9 Tips To Prevent Ankle Sprains While Hiking

​Ankle rolls and sprains can be a nightmare while hiking. 

On one end of the scale, they can turn a lovely day out into a day of limping and discomfort.

On the other end (if they happen in a remote or inaccessible area), they can create a genuinely dangerous and stressful situation.

Unfortunately for hikers, there are a lot of risk factors that can increase the likelihood of ankle sprains on the trail....

How To Prevent Ankle Sprains When Hiking

​Hiking trails are rarely well-manicured. And we are constantly stepping over rocks, potholes and all manner of varied, slippery and unstable terrain. 

Throw in extra weight on our backs from our packs, and fatigue from multiple hours (or days) of hiking, and that leads to the perfect recipe for ankle sprains.

And to make things even trickier, every time we sprain our ankles (if we don't take the time to rehab them properly), we can be at an increased risk of doing it again. 

Which can turn into a miserable recurring cycle for many hikers..

So if you have a history of ankle sprains, you want to take this seriously!  
 
And you want to take actions both on and off the trail to help build up and support your ankles, and reduce the risk of things going wrong.
 
So to help, today I want to share  nine simple tips to help reduce ankle sprains on the trail:
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How To Train The Ankles For Hiking

​1) Practice Balance And Ankle Stability

Every time you roll or sprain your ankle, your ankle's ability to balance gets compromised. This can make it more likely to sprain your ankles again in the future. A nasty cycle...  

To combat this, add some balance and ankle stability into your week.

Two simple ways to do this:

1. Do some single-legged strength exercises in your week (such as step downs or single-leg deadlifts)
   
   
2. Do some specific balance drills (such as a single-leg balance, round the world, 3 cone balance drill or anything like that. 

​Single Legged Strength Exercise Examples: 

Balance Exercise Examples: 

2) Train Both Bent and Straight Leg Calf Raises

Your calves play a significant role in supporting your ankles. Building up and strengthening them should be a high priority for any hiker with ankle issues (or, in all honesty, any hiker in general!).

Most hikers are familiar with straight-leg calf raises. Where we push up to our toes on one or two legs, with a straight leg. These are a great option for calf and ankle strengthening,

To get the best results, we want to pair these with some 'bent leg' calf training (such as bent leg calf raises, or soleus wall raises). These bent leg variations train the calves in a slightly different way, and the combination of the two approaches can be really effective for ankle stability (and various other aspects of your hiking). 

Calf Raise Examples: 

3) Train Your Calves Heavy and Light 

To get the most out of your calf training, we want to expose the calves to some lighter, endurance-based work (such as doing repetitions of 15+ at a time) and also some heavier, more challenging strength-based work (such as doing repetitions of 6-8 reps at a time).
 
In isolation, each of these can do some great things for your calves and ankles. Put them together in a training plan, and their benefits are much greater than the sum of their parts.

Not quite sure how to get started with strength training for hiking? Check out our free Strenght Training For Hikers Mini-Course 

​4) Develop Ankle Mobility (If You Have Tight Calves)

If your calves are tight and restricted, then doing some mobility can help the ankles move a bit more happily on the trail.

One of my favourite options for this is the knee-to-wall stretch. Or, if that doesn't feel very comfortable, any calf stretch (done consistently) will do the job.

Alternatively, if you are aware that your ankles are already very mobile/flexible (which can happen to people who have a history of ankle sprains), you can ignore this. 

Calf Mobility Examples: 

5) Build Up Pack Loads​

Strength, balance and mobility training will only get a hiker so far with their ankles...

To 'bridge the gap' between this general training and the specific demands of the hiking trail, doing some loaded pack walking can be a great option.

This involves throwing on a hiking pack, and doing a shorter walk outdoors (around your local neighbourhood, or in a park). 

​And week by week, slowly building up your pack weight (until you are training with a weight which is slightly heavier than what you typically hike with).

*Many people are calling this type of training 'rucking' these days'.

While it sounds simple, this can be a great way to expose the ankles (and the rest of the body) to the specific stressors of hiking, and help it build endurance and resilience.

*Bonus tip: if you can do this walking off the footpath, and get a little bit of variation underfoot, this can be a great added benefit as well. 

Want to explore some simple pack workouts for hikers? Check out this podcast episode

6) Practice Elevation

Going up and down hills or stairs doesn't tend to be a major cause of ankle sprains directly (though it does happen!).

However, one factor is that steep elevation gain and loss can be tiring.

And if the supporting muscles of the ankles (such as the calves and the muscle further up the leg) become extremely fatigued from elevation, then this increases your risk of issues occurring in other parts of the trail.
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So to combat this, train on some hills or stairs in your week. Get the legs and lungs used to these demands. Build up your endurance. And reduce this from being a limiting factor on the trail.

Don't have any hills or stairs nearby to train on? Try these box step workout for hikers. 

7) Stay Consistent With Shoes

High top boots, zero drop shoes and every type of footwear in between. They all have their pros and cons when it comes to your ankles.  

But one thing you need to keep in mind, is the ankles and feet take time to get used to different levels of support in footwear.

And if you are constantly changing what you are wearing and never give your ankles a chance to get used to them, you are probably doing yourself a disservice.

Choose what type of footwear you prefer. And try to keep them consistent during your hikes and outdoor training (e.g. pack walking, stair/hill climbing, etc.

8) Reduce Fatigue 

Physical and mental fatigue are major factors when it comes to ankle sprains.

Physical fatigue can reduce the ability of our ankles and legs to support us when things go wrong (such as when we step in a pothole).

Mental fatigue can lead us to lose focus, take 'bad' routes on the trail and slow down our reaction speed (and reduce the chance of us 'catching ourselves' if we step on loose rock or something similar).

A few factors that can reduce fatigue on the trail:

• Develop your aerobic fitness in your training 
• Practice efficient pacing while hiking (try to go at your own speed and reduce the time you spend 'huffing and puffing')
• Ensure you are regularly snacking and fuelling 
• Stay on top of hydration and electrolytes

Want more tips on preventing fatigue while hiking? Check out this podcast episode.

​9) Use Trekking Poles
 
Trekking poles have so many benefits for hikers. And if you have a history of ankle sprains, they can be a great option to increase stability and reduce fatigue.

​Ankle sprains on the trail are never fun. And they have a genuine risk of turning a lovely day out into a really tricky and, potentially, dangerous situation.  

If you have a history of ankle sprains, you should be taking actions to help reduce the risk of ankle sprains. And I hope these tips can help give you some direction.

And if you were unsure about how to put this information into action, and needed some personalised help with this, you can learn more about our online personal training for hiking here:

www.summitstrength.com.au/online.html

Yours in trekking,  

Rowan