Can you please give me some ankle strengthening excersises, please?

Question

I am wanting to strengthen my ankles for ballet and I was wondering if you could give me some excersises to help me strengthen my ankles! Also other excersises, like flexibility ones and reccommended push ups/sit ups.. Anything like that please, but mainly ankle strengthening! THANK YOU very much!!!

Answer 1

There are many different steps you can do at home to help your feet and ankles strengthen up.

**Stand with your toes on the edge of a stair or something to get your feet off the ground like a small step stool if you don't have stairs. Now do releves up to a nice tall 3/4 point position, pushing your arch and heel up and over as much as you can. Then lower your feet down below the step as low as you can go. Do these nice and slow at first, a full 8 cts up and a full 8 cts down. Try starting with 10 at a time and work up to more. Then do the same exercise quickly, like 2 cts up and 2 cts down. Start with about 25 of these and then add on.
**Sitting on the floor with you legs straight out or sitting in a chair hold up one leg at a time, use your big toe to "write" the alphabet, first in print then in cursive. Do this with both feet.
**Sit in a chair and put marbles down on the floor. Place all the marbles to the left side of your foot. Moving your foot in a side to side motion, pick up one marble with your toes then drop it off after you've moved your foot to the other side. Continue doing this until you've moved all the marbles from the left side of your foot to the right side. Now move them all back. Do this with both feet.
**Get a theraband, you can order these online here is the link:
http://www.discountdance.com/frame_set.p...
If you get the Gaynor Mindon resistabands, they come with an instruction book with some great exercises for you!
**Just pointing your feet as hard as you can and holding as long as you can is also a good exercise. Do this when you lay down to go to sleep, when you watch tv, when you are doing homework, anytime you can do it.
**Do sautes in first and second positions and make your feet do more work than your legs. Try to jump with as little bend in the knees as possible so your feet have to push off the floor harder an push all the way through your point when you leave the floor.
**Standing at a barre, behind a chair, or at the kitchen counter, place your feet in first then raise one foot to coupe, demi plie, lift your foot to 3/4 point, and then straighten your knee and hold the releve. Do about 10 of these on each foot to start, working up to more. Then do the same exercise in reverse, releve then demi plie, then lower to a flat foot. You can also just do releve and lower on each foot over and over until you feet and ankles are stronger. (this one is also great with your pointe shoes on, once you've started en pointe)

Answer 2

This is an excersise that my tap dancing teacher gave us so our ankles would be more loose and be able to do the faster steps without tightening up.

What you do is stand on one foot, and with the other foot that you're not stanidng on, you start air-writing each letter of the alphebet (the big letters). This not only teaches your feet to go 'round 'n' 'round, but it also biulds muscle memory and strength for those really funky tap movements.

Yeah, i know there's a difference between tap and ballet, but I just thought this'd help you out with those ankles =)

Answer 3

Every time you stretch on the floor with your legs out, point your feet and toes ALOT. you should feel the stretch. Also, while doing things on the bar at ballet ; always point your feet. When you turn, get a good releve [spelling?] up on yuor foot. good lucck !

Answer 4

One of the best ones I have had came from my physical therapist. Just stand up, then raise yourself up on the ball of your foot. Repeat this several times to start, then increase the number of times you do it over the course of time.

Answer 5

you can sit at then end of a bed an dmake your foot go around and around in circles..for flexibility stretching is great and the more you do it the more flexible you get

Answer 6

make your ankle go around in circles. roll on the balls of your feet. push your feet.