Balance Board

[Mike T]

Has anyone used a balance board to rehab a sprained ankle, or have any recommendations on which ones are the most effective?

[lonerider]

Originally posted by Mike T
Has anyone used a balance board to rehab a sprained ankle, or have any recommendations on which ones are the most effective?

I've used a balance board to rehab a sprained knee, ankles gets a lot of work in their too though.

I've also liked the Bosu ball (half of a swiss ball).

My favorite (but not sold anywhere) is the Tai Chi beanbox... construct a large wooden box about 3.5 feet cube. Fill it with soy beans (small hard, spherical) to about 2 feet deep, then step inside and walk in it... when that gets to easy jog in place. They had two such boxes at the Tiger Crane Kung Fu/Tai Chi place in Boston I was going to, and I found this to be the best thing ever (low tech too). It was great when I sprained my ankle really badly in soccer, and if you scoop the beans with your hand, its really good for RSI as well. The beans massage your feet/hands and give a good be a resistance... running in place also require a tiny little bit of balance as your feet dives through the beans. Go to "inventor's" website (http://www.yonlee.com/) and you can email him about it (I'm not sure if he invented it, but he definitely built a few)... actually I should do that myself as I've always wanted to build one of these, but I don't really have room for it in my aparment. Well maybe I do... I've just been lazy for the last few years.

[Gtanner]

Hi Mike,

I used a balance board a few years ago when I did my ankle in while hitting a tree... I started going to physio and then found that all they wanted me to do was stand on this damn board for 15 mins....so I went home and made a board myself.

I used a square piece of ply-wood (1-1.5ft square) and then bought a circular piece of wood from the hardware store (banister end for a stairwell), cut it in half and glued it to the center of the board. And there you have it, the poor man's balance board and it worked like a charm. Start with two feet while wearing shoes on the board, then without shoes, then eventually with one foot (no shoe) and you'll see your ankle getting stronger by the day. I haven't re-injured that ankle in about 2 years.


Good luck and happy recovery,

Gordon

[Mike T]

So it sounds like yours is more like a "wobble" board than a "rocker" board?

My ankle is healed to the point where it's 100% stable, and I can jump up and down on it one footed, but I still have a ways to go w/ balance and strength. It's been 5 weeks since the inhury and I have another 5 to go before the Mt Hood carve fest, hopefully that's enough. Otherwise I'll be hanging out at the bottom of Palmer with the demo boards :(

[outsider]

i sprained a knee late last summer, and used my longboard to rehab for balance. just find a decent hill and carve some turns a few days a week and you'll be back to normal. its also great for getting that back calf big enough to stabilize you ankle in you boot.

[Mike T]

Somehow I doubt starting an entirely new sport while rehabbing would be the ticket for me ;)

I'm off to the coast shortly, hopefully walking on the beach will strengthen it a bit!

[slam]

Easy way to make a balance board:

Get a two liter bottle of soda, Drink it and then fill it back up with water. Wrap the whole thing in ductape, 2 layers.

Then use a skateboard deck for the balance, you can get this by setting up a tripwire in the local skate park.