New to Fencing - Bad Ankles

[DFalkoff]

Hi Everyone,
I just started taking fencing classes last week and so far I am loving it. Even convinced my girlfriend to give it a shot. Here’s my question. I have a history of spraining both of my ankles. Started back in highschool playing basketball and it seems they have just gotten weaker. Almost anytime I push myself to my limit in sport that involves jumping or changing direction it seems like I end up spraining my ankle. I have purchased a pretty good ankle brace and I’m wondering which ankle is most likely to get sprained. What are your thoughts?

Thanks,

[TBean]

Over the course of a long time in fencing I have sprained both my front and back foot ankles a few times, although the back foot more frequently and often more severely. When learning the sport, focus on the footwork, picking your feet up and learning to place your feet down properly. Landing your lunge with your front foot facing forward. Exaggerating this (somewhat) in the beginning will help train your muscles, and hopefully lead to less injuries. My ankle injuries have occurred when I was tired and sort of dragging my feet along or turning my front hip both causing poor foot placement.

I recommend - if you have not already - going and seeing a sports medicine doctor. Perhaps with physical therapy you can strengthen the ankles to the point where braces are not necessary. This might not be the case - I know because even with PT I still need a light brace on my back foot - but you should at least give it try if you have not done so before this.

[oiuyt]

In fencing the rear ankle is usually the one that ends up with problems in my experience (personal and observational).

During college I had ankle problems. By the end of my four years there I was wearing braces on both ankles for all practices/competitions.

After college I went off to grad school. I continued fencing with the collegiate club at my new school, but the practicing tempo was considerably reduced (5x/week on a varsity team to 3x/week on what was at the time a not-very-intense club team). I chose to start that year without the braces. Between taking it a bit easy to start and the decreased training I didn't have any problems. My ankles strengthened considerably during that year.

Now my ankles are much stronger than they were when I was in school. I don't have problems with them and have had one sprain of any note in the past decade. While I have limited data, I believe that consistently using the braces was detrimental to me. They allowed my ankles to weaken and rely on the support they provided.

I believe that braces have an important role to play during recovery, but, absent a specific physiological issue which is not correctable, that they tend to be counter-productive in chronic use. During the period immediately following the one sprain I suffered the past decade (occurring last April) I used a brace routinely for about a week and during sporting activities for the next couple of weeks. I kept it in my fencing bag for another month or so after that as back-up insurance that I hoped I wouldn't have to use.

I am not a medical expert or an athletic trainer. I highly recommend having discussions with one or more professionals in the field to help decide what is best for any given case or specific person.

-B

[larkascending]

Welcome to fnet!

In my pre-fencing life, I sprained my right ankle pretty badly several times. Like you, I've experienced permanent weakness in that ankle. When I started fencing, I didn't reallly see how the footwork could make it worse, and expected my front ankle (I'm left-handed) to be more prone to twisting. Well, a few months later, I've lightly twisted my right ankle a few times, so now I won't fence unless I have this on (full disclosure: if I lost it, I actually probably would still fence until I got another one, but I wouldn't be happy about going without).

I got it at the University hospital after my worst sprain yet- fourth degree, bruises bigger than my hand that spread all the way down to the other side of my foot, physical therapy needed, MRIs to check that all the ligaments were intact, etc. It does a really good job of limiting my ankle's ability to roll to either side without cutting off the circulation or inhibiting my ability to completely flex. While it's not exactly tiny, it fits into my sneakers just fine.

If you feel both your ankles are compromised, I recommend wearing a brace on each one. Fencing is all about quick footwork and changes of direction, and hobbling around to see doctors post-injury is not fun.

[Allen Evans]

I agree with Brad's observations, with a few more notes of my own:

Good shoes are important while your angles are strengthing. This means a decent court shoe (not a running shoe, and not most fencing shoes) that provides support for your ankle and allows proper placement of your feet while doing footwork. Get your feet measured, and get the right sized shoe. If you have severe ankle problems, go to a higher end store specializing in athletic shoes, not a generic mall shoe store and have them watch you place your feet while walking, jogging, running. You might need corrective inserts to assist with proper foot landing.

Good footwork technique is important. The biggest thing I see as a coach with beginning fencers who have ankle problems are poorly fitting shoes coupled with footwork that's done too fast and with poor technique. Almost always a receipe for ankle or foot injuries.

[prototoast]

In addition to the (very good) suggestions so far about strengthening your ankles, proper form, and good shoes, watch out for hazards. I messed up my ankle one time when I went to a competition at a club that had very slippery floors. When my rear foot would slip, it would end up getting twisted pretty hard. By the end of the day, it was messed up enough so that it hurt for the next month or two. In retrospect, I probably just shouldn't have fenced there.

My worst fencing (and ankle) injury came from lunging and landing on my opponent's foot. Sprained it pretty good there. I wouldn't say that is particularly high on the fencing risks totem, but if you're particularly concerned about your ankle 1) keep good distance and 2) tape your ankles. In a lot of other sports (particularly basketball where jumping and landing on other people is common), taping the ankles is an everyday practice and most players wouldn't even consider going out on the court without it. If you're worried about your ankles, no reason you couldn't do the same thing.

[DFalkoff]

Thanks for all of the great advice everyone.