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Proprioception and Early ankle rehabilitation

Date:
By Tommy

Proprioception and Early ankle rehabilitation

A rolled ankle is one of the most common injuries physiotherapists tend to treat. Although it may not seem like a big deal as the pain subsides not participating in an appropriate rehab program can lead to discomfort and reduced performance down the track.

One thing that should be addressed early in your rehab program is what is called proprioception.

Proprioception is the ability to sense stimuli arising within the body regarding position, motion, and equilibrium and relates in this case to your balance.

We rely on 4 things for our balance our vision which is why when you stare at a single spot on the wall it is easier to balance, our vestibular system located in our inner ear which is why you still know the position of your head even with your eyes closed, and our muscle and joint receptors which senses muscle tension and joint position.

These four systems are constantly working together and when you damage any soft tissues around your ankle such as; ligaments, muscles, tendons, joint capsules, nerves. The feedback to your brain is altered and this needs to be restore with the appropriate exercises. The exercises should challenge all 4 systems but in the early stages just simply balancing on one foot can be challenging based on the severity of damage to the tissues around the ankle.

When rehabilitating from an ankle injury you can start working on restoring your balance as soon as pain permits.

Exercises I tend to use in early ankle rehabilitation include some of the following;

  • To start off just simply stand on one foot frequently throughout the day if your ankle is really unstable try staring at a spot on the wall once it gets easier try closing your eyes or try doing it while completing everyday tasks like brushing your teeth. Set your self a goal like 2 mins.
  • As this gets easier you can try it with your eyes closed which takes away your visual feedback and places a higher demand on the muscle and joint receptors.
  • Progress then to an unstable surface like a little foam pad, a pillbtow, a folded yoga mat, bosu ball, or a mini trampoline again you can make this harder by trying it with your eyes closed.
  • Next you can add in little ball tosses. Have a friend toss a ball at you while you stand on an unstable surface, do this facing different directions and have a friend throw the ball to different heights or positions if you don’t have someone to help you then simply bounce a ball off the wall.

These are some great exercises that you can start very early following your injury while tissues are healing, it gets you up off the couch, a head start on your rehabilitation and one step closer to getting back on the field.

Take a look on our Facebook page for a video of a practical demonstration.

https://www.facebook.com/fitnessphysiotherapy/