Legal or not, you don’t want to roll these joints
Marijuana just became legal in Canada. Needless to say, pot jokes are popping up faster than marijuana plants on steroids.
One that got my attention and was the impetus for this post was perfect for trail running and posted by a friend on Facebook:
“I don’t always roll a joint, but, when I do, it’s usually my ankle.”
I replied, “I must be an addict.”
Like several of my siblings, I was born with some kind of deficiency in the structure of the ligamentous tissue in my body: bad knees, bad shoulders and bad ankles. I have sprained both of my ankles way more times than I can count. The last really bad sprains occurred while trail running. They were so bad that I was pretty sure trail running was not an option for me. It didn’t seem to matter what trail shoes I wore, I just couldn’t get the lateral stability I needed. That was four years ago.
Then, thanks to a local pedorthist (Murray Wood), we came up with two strategies to help (no, weed wasn’t one of them!). First, he sourced some Canadian-made ankle braces that were a combination sock and tensor bandage from Ortho Active. They were amazing!
Second, he gave me several exercises to do daily to strengthen the muscles in my feet, my lower legs and even my core to help reduce the risk of future injuries.
Sue Sinclair has also incorporated the use of balls into her yoga classes to help roll out the feet, thereby strengthening and stabilizing the ankles.
And most recently, we have brought in the amazing Inov8 Roclite 320 GTX, a higher-cut version of the very popular Roclite that has proven to be a great shoe for those with ankle problems.
So, if you’re one of those trail runners or OCR athletes prone to ankle sprains, don’t despair! There are solutions to help prevent those roll overs and keep you nimble on the trails and obstacle course.
Happy Trails!
