The moment you step off a curb and your ankle makes a horrible crunching noise is the worst. Literally, the worst.
Because you know that nothing good is coming from that awful noise. Rainbows, sparkles and unicorns aren’t about to appear out of thin air. All you’ve got now is an ankle sprain.
😳
This is exactly what happened to my husband on the back stairs of our apartment a few weeks ago. He texted me that he had sprained his ankle and by the time I got home, it was super swollen and too painful to walk on.
RICE – that’s the fix, right?
Not so fast. Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation is an outdated model for dealing with joint sprains. The idea is to treat the swelling and inflammation quickly, which isn’t totally wrong.
What’s missing from the RICE model is movement. And that’s exactly what I had Anthony doing within hours of spraining his ankle.
Inflammation isn’t evil – it’s a natural response to injury and brings the growth factors and other cells needed to repair the injury. Inflammation becomes a problem when it sits in and around the joint for weeks after an injury. That swelling cocktail, which at first was super helpful, then starts to weaken and degrade the joint. Which is why you DO want to get swelling out, but rest and ice isn’t the best way to do it.
Swelling is dealt with by the lymphatic system, and unlike your heart and blood, the lymph system doesn’t have a pump to keep it moving through the body. So, like in Anthony’s ankle sprain, will just sit there and fester if left behind.
So we taped up his ankle with some RockTape to keep the inflammation moving and wrapped it tightly in 2-min increments with a VooDoo band to help squish the swelling out of the tissues and back up into circulation.
And the best part? Each day felt better than the last and he was walking all day without a brace by day 3. The bruising was completely gone and he was back to working out within a week.
I’m not anti-ice – it just isn’t the magical cure-all you may think it is. Should you ice if there’s pain?
If it makes it feel better, then 100% yes.
But ice alone is a band-aid that does nothing to get you back to moving with ease. Pair it with movement to keep the tissues hydrated and you’ll be back to normal (and better!) before you know it.
And yes, he is on a personalized ankle + balance restoring program as you read this 😜
XO
PS Ready to get out of pain and get back to your life? Here are 3 ways I can help you right now:
1. Want to start a self-care practice but always feel too busy to get started? Join me for a week of reconnecting with your less frazzled, grounded and calm self on my 2019 Adventure + Wellness Retreat. Get all the details and request to book here.
2. Join me for my next online class, 5 Secrets the Doctor Never Told You about Getting Out of Pain.
If you’ve tried all the things (pills, people, and procedures) – and your pain still isn’t going away, join me for this free class and I’ll teach you the 5 secrets to getting out of pain that doctors didn’t’ tell you. You’ll leave with a solid plan in place on how to get stronger, more flexible, and out of pain (and stay that way!).
3. Work with me privately.
If you’d like to work with me personally and learn tailor-made strategies to get stronger, more flexible and start trusting your body and without injuring yourself – let’s talk. Do you need accountability so that you don’t start and stop something…again? Just reply to this message and put “Private” in the subject line. Tell me a little bit about your current movement and self-care situation, what you’re struggling with, and I’ll get you all the details.
