R Foot, Ankle Sprain
2007-12-16 – 2008-01-05
Grade: 3
While walking on an icy sidewalk, I slipped and fell awkwardly with my right ankle under me. I had to limp slowly for the next few days. Putting weight on my ankle hurt, though my ankle motion was uninhibited - I could gingerly rotate and flex my ankle and foot. Swelling was minimal.
Since then, going down stairs has been painful. I ran (briefly) for the first time on 4 January 2008. I plan to resume training the week of Monday 7 January 2008.
I'm still not entirely sure what the nature of the injury was; I know too little about anatomy. The injury was caused by trauma (my mass landing on my ankle), I could still move and rotate my foot relatively freely, but applying weight caused me pain. I noted that my ankle hurt the most when the angle formed by my knee, ankle and toes was less than 90 degrees - e.g. at the end of a step. I sprained my other (left) ankle running, and the injuries were very different - my left ankle didn't hurt until several hours afterwards, my left had substantial swelling, and the freedom of motion was greatly inhibited.
Nevertheless, I believe the injury was to my ligaments. I ran up stairs and about two miles on streets on 6 January 2007, and my ankle felt good during and after the run. While I will be careful for the next few weeks, my exercise hiatus is over.