Ankle taping will not fix your injury. Often times,athletes, especially young club level athletes will ask, "My ankle hurts. Can you tape it?" They often ask the question as if some piece of overpriced tape cloth will be the end all, be all cure to their ankle problems. However, this just isn't true.
Shin splints can go from being annoying to flat out debilitating. Shin splints occur when the muscles, tendons and bone covering (periosteum) become inflamed. The pain is typically on the outside or lateral side of the tibia or shin, but occasionally affects the inside or medial portion as well.
Courtesy of our very own Chris Phillips, ATC, CSCS, 90strong contributor and owner of Compete Sports Performance & Rehab in Lake Forest, he has created a specific ankle protocol that should be performed before and after soccer training.
This is a great exercise for preventing ankle and knee injuries. Injuries often occur when the body cannot stabilize itself in the ever changing environment of a soccer game.
Wave reaches are a must in every soccer players injury prevention program. As ankle and knee injuries are common in soccer, this exercise can address and help prevent both. It does so by improving kinesthetic awareness, glute strength, and overall lower body strength.
Utilize these two simple exercises to improve performance and reduce such injuries as ankle sprains and shin splints. Superset the calf raises and toe raises for 2-3 sets of 10-20 repetitions daily.
Following an ankle injury, proprioceptive exercises must be performed to help regain the stability of the joint. Stability exercises, such as the minitramp oscillations will help train the body to handle dynamic movements such as cutting and jumping that occur on the soccer field.