The Best Calf and Ankle Stretch Exercises to Help You Squat
In these difficult times, it’s nice to know that there are still simple answers to some problems. So if you’re having trouble achieving depth in your squats, sometimes you just need a little ankle flexibility. Here are some of the best ways to work on it.
Your ankles determine how deep you can squat
Ankle mobility is important for squats because when your hips and knees flex, your ankles must flex too. The taller you are and the longer your limbs, the more you are likely to notice this. Long thigh bones require flexible ankles.
This is a little different depending on what type of squats you’re doing. If you have stiff ankles, you’ll likely have the most trouble on front squats and high bar squats, and you’ll do slightly better on low bar squats (where the bar is just below the top of your shoulders). This is because each of these squats has slightly different requirements for where different parts of the body need to be to support the weight. Front squats require an upright torso position, and everything else must compensate for this; Low bar back squats allow your torso to lean more, meaning your ankles don’t have to bend as much.
Regardless of the type of squat, better ankle mobility helps. Specifically, you need to have good dorsiflexion, which means the ability to bring the top of your foot toward your shin. Good ankle mobility will make it easy for you to squat deeply and maintain a stable foot position. Without much dorsiflexion, you may not be able to lower your hips as low as you’d like, leaving your heels on the floor.
So how can you solve this problem? There are a few simple fixes: some are quick and some take a little time. While you may be looking forward to heavy barbell squats next time you’re in the gym, all of the following tips apply to bodyweight squats as well. Try them out and see if you feel better doing air squats.
How to Improve Ankle Mobility Without Stretching
In a minute, I’ll give you some stretches to improve your ankle mobility in the long term, but first, let’s talk about what you can do today to compensate for poor ankle mobility. What you can do is raise your heels so that your ankles don’t have to bend too much to get your feet into the correct position.
Stand on small plates
This is a quick and dirty trick that can be performed at any gym without special equipment.
-
Take a couple of small plates, such as 5-pound plates, and place them on the floor in the middle of the squat rack, where your heels would normally be.
-
Remove the bar and carefully step back until you can rest your heels, but not your toes, on the plates.
-
Now squat.
This is not my favorite way to deal with ankle mobility issues, simply because stepping on a very specific spot when you have a lot of weight on the bar is a bit of a treacherous task.
Buy weightlifting shoes.
The best way to elevate your heels is to wear a pair of weightlifting shoes. This means special shoes designed for Olympic weightlifters. (Powerlifters sometimes call them “squat shoes,” but they are the same shoe.) These are not flats like Converse or soft raised heels like running shoes.
Proper weightlifting shoes have a hard plastic or wood heel, usually 3/4 inch high. Their soles are completely flat and make you feel like you are glued to the floor. They’re not comfortable for running or acrobatics, although hybrid shoes like the Metcons tend to split the difference.
Buying weightlifting shoes is a hassle, but a simple one. You probably won’t be able to try them on before purchasing (they’re too “special” to be seen in most sporting goods stores, even though they’re made by name brands), so do your best by doing some online research. , and then buy from a place with a good return policy. I would recommend:
-
Nike Romaleos if you have narrow or medium feet.
-
TYR or Do-Wins if you have medium to wide feet or want a wider toe box.
-
Any brand you like, as long as you’re somewhere in the middle
Stretch your ankle in a squat position
Ankles, like everything else, react to the rolling and stretching of the foam. You can do these exercises before squats and they will help a little right away, but they can also help you improve your flexibility over time.
One of the best and easiest stretches is to simply squat down. If this is already difficult for you, grab a support such as the leg of a squat rack (to prevent you from falling backwards) and pull yourself forward until you feel a stretch in the back of your ankle or calf.
Make this exercise more difficult by adding weight. As Greg Everett shows in this video , you can put on weightlifting shoes and squat down on your forearms, push one knee as far forward as possible, and then do the same for the other.
All the best squat warm-up exercises are variations of this exercise. To apply this pressure, you can use a weight, such as a kettlebell on your knee or an empty barbell strapped to both knees. You can place your foot on a bench and pull the resistance band around your ankle while performing the same stretch. I especially like this program , which involves stretching your hips and holding a weight plate to balance your body weight and stay upright.
Try different versions of this stretch and do them before your next squat. Even if you don’t typically stretch before a workout, targeted stretching like this (for the parts of the body that really need that kind of mobility during a workout) can help you improve your workout . Do more ankle stretches after a workout or on days when you are not exercising to give your ankles an even better chance to develop a new, improved range of motion.