Calin Van Paris is a YJ editor and certified yoga instructor who has been practicing for more than 20 years. Here, she discusses the proven importance of ankle mobility, along with some of the best yoga poses to support your joint health.

Your ankles are one of the most important—and unsung—parts of your yoga practice. The joints and surrounding muscles support a great deal of your body’s load. And paying a little extra attention to them can help foster full-body stability.

According to research, limited range of ankle motion (particularly in dorsiflexion, which is when the top of your foot is pulled closer to the shin) is among the greatest risk factors for impaired movement and lower limb injury. Focusing on training the ankle area, specifically in the static holds offered in yoga poses, is proven to improve mobility, helping you to walk more comfortably through life.

These five yoga poses put your ankles through their paces through stretching, strengthening, and building a strong foundation for the rest of your movement practice.

5 Yoga Poses for Ankle Mobility

Paying attention to how you move can ensure that you’re not overdoing it. If your stretch ever feels like strain, back off a bit.

1. Chair Pose

(Photo: Andrew Clark)

This pose might seem to mimic a comfortable seat, but it requires the strength of your entire body—including your ankles. Your arms, core, legs, and glutes are all fired up in Chair Pose, but the foundation begins with your ankles.

Spending time in Chair requires your ankles to be in dorsiflexion, a position that has proven effects in supporting joint mobility. It also builds stability in surrounding muscles.

2. Bound Angle Pose

(Photo: Andrew Clark)

Giving your ankles a thoughtful break from strengthening is another means of increasing overall mobility. Bringing the soles of your feet together can offer your ankles a serious (and welcome) stretch. Bound Angle Pose is something of a foot-opener, allowing your ankles to enjoy some passing stretching and releasing of any held tension in the area.

3. Squat

(Photo: Andrew Clark)

A squat of any sort asks a lot of your ankles. Malasana is perhaps the most extreme example of this. The yogi squat is known for its capacity to encourage full-body mobility. For the ankles, that translates to full dorsiflexion, creating a maximized stretch for your ankles while also strengthening them.

To get the most mobility benefits here, strive to keep your lower body engaged instead of simply dumping weight in your sit bones. If your heels don’t reach the floor, simply slide a rolled blanket or mat beneath them so they can rest on something.

4. Eagle Pose

(Photo: Andrew Clark)

Sometimes, it’s good to twist things up. Eagle Pose boosts ankle mobility in two ways. First, balancing on your grounded foot increases the capacity for strength and stability in the muscles around your ankle. Secondly, wrapping your other foot around your standing calf stretches the same group of muscles. Don’t forget to practice it on both sides.

5. Half Moon Pose

(Photo: Andrew Clark)

Ground down to reach for the sky as both ankles (and their surrounding tendons) are stretched and strengthened in Half Moon Pose. Rooting down through one foot while lifting and flexing the other places your ankles in isometric stabilization and dorsiflexion, respectively. Each position invites balance throughout your entire lower body.