Q&A: Coaching Mobility and Improving Ankle Function, Part 1
Recently we received the following questions from our audience:
From @chris_eaton: “How do you coach mobility/prescribe it?”
From @jan_sharkt: “How do you improve ankle mobility?”
In this two part series we are going to try to comprehensively answer these two questions. In Part 1, we will look at things from a macro perspective of prescribing training for movement. To illustrate our movement coaching principles, we will explain our TTT Programming Process taught in our coaching courses and share a generic example training session focused on improving ankle mobility.
In Part 2, on-site physical therapist and TTT coach Kyle Habdo, walks me through three example exercises aimed at improving the function of the foot and ankle. The foot and ankle are incredibly complex and we felt it would be beneficial to share some of the nuance of that joint.
Let’s begin:
First things first, let’s address Chris’s big picture question: “how do you coach mobility / prescribe it”. In order to answer this question, you need to understand how we think about the coaching process. Below you will find an excerpt from the TTT Movement Manual that explains our system for writing movement training programs at a holistic level:
The Programming Process
Having a programming process is one way to ensure long-term client progress. A process in this context means having a set of steps to guide your decision making when creating a training program. Similar to performing an assessment, effective programming follows a step-by-step process. First, you need to assess your client and evaluate their needs using the assessment guidelines we laid out in Chapter-2. The second step is to use the assessment information to organize priorities and construct a training program. The third step is to monitor feedback and results from the client to ensure that you are seeing the desired changes from the training program.
In order to have a clear language to talk about the programming process, we label the three steps as: Assessment, Constructing the Training Program, and Feedback. Below you will find a graphical representation outlining the programming process. Each of these steps exists as part of a continuous loop, indicated by the arrows. The assessment informs the training program, the training program drives adaptations, you gather results and feedback about those adaptations, and then you reassess the client to create the next variation of the program.
Now that you understand a little bit about how we coach movement, let us add in Jan’s question about the ankle and apply the information we just laid out. Here is how I would take that macro programming process and specifically apply it to improving the function of the ankle joint.
Step 1: Assessment
A proper assessment encompasses a full discussion with the athlete, an evaluation of the needs associated with their given sport, a comprehensive movement screen, and if we were dealing with a competitive athlete, we would follow up with an evaluation of their performance within their chosen sport. Because we are not dealing with a real person, I cannot show this process in full. However, these are the things I would be trying to discover in my assessment with regards to the ankle:
Assessment Part 1: The Consult
In my first discussion with this athlete, I would ask questions about anything that could influence the ankle joint. I would also want to dig into their past training, current fitness level, and future goals. In this step, I am trying to get some insights into the following:
General: Age, height, weight, health complications, etc
Training specific: Injury history, past training, performance goals, etc
Personal: Patience, willingness to try new things, how they think about movement, etc
Assessment Part 2: Needs Analysis
As I am going through my initial consult with the athlete, I am also trying to understand what the athlete needs to be able to do. With regards to the ankle, I would want to have a better understanding of a variety of task related things including:
Forces they need to produce/absorb. (heavy loads, fast speed, etc)
Planes of motion required for sport (turning, rotating, bending, flexing, locomoting, etc)
Ranges of motion they need (dorsi flexion versus plantar flexion versus tibial rotation)
Contraction volume they need to prepare for (marathon versus sprinting for example)
Assessment Part 3: Movement Screen
After I have gotten to know the athlete and their goals, I walk them through some general movement screening. Here is a non-comprehensive list of some example screens that I might use specifically for the ankle and what they might tell me:
Kneeling dorsiflexion test: Passive range of motion in the ankle
Ankle joint rotation (link): Control of the ankle joint and right to left balance
Standing single leg balance (link): Balance on single leg support
* Shrimp squat (link): Functional strength in single leg support
* Pistol squat (link): Single leg functional strength and mobility
* for advanced athletes only
To learn more about the movement screening process, we have provided the full TTT 6 Movement Screen system in the Coaching Movement course free preview. You can access that here:
Assessment Part 4: Sport specific analysis
After I have taken someone through a basic movement screen, I might ask them to show me some of the movements they experience in sport. In terms of ankle requirements for CrossFit athletes, that might include rebounding box jumps, pistol squats, and snatches. If someone was an athlete in another sport, like American football, I may ask them to push sleds, sprint, jump, and watch them play their sport. This can give me insight into their ankle function in a sport specific task.
All of the information above is part of the assessment process. In order to write an effective training program that can help someone improve the function of the ankle, you need to have details to construct your program. For example, if they are a 6’5” athlete who is trying to squat 500 pounds that is going to be a challenging problem to solve in training. If they are a gymnast that needs to run, jump, and land after acrobatics, that is an entirely different range of motion and force profile to prepare for. Even further, if they are recovering from an achilles tendon rupture that is a drastically more difficult training challenge to overcome than if their ankle is “a little stiff.” This information gathering process is essential to taking the next step in the coaching process.
Step 2: Construct Training Program
When it comes to changing the way people move, in the TTT movement course we have created a ‘tool box’ consisting of 24 different movement methods that you can use to improve the way someone moves. These main categories are listed below and an explanation as to how they can be used to improve ankle mobility:
Breathing: One of the most important tools in the coaching toolbox that can be used to change movement patterns.
Stretching & end-range isometrics: Yoga, PNF, banded distraction, etc are all proven systems that increase the range of motion one has in their body.
Joint rotations: While it may sound simple to athletes, you’d be surprised how many high level athletes are unable to control the isolated range of motion in their joints.
Flow: Watch this as an example of flow from someone I like. This type of free flowing motion can really help stiff people move with more ease.
Ground-based movement: Entire movement systems, like DNS, are based on how we interact with and get off the ground.
Technique work: Mindful practice to refine motion will often open up new ranges and movement strategies.
Water-based movement: Getting in the water lowers gravity which allows for rehab drills, low level plyometrics, or increases in CO2 tolerance which can lower systemic tension.
Here is a sample training day using some of these tools:
A. Laying diaphragmatic breathing @4444 - 5 min
→ The why: To lower systemic tension
B1. Calf raise; 2 sets of 30; rest as needed.
→ The why: ^ blood flow & fatigue to lower leg
B2. Anterior tib raise; 2 sets of 50; rest as needed
→ The why: ^ blood flow & fatigue to lower leg
C1. Elevated single leg calf stretch; 2 min/side x2
→ The why: Long duration stretching to improve mobility
C2. Seated joint rotations; 2 reps/side x2
→ The why: Actively use increased ranges and relax
D1. Kneeling dorsi flexion; 2 min/side x2
→ The why: Different angles of stretch than C1
D2. Seated joint rotations; 2 reps/side x2
→ The why: Actively use increased ranges and relax
F. OHS @2511; 8 reps x3; rest as needed
→ The why: Integrate ^ ranges into a performance movement
G. Laying diaphragmatic breathing @4444 - 5 min
→ The why: To lower systemic tension
As discussed before this training program is hypothetical as I didn’t actually assess someone to construct it. When I wrote the session I imagined it as someone whose body is a bit stiff but wants to improve their range of motion for complex movements like an overhead squat. After they complete session 1, they would report their results back to me, which is the next step of the coaching process.
Step 3: Feedback
After they go through the training program, I expect the athlete to communicate with me about the training program they went through. Creating a significant range of motion increase takes time. So, it is important to set expectations with athletes that it can take months, if not years, to improve. This feedback process is going is aimed at answering these questions:
Did they enjoy the training?
Did they feel the training was an effective stimulus?
How challenging was the training session on a scale of 1-10?
Should I regress, progress, or maintain training volume in the next training session?
Are any of the movements not possible for them to execute?
Step 4: Continue the Loop
As I get feedback from the athletes, I am assessing that information to continue my program design process, which then leads me to receive new feedback and to continue the circular nature of coaching.
In Conclusion
Dear Jan and Chris,
I hope that this comprehensively answers your questions regarding coaching and prescribing movement training at Training Think Tank. As discussed, this was a theoretical training example so it might not capture all of the nuance. In fact, TTT coach Kyle Habdo felt compelled to dive a little bit deeper into the anatomical considerations of the ankle. Inspired by continued education he took with Gary Ward, Part 2 of our answer is going to give you three exercises that can be used to improve joint position and awareness of the ankle. In the generic training program above, some of our movement training tools may not create the desired outcomes due to the joints not being able to get into specific positions to leverage muscles better. This can lead to bony blocks and ineffective mobility training. If you are interested to continue the deep dive on ankle mobility, check out Part 2.
Thank you for asking questions and participating in our community. Continue to develop your nerdy coaching self.
