing the aftermath of an ankle injury. The mornings were a reminder as I woke up to a swollen ankle, twice its normal size. Since then, every lower body exercise required cautious consideration.
A Critical Reflection on Recommended Exercises
In the half-decade that followed, a persistent thought lingered—textbook or clinically recommended exercises for ankle injuries might not be as beneficial as we believe.
Conventional wisdom often leans towards focusing on the calf muscles, emphasizing eccentric exercises like calf raises. However, in my experience, these approaches often intensified the pain rather than aiding recovery.
Instead, I found solace in more functional exercises like squats, deadlifts, and single-leg RDLs, which proved to be less taxing on my healing ankle.
Advocating for a Functional Approach
My belief gained support from a physiotherapist who echoed similar sentiments based on her experiences with clients. Many individuals recovering from ankle injuries shared the same feedback—traditional exercises were more problematic than advantageous. This led me to question the existing research and recommendations provided in textbooks.