[pct-l] Re: sprained ankle

[bill at woward.com (W. O. Ward)]

Steve:

 

I, too, am no doctor, just a hiker who has battled feet problems for many
years.  Well fit orthotics can never hurt.  However, in my experience they
do little to prevent the "outward rolling" type of injury.  Nor, do higher
boots necessarily help that much.  You can roll and sprain your foot even
inside boots.

 

Take a hard look at the sole shape on your shoes.  The most common cause of
the outward roll is from the foot landing on an uneven surface and having a
sole that is too narrow to counter the rolling motion.  It is a very common
problem among trail runners, especially those wearing super light shoes.
Often you can prevent most occurrences by wearing shoes (or boots) whose
soles are wide enough to provide a stable base whenever they hit down on an
uneven surface.  I always test new shoe styles for this "wide footprint"
attribute before buying.  You can usually tell if the shoe provides the
anti-roll characteristics by trying to force an outward rollover right on
the level floor in the shoe store.  When the shoe is not working properly
you tend to "fall off the sole" towards the outside of the foot.

 

The good news, in my experience, is that a mild sprain of this type usually
heals fast and can be "walked off" by light training within a few days of
the injury.

 

Good luck,

 

Bill

 

 

 

>Date: Tue, 06 Apr 2004 21:56:51 -0600

>From: "Steve Setzer" <steve_pct@hotmail.com>

 

>Bummer!!!!  I sprained my ankle today while out hiking.   And this with a 

>little over two weeks to go until my pct hike!!  Needless to say I'm a bit 

>upset.  But its not the worst sprain and I think I'll be alright by then.