When you’re out clocking kilometres, your joints absorb the shock of each step from the ground up and your ankles are one of the first to feel the impact of your powerful stride. One wrong step can cause your ankle to roll and possibly lead to an injury. For this reason, you need to keep the muscles, ligaments, and tendons surrounding your ankles nice and strong.

“Ankle strength is significant for runners due to uneven terrain, quick changes in direction, and the constant pounding of that joint over time,” says Noam Tamir, CEO and owner of TS Fitness. Dedicating time to practice ankle-strengthening exercises will help runners avoid shin splints, strains, sprains, and tears, he adds.

Below, we share the best ankle-strengthening exercises for runners in a well-rounded routine designed by Tamir, as well as explain how practising these exercises will make you a better runner.

The Benefits of Ankle-Strengthening Exercises for Runners
Many runners practice hip- and knee-strengthening exercises regularly to ward off common running-related injuries and pains. But those who neglect to strengthen their ankles will likely make up for this weakness by overcompensating with other areas of the body, which can lead to problems like knee and lower back pain, says Tamir. By regularly doing ankle-strengthening exercises runners can sidestep injury, avoid common pains, and improve running mechanics for better performance.

In fact, this workout will help runners improve ankle mobility and stability, which helps with your one-foot landings and fuller ranges of motion through the stance and push-off phases of the gait. Also, because this workout will help you build strength for different phases of the running gait cycle, Tamir explains, it can add power behind your push-off, allowing you to chase faster speeds.

How to use this list: Practice the exercises in the order listed below for the number of reps described, resting for 15 to 20 seconds between each exercise. Complete 2 to 3 rounds of this list, resting for 45 to 60 seconds in between each round. For this workout, you will need a resistance band and a chair is optional.

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1. Seated Banded Plantar Flexion

Why it works: Practicing this move will help runners strengthen the downward motion of the foot during that push-off or propulsion phase of running, says Tamir. It strengthens the calf muscles and Achilles tendon, too. “Try to go to the full range of motion and control the eccentric portion of the movement [the downward press on the band] to maximise the benefits of this exercise,” Tamir adds.

How to do it:

1. Sit in a chair with right leg extended straight. Place a mini resistance band around the ball of right foot and hold on to it with both hands, so there’s some resistance in the band.
2. While holding the resistance band and keeping right leg straight, point right toes away from body.
3. Pull toes back toward shins to flex the foot.
4. Repeat. Do 12-15 reps on each side.

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2. Seated Banded Dorsiflexion

Why it works: Runners can ward off shin splints by practising this move because it strengthens the muscles of the shin (tibialis anterior), which will help improve shock absorption and turnover, Tamir says.

How to do it:

1. Tie a mini resistance band to a low-level, stable fixture like a chair. Sit on the floor with both legs extended, knees slightly bent, and ankles resting on the ground. Place the mini resistance band around right foot.
2. Bend right knee more so there’s resistance on the band. Then flex foot toward you, pulling toes to shin.
3. Relax foot.
4. Repeat. Do 12-5 reps on each side.

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3. Seated Banded Inversion

Why it works: You don’t only need to strengthen your ankle for front-to-back movement, but also side-to-side. This exercise helps with just that, while helping with shock absorption upon landing, Tamir explains. In fact, it can help strengthen the muscles that keep your foot in the ideal position in the initial contact phase of your stride, when runners supinate or roll to the outside of the foot.

How to do it:

1. Sit in a chair with right leg extended straight, left knee bent and foot planted. Place a mini resistance band around the ball of right foot and hold onto it with both hands, so there’s some resistance.
2. While holding the resistance band, keep right leg straight and point right foot toward the center of body.
3. Return to a neutral position.
4. Repeat. Do 12-15 reps on each side.

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4. Seated Banded Eversion

Why it works: All runners have a degree of pronation when they run, when the foot rolls inward and the arch collapses, absorbing the landing. This exercise helps control that movement, particularly in the mid-stance phase of the gait, Tamir explains.

How to do it:

1. Sit in a chair with right leg extended straight, left knee bent and foot planted. Place a mini resistance band around the ball of right foot and hold on to it with both hands, so there’s some resistance.
2. While holding the resistance band, keep right leg straight, and point right foot away from the center of body
3. Return to neutral position.
4. Repeat. Do 12-15 reps on each side.

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5. Single-Leg Lateral Hop

Why it works: This exercise is perfect for runners because single-leg hops challenge a runner’s ability to absorb impact in a single-leg stance, which is very similar to running, says Tamir. “Make sure to land with a bent knee,” he adds. “I like to stick the landing before you jump again challenging the stability of the ankle even more.”

How to do it:

1. Place a resistance band on the ground to the outside of right foot. Start standing with both feet together and hands down by sides.
2. Bend left knee to lift foot slightly off the ground, and shift weight to right leg.
3. Swing both arms behind you to build momentum, then bend right knee.
4. Swing both arms in front of you as you hop over the band with right leg, landing on right foot with knee bent.
5. Jump back to the other side, staying on right leg.
6. Repeat. Do 6-8 reps total.
7. Switch sides and repeat.

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6. Single-Leg Deadlift

Why it works: This is a full-body exercise that can not only test your stability, but also help you strengthen other key running muscles, like the glutes, hamstrings, and core, while improving ankle strength.

How to do it:

1. Stand on right leg, soft bend in knee, left foot lifted slightly off floor.
2. Hinge at the hips by sending butt back. Keep back flat, shoulders down, and core engaged as torso reaches toward floor and left leg lifts straight back behind you. Only lower until you feel a slight pull in right back of leg.
3. Drive right foot into floor to stand back up, squeezing glutes.
4. Repeat. Do 8-10 reps on each side.

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7. Reverse Lunge to Knee Drive

Why it works: Challenge your balance while strengthening the quads, glutes, and muscles around the ankles with this super functional exercise, says Tamir.

How to do it:

1. Stand with feet together.
2. Step backward with right foot and lower into a lunge, both knees bending 90 degrees.
3. Push through left foot to stand, driving right knee up to hip, thigh parallel to the floor.
4. Pause, then step back into a lunge.
5. Repeat. Do 8-10 reps each side.

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8. Single-Leg Calf Raise

Why it works: Shifting your bodyweight to one leg means your calf muscles have to lift your bodyweight to get you onto your toes, strengthening these key running muscles, along with the Achilles tendon. This move also challenges your stability, so engage your core for balance, Tamir says.

How to do it:

1. Start standing on right foot, left knee bent with foot slightly off floor.
2. Raise right heel of ground, so you’re on ball of right foot.
3. Slowly lower heel back to the ground.
4. Repeat. Do 8-10 reps on each side.

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