If you have difficulty getting deep into a squat, there is a chance your ankle mobility could use some work. Even if it feels like your hips or knees are too tight, that could just be your bodies way of compensating for the lack of flexibility in your ankles.  This motion at the ankle is called Dorsiflexion, and in regards to squatting it measures how far the knee can go forward with the foot planted. 

In this article we will review how ankle mobility affects squat depth, how to assess your ankle mobility, ways to improve it, and ways to improve your squat while dealing with poor ankle mobility.

Believe it or not, a little bit of mobility in the ankles goes a long way-so let's start by looking at how exactly your ankles can affect your squat!

The knees have to travel forward as you squat down, but how far the knee can move is directly related to the amount of ankle dorsiflexion mobility you have.  Limited mobility here will make you bend forward as you squat and it will feel impossible to keep your chest up, which might make you feel your hips and back way more.  If we can improve some of this dorsiflexion mobility-much of that extra strain on the low back and hips will go away.  Check out this helpful video showing you exactly how ankle mobility affects your squat depth.

But how do you even know if you have enough ankle mobility? What if your knees can go forward, how do you know if it's enough? 

Enter the Wall Test. Using this assessment, we can determine if you have any deficiencies in your ankle mobility and if that difference is the same on both ankles.  We like this assessment much better than other ways to assess dorsiflexion because it puts you in a closed chain (weightbearing) position which is (obviously) how you will be squatting. 

"But what can I do to improve my bad dorsiflexion mobility?"

We thought you'd never ask... well we did...that's exactly why we wrote this article! Most peoples issues can be solved by addressing a few things- Talocrural joint mobility, soft tissue mobility, and subtalar eversion. To put it more simply-improve mobility of the joints and soft tissues around the ankle and learn how to control movement better.

Improving ankle mobility can be a stubborn task. The tissues around this area are incredibly dense and resilient, so much of our focus will be teaching you how to layer a variety of techniques to get the best outcome! If you found that you lacked mobility based on the "wall test" video above, then keep reading!

Joint Mobility

The ankle joint is also known as the talocrural joint. It primarily hinges allowing for just 2 motions, plantarflexion and dorsiflexion (pointing toes down and up).  As our body moves through these 2 motions the joint itself has to allow a certain amount of movement, lacking which can lead to decreased mobility and even pain.  When someone lacks dorsiflexion, it can even lead to a pinching sensation in the front of the ankle as you squat deeper.  If that is something you've been dealing with, this mobilization should be helpful!

Calf Mobility

The calf muscles are the primary muscle group that prevents us from achieving more ankle dorsiflexion, but as they allow more stretch we will achieve more mobility in the ankle.  Most of the time they are tight because they aren't used to working through a full range of motion or maintaining the tension they need to keep their flexibility. These next few exercises will address both of these to create a well rounded approach.

"These are great, but what can I do to squat deeper RIGHT NOW?"

Ok so you're wondering what you can do to improve depth, even if you are putting in the work on improving your ankle mobility? Well that's an easy one!  One trick we use with many athletes is simple, yet very effective.  By placing small plates or a riser under the heels, we can actually reduce the demands of ankle dorsiflexion on our squat depth, making it much easier to get depth.  Even if you have great ankle mobility, using plates will help you stay much more upright as you squat.  This is the same concept behind lifting shoes, they have a stacked heel and a relatively lower toe box so your ankle is pitched down making the demands of your ankle less.  Check out this easy modification you can use!

Let's wrap it up

We hope you got some good tips from this article! If anything doesn't make sense, please leave a comment and we will get back to you! 

We have other great resources regarding squat form and performance, check out THIS ARTICLE that gives a complete rundown of all things regarding squat mobility!

If you find yourself dealing with a lack of flexibility in your ankles or difficulty squatting deep, and these don't help you, then your problem might need some further investigation.  Luckily we are doctors of physical therapy that specialize in helping active people in Columbus, Ohio just like yourself get out of pain and improve mobility while reducing injury in the future.  Schedule a free phone consultation so we can determine if you're a good fit for our program!