I decided to add more wood to the fire with my recent experiences. Basically I am discussing the need for ankle support in hiking footwear. I recently sprained my ankle pretty good while playing softball. At least I got the out. Anyways, I have been limping around for a few weeks as a result. I have tried my different types of footwear to see which has better support. I have many combat boots with high tops. The lowest being 8 inches. I also have a pair of Dunham Wafflestompers that are pretty comfortable, but very heavy. They also have very stiff ankle support. And, then I have New Balance trail runners (generic $50 pair). The first few days, I didn't have a brace, and decided to wear my trusty combat boots. I laced them all the way up and a little tighter than normal. They gave a little support, but not too much. Plus, the extra weight on my foot would give my ankle a little shock every time I picked up my foot. I went car camping during Memorial Day weekend. I wore the wafflestompers. The barely gave any support at all. I finally went and bought an ankle brace. Talk about a huge difference. The brace gives lots more support (of course, it was designed to). So, my conclusion after limited and biased testing is that if you want ankle support, buy a brace, not boots.

Also, looking back at history, the ankle supporting boot is a pretty new invention. Western style boots without laces don't have ankle support. Moccasins don't have ankle support. Sandals don't either. My unresearched guess is that ankle support in boots didn't come along until paratroopers needed them.

All right, enough rambling.

Ski boots have ankle support. When the entire lower leg functions as a single unit that is ankle support. Also when using crampons. The old sytle paratrooper landing.. I am not sure of current technique.

You need to rehab an ankle injury with low cut shoes. The boots with "ankle support" do not give a sufficient range of motion to break out the scar tissue.

IMHO many assume that all hikers will evolve to alpine hiking. But if opposable digits are the apex of evolution how come most primates have four opposable digits, but humans only have two?

I only wear boots in the Fall when weather might change or early Spring where snow is present like last weekend. Have had trail runners for three seasons now, with a trip last year half off trail in the Sierra. No issues and I had to drop down in a few spots with my pack on.

Here's my take on this for all it's worth. Some will find it unorthodox.

I used to suffer from a major inversion sprain at least once a year on top of several minor ones. I even managed to twist my ankle while wearing low top boots. In '08 I had to cut my Tahoe Rim Trail thruhike short after turning my right ankle on a mild section of trail. That was very frustrating so I decided to declare war on the problem.

Whenever any kind of aid is used, be it an ankle brace, hiking poles or a crutch, you're using something artificial to take the load off a specific muscle group. The ankle is stabilized by muscles in the lower leg and a brace partially takes over their job. If those muscles are not fully used they will grow weaker and contribute to further instability in the joint. You want those muscles to be stronger, not weaker.

Braces certainly have their place...in rehab and on permanently unstable joints, but not used as a preventative measure on relatively healthy joints.

My solution is twofold: Strengthening exercises and proprioception exercises. I do either or both almost every day. For life. Knock on wood, since I started this regimen I have not had a major sprain.

As stated in the article, stand on one leg and then close your eyes. If you find yourself struggling to stay upright and working to keep your ankle straight you have a proprioception problem. This can be helped with exercises and a wobble board. You can even make one from scrap wood. For strengthening, hit the gym and useTherabandor an old bicycle inner tube.

Don't expect immediate results. Patience and persistence will be rewarded with stable ankles.

Yah, I think ankle support is slightly overrated except for the few occassions. The only time I've actually find I need ankle support while out on the trail is if I encounter a fairly rocky section, and even then I'd have to really lose my footing to mess my ankle up.

I mostly agree, Trailrunner. I hear a bit about muscles and joint support from my wife, who's a fitness instructor. She pointed out a few exercises that target the little muscles that most people forget about. She also said something about how overexercising one muscle group around a joint, yet underexercising the group on the opposite side, can actually harm a joint by making lopsided tension around it.

I'm by no means an authority on the subject, but my impression is that it's not just joint exercise that helps, but balanced, all-encompassing exercise.

When it comes to boots vs. shoes, I think it's mostly a comfort issue for me. Boots are more comfortable on steep descents because of all their frontal surface area. Shoes just cause uncomfortable pressure on top of the foot or let my toes get scrunched if the laces are too loose.