5 simple ankle mobility exercises for stability and strength

If you want to keep your legs injury-free, adding ankle mobility exercises to your workout routine can be beneficial.

Not only do flexible ankles improve range of motion during activities and exercises, but they also boost athletic performance and enhance overall lower body strength and mobility, too.

Types of ankle mobility

When it comes to ankle mobility, they are basically two types:

Dorsiflexion (flexion): Dorsiflexion refers to the ability to raise the top side of the foot towards the shin bones.

Plantar flexion (extension): It refers to the ability to move the foot away from the shins.

Ankle mobility exercises

Including the following ankle mobility exercises in your daily workout routine will help strengthen these muscles and also allow you to walk, run and perform leg movements without any pain or other complications.

Additionally, these five exercises will also keep your knees and hips away from weakening and all kinds of injuries.

#1 Ankle circle

Ankle circles are one of the easiest ankle mobility exercises you can do almost anywhere, any time. This exercise eliminates inflammation and pain in the ankle joints and provides strength to these muscles so they can be used for different movements.

To do this exercise:

Stand straight with your feet together and hands on your waist.
Come onto your tiptoes, and extend your right leg forward.
Start rotating your right foot’s ankle in a circle for a few seconds, and repeat the movement with your left foot.
Continue for a few reps.

#2 Ankle flexion (plantar)

Mobility exercises strengthen the entire leg muscles. (Photo via Pexels/Dominika Roseclay)

This is another excellent ankle mobility exercise that helps strengthen the muscles as you point your toes towards your heels in a plantar flexion movement. For this exercise, you need a resistance band.

To do this exercise:

Sit straight on the floor with your right leg bent at the knee and heel flat on the floor. Keep your left leg straight on the floor.
Loop the resistance band around your left foot, and hold the ends of the band with both hands.
Pull the resistance band, and simultaneously point your left toe forward and back a few times.
Repeat the movement on the other side.

#3 Ankle flexion (dorsiflexion)

This is among the most effective ankle mobility exercises that stretch the ankles as you pull your toes towards the shins in a dorsiflexion movement.

To do this exercise:

Sit straight on the floor with both legs stretched out in the front.
Loop a band around a table’s leg, and loop it around your right foot. From there, point your toes up towards the ceiling, and slowly return to the starting position.
Repeat a few times, and do the exercise with your other leg.

#4 Eccentric calf raise

The eccentric calf raise is one of the simplest and most effective ankle mobility exercises, as it helps enhance ankle joint dorsiflexion and prevents muscles from injuries.

To do this exercise:

Stand straight on a step or box, with your heels hanging off the edge. Keep your hands on the waist or by the sides.
Rise up on your toes, and slowly drop your heels as far as you can go. Push back up again, and repeat the exercise.

#5 Lunge

Lunges are among the most effective ankle mobility exercises. (Photo via Pexels/The Lazy Artist Gallery)

Lunges are a great mobility exercise that not only works on the ankles, but this exercise also helps improve overall balance and targets other major lower body muscles, including the hamstrings and quadriceps.

You can try different types of lunges, but start with the static one, and move your way up to other advanced variations. To do this exercise:

Stand straight, and move your right leg in front of your left. Keep your toes facing forward.
Place your hands on your waist, and slowly bend your left knee back till it nearly touches the floor. Remember to keep the back straight throughout the exercise.
Continue to lunge down as far as you can go, and slowly push yourself up to the starting position. Repeat the exercise for a few reps, and switch sides.

When your ankles are weak and not flexible enough, they can make the legs more vulnerable to muscle strains and injuries and sometimes cause serious complications.

To prevent that happening, perform the aforementioned ankle mobility exercises every day, and see how it works for you.