Ankle injuries account for about half of all volleyball injuries, and lots of them are avoidable with proper preparation. People who have already had an ankle sprain are particularly susceptible to re-injury. This program helps reduce your risk of being sidelined by an ankle injury, to keep you in the game and getting better in training.
This program is intended for people with a previous ankle injury, people who have been wearing ankle braces, and people who are new to strength training. If you find it too easy, jump ahead to the "Stonger Ankles" program.
How to progress through this program:
1. Begin by doing the minimum number of sets of the minimum number of reps.
2. Then increase the number of reps you do in each set until you reach the maximum number of reps
3. Increase the number of sets you complete, starting over at the lowest number of reps
4. Repeat this cycle until you can complete the maximum number of both sets and reps
*Avoid doing this program with ankle braces on.
*This program should ideally be done barefoot
This is a general warm up for your whole body. Follow along with this video to master the whole sequence. It will take a few tries to get it right but once you've got it committed to memory it goes quite quickly.
This portion of your warm up should leave you feeling loosened up so you can move on to higher intensity movements that may be a part of your specific warm up. One round may be enough, depending on your fitness level. If not, repeat as needed.
Place your foot on top of a tennis ball, lacrosse ball (or anything that rolls really). Apply some pressure as you roll the ball along the fleshy part of your foot, in between your heel and the ball of your foot. You may also benefit from putting your heel on the ground and rolling the ball across your foot with a windshield wiper motion.
Roll for 1 minute on each side.
At first, this exercise may be painful; a softer ball will be easier to tolerate early on. Progress by finding a firmer ball or one with a textured, knobby surface.
In a seated position with your legs outstretched, place a tennis ball, lacrosse ball, water bottle, foam roller or anything that rolls under your calf. Roll along the length of your calf, which stretched from the back of your heel to the back of your knee.
Roll for 1 minute on each side.
At first, this exercise may be painful; a softer ball will be easier to tolerate early on. Progress by finding a firmer ball or one with a textured, knobby surface.
Standing in a split stance facing a wall, keep your heel down while you drive your front knee toward the wall. Your foot should point straight head and your knee should travel directly over your second toe - avoid collapsing inward and having your toes sticking out to the side. Keep your heel in contact with the floor while you push your knee forward.
Do 15 repetitions on each side.
*If you have a significant deficit on one side, do 2-3 sets on this side. A lack of mobility in this range is a significant risk factor for injury.
*If you experience no notable stretch or limitation and both of your ankles are about equally flexible, you could skip this one.
Start kneeling with your socks and shoes off and your toes tucked up toward your shins. Sit on your heels, keeping your feet in alignment with your knees - avoid having your heels turn away from one another or toward one another unless you find it increases the stretch in your feet.
You should feel a stretch in your heels, ankles, feet, and/or toes. If this position is painful, lean forward and put some weight onto your hands until the stretch sensation in your feet is more comfortable. If you are unable to find a way to feel a stretch, you can skip this exercise - you probably don't need it.
Hold for 5 seconds at a time, returning to a tall kneeling position and repeating 6 times for a total of about 30 seconds.
Stand on one foot, facing a wall in an athletic stance. Throw a medicine ball against the wall so that it bounces back and you can catch it on the other side of your body. Continue to throw back and forth while working to keep your balance. This drill can also be done with a volleyball or tennis ball, and its fun to do throwing back and forth with a partner too.
Do 5-8 throws on each side and complete 2-3 sets on each foot, resting for 1 minute between sets.
Imagining you're standing in the centre of a clock, hop out to 12 o'clock and return to the centre quickly. Repeat going around the face of the clock as demonstrated. Go back through the same sequence again, this time in the opposite direction.Try to make your contact time with the floor as short as you can, while challenging yourself to jump a decent height. Avoid hops that are too small and quick or that are high or far but very slow.
For each set, go once around the clock in each direction. Perform 2-3 sets, resting for 2 minutes in between.
If this is too easy, try the single leg version: https://youtu.be/KdhpUwQLTYc
Keep your body facing forward while you hop sideways over a line, spot, or small cone. Try to be quick by minimizing the amount of time your feet spend touching the floor.
Do 2-3 sets of 10-20 repetitions in each direction (20-40 total). Rest for 60-90 seconds between sets.
Hold a medicine ball in both hands while standing on one leg. Bend down to lower the medicine ball down to one side, then lift it diagonally up above the opposite shoulder while standing up. Repeat this movement without putting your other foot down. Which direction yo do the diagonal movement on is of little consequence, and I recommend doing diagonals in both directions on both feet to challenge your balance.
Do 2-3 sets of 5-10 repetitions on each leg. Rest for 60 seconds between sets.
This can also be done with a volleyball or no ball at all.