When people think about improving sports performance or preventing injury, they often focus on strength, speed or fitness. However,
one area that’s frequently overlooked is ankle dorsiflexion, the ability to bring your knee forwards over your foot.
It might seem like a small movement, but it plays a huge role in how your entire lower limb functions.
Why Is It Important?
Adequate ankle dorsiflexion is essential for everyday activities such as walking, running, squatting and climbing stairs, as well as
sporting movements like sprinting, jumping, landing and changing direction. Restricted ankle mobility can alter movement patterns
throughout the entire kinetic chain, increasing the load placed on the knees, hips and lower back.
What Happens If You Don’t Have Enough?
When ankle mobility is limited, your body will often compensate elsewhere. These compensations can include:
● Increased knee valgus (“knees collapsing in”)
● Reduced knee bend during landing
● Increased ground reaction forces
● Altered squat mechanics
● Reduced balance and stability
Over time, these changes may increase the risk of injuries such as patellofemoral pain, patellar tendinopathy, ankle sprains, Achilles
tendinopathy and even ACL injuries.
Performance Matters Too
It’s not just about injury prevention. Research suggests that greater ankle dorsiflexion is associated with improved squat depth,
jumping ability, landing mechanics, sprinting performance and balance. Simply put, moving better often means performing better.
How Can Physiotherapy Help?
A physiotherapist can assess your ankle mobility and identify whether it’s contributing to your pain or limiting your performance.
Treatment may include joint mobilisation, calf flexibility work, strengthening exercises and movement retraining to improve how your
body absorbs and produces force.
The Bottom Line
Your ankles do far more than just move your feet. If you’re struggling with recurrent lower-limb injuries, poor squat depth or reduced
athletic performance, restricted ankle mobility could be one of the missing pieces of the puzzle. Addressing it early may help you
move more efficiently, perform better and reduce your risk of injury.
Newsletter Insight By: Emre Oz (Head of Integrated MSK & Sports Medicine Operations at Crouch Physio/Specialist MSK Physiotherapist).
Reference:
Almansoof HS, Nuhmani S, Muaidi Q. Role of ankle dorsiflexion in sports performance and injury risk: A narrative review. Electronic
Journal of General Medicine. 2023;20(5):em521.
