How to Tape an Ankle for Sports

It's all fun and games until somebody gets hurt -- so do your best to make sure that somebody is not you. The ankle is a sore spot in sports. A major joint where you place the majority of your weight when running, it is not hard to turn or sprain your ankle when getting caught up in the game and not paying attention. Taping your ankle correctly before any sport can prevent hurting your ankle and spending time on the sidelines.

Things You'll Need

• Roll of underwrap
• Roll of 1-to-2-inch-wide athletic tape
• Scissors

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Instructions

• 1

  Position and hold the foot at a 90-degree angle with the leg.

• 2

  Place your thumb over the end of the underwrap, and then wrap it once around your leg, placing the end of the underwrap under the rotation. The underwrap will help prevent skin irritation from the tape.

• 3

  Continue wrapping the underwrap downwards on the leg, lower the underwrap half its width each rotation to obtain a uniform wrapping. Continue wrapping in this matter until you have wrapped the heel. Then skip down and wrap from the middle of the bottom of the foot. After wrapping the bottom of the foot, wrap the back of the foot.

• 4

  Bring the wrap up once around the ankle, and then wrap the back of the heel again. Jump back down to the bottom of the foot, wrapping it once more. Begin wrapping upwards, rotating around the foot, ankle and leg until you reach the starting point. Cut the tape and press the edge of the tape to the wrapping.

• 5

  Cut two pieces of athletic tape large enough to encircle the top part of the underwrap. Place one around the top part of the underwrap. Place the second one halfway down the first piece and over the underwrap.

• 6

  Cut a piece of athletic tape long enough to reach from the tape encircling the underwrapping on the inside of the leg, down the leg and around the foot, then back up the leg on the opposite side to the encircling athletic tape. Secure the piece of tape from the encircling athletic tape on the inside of the leg, down the leg, around the ball or bottom of the heel, and back up to the other side, ending at the encircling athletic tape.

• 7

  Cut a piece of athletic tape long enough to reach from the inside of the foot above the middle of the arch and parallel to the top of the heel, around the top of the heel, and to the outside of the foot also above the middle of the arch. Secure the piece of tape in from the inside of the foot, around and above the heel, to the outside of the foot.

• 8

  Repeat steps 6 and 7 two more times, keeping the same order and alternating, so you would do step 6, then 7, then 6 again, and then 7 again. Each time you secure a piece of tape down the length of the leg, bring it forward a half-tape width. Each time you secure a piece going around the back of the foot, bring the piece of tape upwards a half-tape width.

• 9

  Begin wrapping the athletic tape from the inside of the top of the foot. Bring the tape around the foot above the heel, and then bring the tape around the middle bottom of the foot. Wrap the tape around the top of the foot, and then bring the tape around the back bottom part of the heel. Wrap the tape around the foot in the same manner once more.

• 10

  Begin placing pieces of tape large enough to encircle the leg where the underwrap is showing. Begin at the top of the tape, working downwards along the leg until you reach the top of the heel. Place two last pieces of tape around the foot nearest the heel to keep the rest of the tape in place.