details on icing and compression for ankels?

30-60 Minutes is too long for ice, try alternating 15 minutes on and at least 15 minutes off.  Also, since it has been 5 weeks since the injury I'd get rid of the bandage.  After this long its probably time to start restrengthening the ankle.  If you feel like you need support for exercise, go pick up an ankle brace instead

Simple compression as far as I know isn't going to do anything for a twisted ankle.

Edited by JZig 2010-11-02 9:58 PM

I rolled my ankle on a rock three weeks ago. I iced it for 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off as many times as possible in the first three days, and kept a compression bandage on it whenever I was not icing it (including sleep). I agree that more than 10 or 15 minutes for ice is too long. Mine must have been a low grade sprain, because after 3 days of ice and compression, it felt almost normal, but it was still weak.

I'm continuing to do exercises to strengthen it and it's almost back to normal. I would start doing some strengthening exercises and ice it afterward. I do toe raises and then write the alphabet with my big toe (make the shape of A, then B, etc). There are many ankle exercises you can find on the internet. The exercises seem to be strengthening it.

Is it swollen? If so, compression might help with the swelling, otherwise compression will only be needed when you feel some swelling happening, which could happen after exercises?.

Good luck!

Do you still have swelling and it hurts to touch it in one spot? Reason I ask, this summer I twisted my ankle and after a week of ice and compresssion it still hurt. I finally went to a doctor and they x-rayed it and found that there was a break in the non-load bearing bone.

They put me in a stablizing boot for 6 weeks. After that it had healed well enough to start biking again, I was instructed that it OK to walk on it, but no running for 3 months to let the fracture heal completely. I just started running this week.

I would have it checked out. It seems like a long time to heal if it was just a sprain.

Edited by browncd 2010-11-03 7:40 AM

Same thing happened to my brother, this is good advice if you are still experiencing pain.

I sprained my ankle playing basketball and immediately started icing for 15 mins, compression sleeve for 15 mins.  I did this for about 3 hours the night I did it and all day the next day.  If my ankle didn't have ice on it, it had a compression sleeve.  I used crutches the first 24 hours as well to keep all weight off.  I was back to running in about 10 days, ankle was still store prior to that but I could bike without a problem within 3 days.

You got a lot going on there.

Why did you change shoes? If you looked at your old shoes, what did the wear pattern look like on them from behind?

The achilles issue is either due to shoes, or to compensation for the other injury, or due to just doing too much. I'm going with a combo of 1 and 2.

Just my own ideas here, and I'd welcome critique from anyone with real medical knowledge. Isn't the compression to prevent a build up of fluids in the soft tissues and to help move those fluids out. I get some of that effect with mild massaging too. I've also heard that type of massaging should aim to work fluids towards the body core by starting further out and working in. (Distal to proximal if I recall the terms correctly.) Gentle movements through a full range of motion can help do the same thing too, just don't pull anything hard enough to cause more injury.

Thanks for the responses fellas!

First, to answer your questions:
1. It's not swollen as far as I can tell.
2. It doesn't really hurt in one specific spot, more of a region.
3. I changed shoes based on the recommendation from the guy at the shoe store (it's a legit place where the people working there are running coaches and know what they're talking about).
4. The compression I use for support more so than compression.

My ankles feel better at the end of the day when I've had the support. I guess it works like a cast a little, helping support the ankle and let the sore spots rest. Also it reduces mobility helping keep my ankles still.

The icing also makes them feel better.

They usually feel the worst in the morning (or if I run too hard).

When you guys are talking about icing for 10 minutes, are you literally running an ice cube along your skin massaging the sore area? Or do you just put a cold pack of some kind on it?

I vote for see a doctor.  No real way to tell what's going on in the right ankle without an x-ray but I would suspect some sort of fracture as well.  A running friend of mine rolled her ankle just getting up at her office and it ended up being broken.   The left could be compensation, wrong shoes etc.