How to Improve Ankle Mobility To Squat Deeper

I assume you’ve already tested ankle mobility (knee-to-wall test) and concluded that you need better mobility for your ankles when squatting. Or perhaps you simply notice your heels lifting off the ground during squats and you want to be able to squat with your feet on the ground.

In any case, in this article, I’ll show you my favorite ankle mobility exercises to help you squat deeper.

Importance of Proper Ankle Joint Mobility When Squatting

Limited ankle mobility encourages bio-mechanical compensatory movements and increases the risk of various injuries. In the case of squatting, the following issues may arise:

Increased pronation in the foot (collapse of the foot’s arch towards the ground)
Increased knee valgus (knees rotating inward and coming together, known as “knock-knees”)
Increased trunk flexion (leaning forward to maintain balance and avoid falling backward)
Lifting heels during squats
Increased risk of ACL ligament injury (Source)

Ankle Mobility Test

The most standardized test for ankle mobility in dorsiflexion movement is the knee to wall test. In this test, you’ll discover if there’s a difference in mobility between each ankle and if you have optimal ankle mobility.

Limited ankle mobility may be due to a restricted joint capsule and/or soft tissue restrictions.

How can you tell the difference?

If you feel discomfort and stiffness in the front of the ankle, it means the main culprit for poor mobility is the joint capsule.

If you feel tightness in the back of the ankle (Achilles tendon, calf muscles), then the movement restriction comes from soft tissues (muscles, tendons).

How to Perform the Test

First, take off your shoes and stand next to a wall.

Face the wall and place one foot 14cm away from the wall while the other foot is one step behind the front foot.

Then, bend the front knee to touch the wall while keeping the front foot stable, without lifting the heel or rotating inward or outward (supination, pronation).

Repeat the test with both feet and record the result.

If you can’t touch the wall with your knee from a distance of 14cm, you’ve confirmed your suspicions that you need better ankle mobility.

And now I’ll show you how you can improve ankle mobility to enhance your squatting.

Ankle Mobilization

The first step to improve ankle dorsiflexion is mobilizing the ankle joint, especially if ankle mobility is limited due to the joint capsule (front of the ankle is stiff). Here’s what you can do:

Banded Ankle Mobilization to Improve Ankle Dorsiflexion

Get into a kneeling lunge position and use a resistance band by placing it on the front ankle, ideally just below the ankle joint line (below the ankle malleolus).

Then gently push the knee forward to increase ankle dorsiflexion (similar to the knee to wall test). Hold for 10 seconds and return to the starting position. Repeat 5 times.

The goal of this mobilization is to push the talus bone, which makes up the ankle joint, backward using the resistance band, thereby improving dorsal flexion movement in the ankle joint.

When the talus bone doesn’t slide properly, mobility restriction is unfortunately always present, and stretching alone won’t yield much result.

Here you can find quality resistance bands that you can use for this mobilization.

This type of mobilization along with movement has been used for years as a means to increase mobility and reduce the feeling of stiffness in the joint.

Soft Tissue Massage

The next step is manual treatment for soft tissue, i.e., muscles and tendons. In this case, focus on the following muscles and tendons:

Plantar fascia
Achilles tendon
Calf muscles

You can massage these parts of the body by using foam rolling. My advice is to use a foam roller for 1-2 minutes for each muscle group. Take short breaks of a few seconds at painful points before moving on to the next point.

Also, during the break, you can move the ankle slightly to enhance the effect of massage and muscle relaxation.

Soft Tissue Stretching

After foam rolling, the next step is to stretch the muscles around the ankle joint to enable better mobility and thus deeper squats.

The best stretching exercise is the heel drop stretch.

Perform this exercise by standing on the edge of a step or similar surface and lowering the heel of one foot as far as possible. Hold this position for 30 seconds.

The next stretching exercise you can do is ankle dorsiflexion stretch on a box.

Raise one leg onto the box and push the knee forward so that the ankle joint goes into dorsal flexion while the knee is bent. Hold for 30 seconds in this position and repeat several times.

Retest

Congratulations, you’ve finished this guide to improve ankle mobility for deeper squats. However, this is not the end.

It’s very important to retest your joint mobility (use the knee to wall test) to track progress.

Even after the first training session, you can see a significant difference in ankle joint mobility. Although this is a short-lived effect, it can help you squat deeper.

Over time, your ankle joints will become accustomed to functioning within the new range of motion.

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Author

My name is Trivo. I'm a physiotherapist and I enjoy exercising, learning new stuff in physio and fitness world, and sharing my knowledge and point of view in this field.