Yoga guide
Yoga can help your ankles in one way above all: its one-leg poses are a gentle form of balance training, and balance training is the best-proven exercise for steadier ankles, cutting repeat sprains in trials. Lunges and downward dog bend the ankle too, though stretching adds only a few degrees over weeks, and yoga barely works the muscles at the front of your shin, so a few calf and toe raises fill the gap. No randomised trial has tested yoga on the ankle itself.
Yoga doesn't replace physiotherapy after a sprain or a break, and swollen ankles need their cause found, not more poses. This guide covers what stiff, weak and wobbly ankles are, the knee-to-wall test, what changes range and balance and by how much, the strength moves to add, swollen ankles and when they need checking, how yoga fits after a sprain, the classes to follow and the warning signs.
Calf stretching added about 2 to 3 degrees of ankle bend in pooled trials, less than the knee-to-wall test's own measuring error, and the ankle may gain less than other joints because bone and ligament also limit it. Slow, full-range calf raises improved ankle bend about as much as stretching, and built strength too.
After a sprain, an 8-week home balance programme cut repeat sprains from 33% to 22%, and across 7 trials balance training cut ankle sprains by about a third, mainly in people who had sprained before. For people who have never sprained, the evidence is inconclusive.
One-leg poses load the ankle most, and work the shin and calf muscles harder than the thigh. We found no randomised trial of yoga that measured ankle range or strength, or tested yoga for a sprain or an ankle that keeps giving way.
In one lab study of 20 older adults, none of 21 poses loaded the shin muscles that lift the foot, while all of them loaded the calf. Toe raises, heel walks and band work fill the gap, as our strengthen your ankles guide sets out.
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Across 16 prospective studies of 3,636 athletes, ankle range didn't predict sprains, while a previous sprain did. In older adults, foot pain and weak toes predicted falls, while the findings for ankle range were inconsistent.
The NHS lists heart, kidney and liver problems and blood clots among the causes, alongside standing or sitting still for too long, salty food and some medicines. Its self-care is to raise your legs and get gentle exercise such as walking; we found no study of legs up the wall for swelling.
The true ankle bends the foot up (dorsiflexion) and points it down; the joint below it rolls the sole in and out, as our ankle and foot joint page explains. Everyday life asks most of bending the foot up with your weight on it: the knee travelling over the toes in squats, lunges, stairs and walking. Yoga asks less than people think: in 20 experienced practitioners, the front ankle bent about 10 degrees in crescent lunge and the back ankle about 14 degrees in warrior I.
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The calves point the foot and push you off; the peroneals on the outside of the lower leg turn the foot out and resist rolling over; tibialis anterior at the front of the shin lifts the foot; and tibialis posterior on the inside supports the arch. Every pose measured in older adults loaded the calf side and none the muscles that lift the foot. In one-leg poses the shin and calf muscles worked harder than the thigh, and warrior II loaded the muscles that turn the foot out most.
Stiff usually means less ankle bend than you'd like, measured with the knee-to-wall (weight-bearing lunge) test: how far your big toe can be from a wall while your knee touches it, heel down. Testers agree well, but a change has to be more than about 1.6 to 1.9 cm to be sure it isn't measuring error. Healthy young adults averaged 11.9 cm in one study of 35; in 105 recreational athletes, people without a past sprain reached about 10.4 to 12.2 cm and people with one about 8.9 to 9.9 cm. In 899 adults, scores fell with age, more steeply from the 60s.
Researchers call it chronic ankle instability: a significant sprain at least a year ago, then repeated giving way, repeat sprains or a feeling of instability, confirmed by a questionnaire. In one group of 70 people after a first sprain, 40% went on to it. These ankles are weaker at turning the foot in and out, in studies that compared people at one point in time.
Standing on one leg uses your eyes, your inner ear and the sensors in your feet and ankles, with the muscles from foot to hip correcting the sway. Our yoga for balance guide covers balance and falls.
Across 5 trials of healthy people, calf stretching added about 2 to 3 degrees of ankle bend; the authors called the gain small and its importance unclear. Across 23 studies, both held stretching and heel raise exercises added range.
Across 77 studies, the calf's gain from stretching was smaller than the hamstrings' and hip flexors', though the difference wasn't significant; the authors put it down to the ankle's bones and ligaments.
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In 36 untrained men, 6 weeks of full-range calf raises improved ankle bend about as much as calf stretching, and only the raises built strength and calf muscle.
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Range from regular stretching stays above where you started 2 to 6 weeks after you stop, but slips from its peak, mostly in people who aren't otherwise active.
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Across 16 prospective studies of 3,636 athletes, ankle range didn't predict sprains in men or women, while a previous sprain did. In 176 older adults followed for a year, fallers had stiffer ankles, but only weak toe muscles and disabling foot pain stayed linked to falls once other risks were counted. A 2026 review of 14 cohorts found foot pain and weak toes predicted falls, while the findings for ankle range, from 2 studies, were inconsistent.
In 522 athletes after a sprain, an unsupervised 8-week balance-board programme, 3 sessions a week of up to 30 minutes, cut repeat sprains over a year from 33% to 22%: one fewer for every 9 people who did it, even though only 23% fully completed it.
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Across 7 trials of 3,726 people, balance training cut ankle sprains by about a third, mostly in people who had sprained before. For people who never had, the authors called the evidence inconclusive.
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The US physiotherapy guideline recommends a brace plus balance-focused exercise after a first sprain, and balance and strength exercise for an ankle that keeps giving way, both at its highest grade. For people who have never sprained, its support for balance training is weaker.
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Balance training improved self-rated stability and reach balance across 9 trials, and in 20 studies the best results came with about 3 sessions a week of 20 to 30 minutes for 4 to 6 weeks. Across 58 trials, balance and strength training both helped function, and an umbrella review rated the gain in moving balance as moderate certainty. None of these reviews pooled repeat sprains.
Ankles that keep giving way are weaker at turning the foot in and out. Yoga loads the calf but, in one lab study of 20 older adults, not the shin muscles that lift the foot, so calf raises, toe raises, heel walks and band work add what poses leave out.
Across 6 trials of 307 people aged 60 and over, yoga improved balance by a small amount. A 2026 review of 21 studies found the gain in moving balance was no longer clear once it allowed for small missing studies.
Across 108 trials, exercise, mainly balance and functional exercise, cut the rate of falls in older people by about a quarter. The review had no separate result for yoga, so yoga hasn't been shown to prevent falls.
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Our searches of PubMed, Europe PMC and ClinicalTrials.gov found no randomised trial of yoga that measured ankle range or strength, or tested yoga for a sprain or an ankle that keeps giving way, with published results. One registered trial in 28 footballers finished in February 2025 and has posted no results.
An 8-week beginners' class improved some balance measures in middle-aged and older adults with a past sprain, with no comparison group. In a 10-person pilot, only 4 of them with unstable ankles, there was no clear change in ankle bend or in how stable people felt. A soccer team that did 10 weeks of yoga differed from a baseball team by 9.4 degrees of ankle bend in a lunge, in a study that wasn't randomised. Encouraging, not proof.
Of the standing poses measured in 20 practitioners, one-leg poses loaded the ankle most, half moon the most of all. In tree, half moon and warrior III, the shin and calf muscles worked harder than the thigh. In 20 older adults, standing poses loaded the calf at only 32% to 56% of walking's peak.
The NHS says swelling in the ankles, feet or legs often goes away on its own. Causes include standing or sitting in the same position for too long, salty food, being overweight, pregnancy, some medicines, varicose veins and thyroid problems, but also an injury, an infection, problems with your kidneys, liver or heart, or a blood clot. Treatment for swelling that doesn't go away depends on the cause.
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Raise your legs on a chair or pillows when you can, get some gentle exercise such as walking, wear wide, comfortable shoes, and don't stand or sit for long periods.
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We found no study of legs up the wall for swelling. In 9 healthy women, 15 minutes with the legs up a wall shrank the lower leg least of three leg-raising positions, and was the least comfortable. A nursing review says the cause of swelling has to be found first.
In 100 factory workers with long-term leg vein problems, 12 weeks of yoga eased their symptoms but didn't change ankle or calf size. Calf exercise improved the calf muscle's pumping of blood in small trials.
Swelling in one ankle with no clear cause, swelling that is sudden, painful, hot or red, or swelling with breathlessness or chest pain needs help: the warning signs below give the NHS's words. With heart failure, or kidney or liver disease that causes fluid build-up, the legs up the wall page says to ask your doctor first.
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After a sprain, follow your rehab plan: early, protected movement and exercise come first, and our yoga for a sprained ankle guide covers when to start each pose, with its own class. Most sprains feel better within 2 weeks, but the NHS advises avoiding strenuous exercise such as running for up to 8 weeks.
After a broken ankle or ankle surgery, follow your fracture clinic's or surgeon's plan. Yoga doesn't replace physiotherapy, a fracture clinic's plan or a return-to-sport plan; it can sit alongside them once your team agrees. Our ankle sprain, broken ankle and chronic ankle instability guides cover the injuries themselves.
Ankle CARs (controlled articular rotations): "5 slow circles each way with each ankle, morning and evening (our editorial starting point)." (from the move page's dose). Relaxed ankle circles: "10 slow circles each way with each foot (our editorial starting point)." (from the move page's dose). Knee-to-wall rock: "10 slow rocks per side, daily" (the move page's dose). Downward dog: 2 holds of 5 breaths, knees bent first, then one heel at a time (our yoga for the calves class). Deep squat: 30 to 60 seconds holding a door frame, a folded mat under your heels if they lift (our ankle mobility routine).
Wall calf stretch, knee straight, and soleus stretch, knee bent: 2 holds of 30 seconds each side (our ankle mobility routine), to a clear pull, easing off a pinch at the front of the ankle. Our yoga for the calves guide has more.
Slow calf raises 2 sets of 12 to 15, 3 seconds up and 3 down, holding a wall, and tibialis (toe) raises 2 sets of 15, back against a wall (our ankle mobility routine). Heel walks: 10 metres (our balance exercises routine). Band ankle turns out and in: 8 each side, slowly, in a pain-free range (our foot and ankle strengthening routine). Pressing the foot outwards against a wall, the first step after a sprain: 8 to 12 holds of about 6 seconds (our yoga for a sprained ankle guide).
3D demoSlow calf raiseBeginner · A wall
3D demoTibialis raiseBeginner · No equipment
3D demoHeel walkBeginner · No equipment
3D demoBand ankle eversionBeginner · A band + A bench or box
3D demoBand ankle inversionBeginner · A band + A bench or box
3D demoIsometric ankle eversion against a wallBeginner · A wall + A bench or boxMountain pose: "Stand for 5 to 10 slow breaths, 2 or 3 times. Once you feel steady, add a round with your eyes closed, within reach of a wall (our editorial starting point)." (the move page's dose). Tandem stance 30 seconds each way round, then 10 heel-to-toe steps, fingertips on a counter, then off (our yoga for balance class). One-leg stand up to 30 seconds each leg, 2 or 3 times, and tree pose 2 holds of 20 to 30 seconds each side, fingertips on a wall (our yoga for a sprained ankle class). Warrior III 3 breaths each side, twice, hands on a chair (our yoga for balance class); half moon 3 to 5 breaths each side, bottom hand on a block (our yoga for legs class). Reach matrix: "3 rounds of 5 reaches in each direction, each leg (our editorial starting point)." (from the move page's dose), once one-leg standing with your eyes closed is steady. Balance board, optional: "Several holds of 20 to 30 seconds on most days (our editorial starting point)." (from the move page's dose).
3D demoMountain pose (Tadasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoTandem stance and heel-to-toe walkBeginner · A wall
3D demoSingle-leg standBeginner · A wall
3D demoTree pose (Vrksasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoWarrior III (Virabhadrasana III)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoHalf moon pose (Ardha Chandrasana)Advanced · A step
3D demoSingle-leg reach matrixIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoBalance board standBeginner · Other / check instructionsSlow breathing 1 minute, in for about 4 and out for about 6 (our yoga for a sprained ankle class); legs up the wall 2 minutes, for tired legs rather than as a treatment for swelling (our yoga for the calves class); corpse pose 2 to 3 minutes (our yoga for a sprained ankle and calves classes).
Follow the stages in our yoga for a sprained ankle guide, and let lotus, half lotus, sitting on your feet, jumps and one-leg poses on the injured side wait (our suggestion, from that guide's poses to change).
The knee-to-wall rock's page says: "After a broken ankle or ankle surgery, follow your team's advice on when to start."
Tree pose's page says: "With numb feet, keep a hand on a counter or wall." With diabetes, check your feet after practice (our suggestion).
The ankle CARs page says: "A sharp pinch at the front of the ankle means work the smaller pain free range instead." If it keeps happening, our anterior ankle impingement guide covers it.
Hero pose points the foot fully, but its page says to "Sit high enough for no knee sensation and use your hands to sit down and rise", and: "Skip it, or clear it with a clinician first, if you have had meniscus or ligament surgery or if the kneecap hurts." It isn't needed for the ankles.
The slow calf raise's page says: "With pain in the ball of the foot or big toe arthritis, stop short of full tiptoe."
Hops and springs come after strength, for running and sport, as our strengthen your ankles guide orders them (our suggestion).
Downward dog's page says: "If you have glaucoma or uncontrolled high blood pressure, keep head-down positions brief". Legs up the wall's page says: "With glaucoma, ask your eye doctor first: eye pressure rises a little in this position. With high blood pressure that isn't under control, don't raise your hips."
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Our editorial plan, following the progression of the home balance programme that cut repeat sprains (two feet, one foot, eyes closed, a softer surface) and our yoga for a sprained ankle class's levels. It's a starting point, not a prescription.
See the movement on the 3D figure: Single-leg stand
For balance, our yoga for balance class; for both calf stretches with calf raises, the yoga for the calves class; after a sprain, the yoga for a sprained ankle class. For range and strength, the ankle mobility and foot and ankle strengthening routines, which aren't yoga. The chair yoga classes are gentler options.
Thirty minutes of standing yoga for balance: strong standing poses, one-leg poses at the wall, and side steps, backward steps, reaches and sit-to-stands.
30 minBeginner16 movesWall, bench or boxA 25-minute yoga class for tight calves: ankle circles, calf raises, one-leg balance, then stretches for both calf muscles, knee straight and bent.
25 minBeginner15 movesWall, bench or boxA 25-minute yoga class after an ankle sprain: ankle range, calf and ankle strength, short standing poses and a one-leg balance progression, with no jumping.
25 minBeginner16 movesBench or box, wallA 12-minute routine to improve how far your ankle bends: test it against a wall, rock it, stretch both calf muscles, strengthen through the full range, then use it.
12 minBeginner8 movesWall, stepA 15-minute barefoot routine for stronger toes, arches, calves and ankles, finishing with balance. You need only a towel, a wall and a resistance band.
15 minBeginner11 movesWall, other / check instructionsBalance practice in 10 minutes: tandem stance, single-leg stands, marches, heel walks, tree pose and floor transfers.
10 minBeginner7 movesWall, bench or boxA 25-minute Pilates class for the weeks after a sprained ankle: footwork on a wall, band work in every direction, side-lying hip work and a balance progression.
25 minBeginner18 movesBench or box, wallA 40-minute strength and balance session for over-65s, built from the Otago home programme and NHS exercises, using a chair, a counter and a step.
40 minBeginner18 movesBench or box, something with weightA free 20-minute chair yoga class for older adults: slow breathing, gentle seated stretches and twists, standing poses holding the chair, and a calm finish.
20 minBeginner18 movesBench or box, something with weightA 15-minute chair yoga routine done entirely sitting: slow breathing, neck, shoulder and wrist stretches, seated twists and side bends, and a calm finish.
15 minBeginner16 movesBench or boxFor older adults, a week of strength and balance work.
Legs up the wall's page says: "From the end of the first trimester of pregnancy, or if lying flat makes you dizzy, prop your upper body on cushions or skip it." Our yoga in pregnancy guide covers what changes as a pregnancy goes on, including swelling.
If you're hypermobile, don't use mobility work to push further: the NHS says "do not overextend your joints just because you can". See a GP if you think you have joint hypermobility syndrome: for example, your joints keep dislocating, or you keep getting sprains, strains, pain or stiffness.
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See your GP first if you get chest pain, breathlessness or dizziness when you are active, if you have a heart condition and want to exercise harder, or if you have had a fall.
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These are the site's lines from our yoga for a sprained ankle, ankle pain and other guides, word for word. This is general information, not a diagnosis. A&E means accident and emergency; in the US, call 911 for 999, and use your doctor's urgent line or urgent care for NHS 111.
Call 999 or go to A&E: a foot or leg that is suddenly cold, pale, numb, weak or very painful without an injury. A sudden loss of blood supply is a vascular emergency.
Same day (NHS 111 or an urgent treatment centre): after an injury, you can't put weight on it or walk more than a few steps, the pain is very bad or getting worse, there is a lot of swelling or bruising or it is getting worse, it feels very stiff, or it's not feeling any better after treating it yourself. Get the same help if you also have a very high temperature, or feel hot, cold or shivery: this could be an infection. If you think it's broken, don't treat it yourself.
Contact NHS 111: after an injury, severe ankle pain, feeling faint, dizzy or sick from the pain, a snap, grinding or popping noise at the time of the injury, the ankle or foot at an odd angle, or not being able to walk. These might be signs of a broken ankle or an infection.
Same day: a sudden snap or pop at the back of the heel or calf, or a feeling of being kicked there, then walking flat-footed and being unable to push off, stand on tiptoe or climb stairs. It could be an Achilles tendon rupture or a broken heel bone. Go to A&E or a minor injuries unit, or contact NHS 111.
Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 if you have swelling in 1 ankle, foot or leg and you don't know what's causing it; a lot of swelling after an injury, or swelling that is getting worse; swelling that is severe, painful or starts very suddenly; swelling in other parts of your body too, such as your face or tummy; a swollen area that is red or feels hot; a very high temperature, or you feel hot, cold or shivery; or diabetes and swollen feet or ankles. Call 999 if you also feel short of breath or are struggling to breathe, your chest feels tight, heavy or painful, you're coughing up blood, your heartbeat is more noticeable (palpitations), or you feel lightheaded, faint, confused, sick or clammy.
Same day (urgent GP appointment or NHS 111): throbbing pain in one leg (rarely both), usually the calf or thigh; swelling in one leg (rarely both); red, blue or darkened skin around the painful area, which may be harder to see on brown or black skin; or swollen veins. It could be a blood clot (DVT). Watch for it after an ankle injury or time in a cast or boot.
Same day: in a cast or boot, pain that is getting worse, toes that are numb or burning, a cast that feels too tight, toes that are swollen, blue or white, or a bad smell from under the cast.
Both ankles, feet or legs swollen, and it hasn't improved after a few days of looking after it at home, it gets worse, or you have a condition that affects your heart, kidneys or leg veins: see a GP.
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Call 999 if:
Call 999 or go to A&E (accident and emergency) straight away for severe difficulty breathing (gasping, choking or not able to get words out), a chest that feels tight or heavy, pain that spreads to your arms, back, neck and jaw, lips or skin turning very pale, blue or grey, or sudden confusion. If you're more short of breath than usual, or your heart is racing, fluttering or skipping beats, contact NHS 111.
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If you get chest pain or pressure, feel faint or dizzy, are unusually breathless, or your heart races or beats irregularly during exercise, as our plans advise.
A joint pain that is sharp, gets worse during a session, lingers into the next day or changes how you move is a reason to use an easier version, and to see a GP or physiotherapist if it keeps happening (the rule in our plans). Muscle soreness for a day or two after something new is normal. In a hot class, stop if you feel dizzy, sick or unwell; our hot yoga guide lists the signs of heat illness.
You can say no to any hands-on adjustment, and a teacher registered with Yoga Alliance must get your explicit consent each time.
With glaucoma, or high blood pressure that isn't under control, skip headstands, shoulder stands and long head-down holds. With osteoporosis, swap deep forward folds for a flat-back hinge from the hips, and twist smoothly. In pregnancy, our yoga in pregnancy guide covers the changes. NCCIH advises beginners to avoid headstands, shoulder stands, the lotus position and forceful breathing.
The NHS advises getting advice from a healthcare professional first if you have a health problem, an injury or symptoms, or have recently had a heart attack or an operation.
If you have a heart, lung or joint condition, are pregnant or have recently been unwell, start gently and read our guide for your condition. Muscle soreness for a day or two after a new exercise is common and fades as you repeat it.
If you have a heart condition, follow your cardiac team's advice on how hard to work, and stop for the warning signs above. People with long-term conditions may wish to ask their specialist before starting. With uncontrolled high blood pressure, avoid straining against a held breath; the high blood pressure guide has more.
No randomised trial has tested yoga for an ankle that keeps giving way. What steadies an unstable ankle is balance and strength training, and yoga's one-leg poses can be that balance training if you make them harder step by step.
Across 16 prospective studies of athletes, ankle range didn't predict sprains in men or women, while a previous sprain did.
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Stretching didn't prevent sports injuries across 25 trials, while balance training cut ankle sprains by about a third.
We found no study of the pose for swelling, and in a small lab study it shrank the lower leg least of three leg-raising positions. Find the cause first; the NHS suggests raising your legs on a chair or pillows, and walking.
We found no study of inverted poses for swelling. Raising your foot on cushions does the same job without the neck and eye cautions of shoulder stands, as our yoga for a sprained ankle guide also says.
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In experienced practitioners, the ankle bent only about 10 to 14 degrees in common standing poses. Blocks, a folded mat under your heels and shorter stances make room for stiff ankles (our suggestion).
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Yes, as part of a mix. Yoga's one-leg poses are a gentle form of balance training, the best-proven exercise for steadier ankles, and its standing poses work the calves. It adds little ankle range on its own and barely works the shin muscles, so add calf and toe raises.
One-leg poses such as tree, warrior III and half moon load the ankle most, and downward dog and lunges bend it. Add ankle circles, knee-to-wall rocks and calf and toe raises, as in our ankle mobility routine.
No randomised trial has tested it. Balance and strength training help an ankle that keeps giving way, and yoga's one-leg poses can be the balance part if you make them harder step by step. If an ankle still gives way months after a sprain, see a GP or physiotherapist.
Calf stretches with the knee straight and bent, knee-to-wall rocks and slow full-range calf raises, on most days; expect a few degrees over 4 to 8 weeks. Retest with the knee-to-wall test every few weeks, since changes under about 1.6 to 1.9 cm can be measuring error.
Not on the evidence: in prospective studies, ankle range didn't predict sprains, while a previous sprain did. Balance training is what cuts sprains, mostly repeat ones.
Yes, in stages, alongside your rehab: gentle movement first, then standing poses, then one-leg balance. Our yoga for a sprained ankle guide and class cover when to start; get it checked first if you heard a crack or can't put weight on it.
Not directly. The NHS suggests raising your legs and gentle exercise such as walking, but a yoga trial in people with leg vein problems didn't change ankle size. One swollen ankle with no clear cause, or swelling with breathlessness, needs help: see the warning signs.
We found no study showing it drains swelling, and in a small lab study it shrank the lower leg least of three leg-raising positions. With heart failure, or kidney or liver disease that causes fluid build-up, ask your doctor first, as the pose's page says.
Two or 3 times a week, making it a little harder each week; the trial that cut repeat sprains used 3 sessions a week for 8 weeks. Add strength work on at least 2 days a week.
Yes, with a wall or counter in reach. Yoga improved balance a little in people over 60, though it hasn't been shown to prevent falls; balance and functional exercise cut falls by about a quarter. See your GP first if you've had a fall or feel dizzy when active.
A pinch rather than a stretch in the calf suggests the front of the joint is meeting, so ease the depth rather than pushing into it, as the ankle CARs and soleus stretch pages say. If it keeps happening, our anterior ankle impingement guide covers it.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. If you are pregnant, have a health condition such as glaucoma, high blood pressure or osteoporosis, or have had recent surgery, check with a doctor, midwife or physiotherapist before starting, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
