Whether you've got a minor ankle injury or are trying to prevent one, wrapping your ankles prior to strenuous running or jumping activities is always wise. While it might appear as though the foot is simply wrapped from top to bottom in white tape, a proper ankle taping requires a specific process or it won't provide the proper support and protection. You are essentially taping on an extra shoe, with a structure designed to provide that added support where it's most needed. Get your foot clean and dry before you start.
Step 1
Spray tape adhesive over the whole foot and up a few inches past the ankle. Spray it lightly throughout the surface of the skin, just enough so it will hold the pre-wrap in place.
Step 2
Set your two no-stick dressing squares at the front and back of the ankle joint (on the parts that move when you tap your foot). The adhesive from the spray should hold the dressing squares in place.
Step 3
Wrap foam pre-wrap over the whole foot, holding one end of the pre-wrap strip over the front of the ankle, just below your shin, then taking it down around the back at a downward angle, around the top of the heel and back up. Continue back down on the other side, this time going under the heel instead of above it.
Step 4
Repeat the pattern with one continuous length of pre-wrap, alternating sides of the heel with each course and wrapping it farther out each time. Continue until three or four layers of pre-wrap are applied and the foot is covered from just behind the ball of your foot to about 4 inches above the ankle.
Step 5
Pull one length of athletic tape long enough to circle your shin. Wrap it around the top edge of the pre-wrap (about 4 inches above the ankle). Repeat with a second strip of tape, just below and slightly overlapping the first. Make both strips snug but not tight enough to cut circulation. These strips are the anchors for the rest of the taping.
Step 6
Press a piece of tape from one side of your anchor and perpendicular to it, and extend it vertically down the side of your foot, then underneath, toward the back of the arch. Take the tape up the other side, vertically, and tape it to the other side of the anchor, forming a stirrup effect under the foot. Pull and apply two more strips of tape in the same fashion, overlapping.
Step 7
Apply strips of tape around the ankle and the top of the foot, and the ankle and the bottom of the foot. Tear and apply each strip separately, taking it all the way around and spreading farther up and down the foot while overlapping. Add five to seven layers of tape in both directions, stopping at the top of the pre-wrap and just behind the ball of the foot.
Step 8
Wrap three or four layers of tape around the heel.
Things You'll Need
- Athletic tape adhesive spray
- Two no-stick dressing squares (2 inches across)
- Foam pre-wrap
- Athletic tape
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