Spraining your ankle is a painful ordeal, and the worst part of the injury to many people is that crutches are necessary to get around. Even if you are relying on crutches because you cannot bear weight on your foot, you can begin to strengthen and rehabilitate your ankle with some basic exercises. Be sure to consult a physician before starting any of these exercises.
Range of Motion
According to "The Stretching Handbook," getting back your full range of motion is the first step in your recovery from a sprained ankle. You can start these exercises as soon as you can after your injury, definitely while you are still on crutches. Start by gently bending and straightening as far as you can, and then incorporate side-to-side movement and rotation. An easy way to work the full range of motion in your ankle is to sit on the edge of your bed and imagine you are writing the alphabet with your toes.
Towel Stretching
After some of the initial pain and swelling has gone down, you can work on some stretching exercises to help rehabilitate your sprained ankle, according to the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society. A basic hand towel is all you will need, and start by holding the towel in both hands and looping the middle around the ball of your foot when you are seated. Pull your toes toward your shin, stretching your calf and Achilles tendons. A little pain is normal, and if you can tolerate it, do 15 to 20 repetitions of this stretch between three and six times per day.
Towel Scrunch
Place the same towel you used for stretching flat on the floor in front of you. You can work on strengthening the muscles in your foot as well as you ankle joint by doing towel scrunches. Place your foot flat on the ground at the bottom of the towel, and then repeatedly curl your toes to scrunch the towel toward you. After you scrunch the whole towel to your foot, reverse the process to push the towel away from you.
Isometric Exercises
If you are still on crutches, it is most likely because you do not have the strength or balance to walk without too much pain. One way to help regain that strength is through isometric exercises, which help strengthen your muscles but don't require your ankle joint to move. One way to do this is to place the outside of your foot against a wall and push outward. You can also do this with the inside and top of your foot, each time pushing your foot into the wall. All of these cause your muscles to contract, with resistance, without moving the ankle joint.
