Rolling Ankles

[dancing*star]

Hello all,

 

I hope I'm doing this right- I read all the rules, but still afraid of a mistake. Anyways, for as long as I can remember, I've had ankles that constantly want to roll towards the outside of my foot (I believe that supination is the correct term, though not sure). It's to the point where all my street shoes are far more worn down on the outside of my foot than on the inside. I'm hyperextended in almost every joint, and I'm also extremely flexible by nature. I have to work very hard at building strength. I have strong enough ankles to support myself on pointe, and they hold me up pretty well... except for those times when they decide they've had enough.

 

It can be anytime, but something will happen, and the next thing I know, I'm on the floor. I know that, for whatever reason, my ankle flips so it is parallel to the floor, instead of horizontal, so I fall. It always flips towards the outside, never the inside. Is there a way that this can slowly be stopped? Are there any inserts that could train my feet to walk "normally" and not rolling out? Thanks for any help you can give.

[Victoria Leigh]

dancing*star, I moved this to the YD forum, since it really is not a medical issue as much as it is a technique issue. Since you have not posted on a YD board yet, I was not sure which age level, so if you are under 17, please let me know. I put it here because you have posted about colleges and questions about the OU area.

 

Anyway, now to the problem. Supination is a kind of problem like pronation, in that it is something that can be corrected. Shoe inserts may or may not be needed, but the first order of business is to fix how you walk. You are most likely walking over turned out, with weight in your heels. You need to feel your big toe on the floor when you walk, and strengthen your ankles to keep you in place on pointe. When you roll out on pointe then the ankle goes, which is very dangerous.

 

People who pronate need to feel the baby toe on the floor, and you need the big toe! Study how you walk. Even if you dance a lot, you still spend a LOT more time just walking around than you do dancing every day, except maybe in an SI program! If you are "walking like a duck", AND giving in to your hyperextension, it's not going to help anything. This is something, like bad posture, that YOU have to correct yourself. It's not easy, but definitely doable. It needs to be a priority and it needs to be 24/7.

 

Good luck!

[dancing*star]

Thanks for the move- I guess I wasn't posting in the right place after all. Thanks for the move- and you were correct in assuming my age!

 

But thanks for the help- I try to make sure I don't hyperextend while walking, but it's a struggle. Thanks for the help.