Ankle growth?

[Rolling Elbow]

Hello Friends,..long time no thread starting...

Now I know doctor's always say that penile enlargmenent is a myth.. However, a body part such as the ankles consist of bones. Could the bone not be made to become more dense?! What I mean to say is..the foundation of a tree supports the weight of its branches. If an individual did not inherit thick ankles in his genes, are there any known methods to strenghten and enlarge the ankles so that they provide more stability to the practitioner, athlete, or common Joe?. I know having smaller ankles really screwed me over during my soccer days due to sprains and as$h^les taking me out right at the feet...besides, nothing wrong with wanting to look better too!

..just thought i'd change the pace of the conversation a tad..

[red5angel]

you can make the bone a little more dense, and stronger, just by doing some conditioning. Kicking progressively harder objects chips tghe surface of the bone and makes it calcify, making it harder. To strengthen it you must stretch it and use it more, do speicific excersises. As for getting it bigger, I dont think so.

[BiNKy]

My left ankle makes an insane cracking sound if I rotate it. The volume of the crack is quite impressive. I'm not sure if that makes it a tree trunk though. I like to think of it as the thunder for my lightning fast kicks.

[fgxpanzerz]

There are operations that exist that can extend yor limbs, if that's what u mean. Usually, "little people"(midgets) get these operations. WHy on Earth would u want to make yor ankle bigger?

[Rolling Elbow]

lol,

I'm 6 feet tall, no need for that... i just have found that i have week ankled and that they are narrow near the foot (due of course to genetics)..i think that the weight and movement of the rest of the body might contribute to the snaps and sprains i get easily..that is why i would think that thicker ankles would be more benneficial.

[NomortaL]

gouhue: I know exactly what you mean about feeling the ankle strain in mabu. I'm new to kung fu and after following an instruction to straighten my feet , i can feel the strain in the ankle.

[SaMantis]

RE,

I suffer from weak ankles, too (wearing low-top roller skates as a kid didn't help). Stances have definitely helped.

My doctor also pointed out that my feet have a tendency to pronate (is that the right word?) -- my foot will just roll to the outside when I'm walking/running and I end up with a twisted ankle. She recommended shoes with a wider base that provide more stability. And doing kung fu has made my ankles stronger/more flexible (but not larger) so the few times I've had "rollovers" I haven't been injured.

[Rolling Elbow]

That is interesting to see, but now what i need to know is, what exercises might do this? I also tend to roll my foot to the outside..i think it is because if i ever try to put weight to the inside of the ankle, i feel an unnatural strain..as if the body has not grown or designed itself to handle weight in that area... I do find however, that most of the small sprains that i get in the ankles come from rolling over to the outside if i am caught off balance or if i stumble to the outside (over the outside edge of the foot..twisting in other words)during a hockey game.

[gui_zuozhe.]

i never really thought abnout bones getting bigger.

interesting. i wonder if i could make my feet smaller then. its a reral pain getting shoes to fit me over here.:)

[Laughing Cow]

Rolling Elbow.

I would also say go with Zhang Zhuang training.
Try to get someone to supervise you while you are in the stance.
Start in high stance and go lower as you see fit.

TCC really helped my Wife with her ankle problems too.

Cheers.

[FatherDog]

Calf Raises (http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Gastrocnemius/BBStandingCalfRaise.html) and Reverse Calf Raises (http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/TibialisAnterior/BBReverseCalfRaise.html) will strengthen your ankles' supporting muscles, and like all weight training (or weight/stress in general) will gradually increase bone density of the affected body part.

[SaMantis]

I take back what I said about not being injured ... right after I wrote that I rolled over my ankle in class and sprained the hell out of it.

A month and a half later and it's only just flexible enough to do high-medium horse stance. ******! :mad:

[Former castleva]

A good point has been brought.
As widely known,exercise promotes bone mass growth (this includes running,martial arts or weightlifting as a very effective method.It has to involve resistance) Only sport I can think of which does not do nearly anything to your bones according to statistics is swimming.

That aikido example is a nice one,I have not heard of that shin growth thing personally but I´ve heard a funny note on "freaky thick wrists" of aikido instructors :) due to constant repetition of grabbing movements such as wrist grab escapes and all.

[gnugear]

"Cankles"

When your leg looks like a stump. No separation of calf and ankle.

[Former castleva]

Kneewalking is called "shikko",while you do not groundfight in aiki you do fight from your knees (suwariwaza)
It is designed to strengthen your legs and hips for better control.


Hapkido guys might have those wrists too since they do many similar,if not identical techniques. :)

[Cashier Graham]

I twisted my ankle about a month back, it swelled up right nice :) However this is temporary and I don't recommend it. But in addition to whats been said - jumping of high things and later with weights or higher things.

[IronFist]

I didn't read the other responses, but I think I read a study or something once that said that repetitive impact to a bone makes it more dense. They said gymnasts had more dense foot bones than regular people, or something.

IronFist