They are the body's primary shock absorber, vital for balance, standing, walking and running, but most of us rarely think about our ankles - until we hurt them.
These painful incidents are very common, says Genevieve Tawiah, a performance physiotherapist who has worked on shows like Strictly Come Dancing.
Ankle injuries account for 5% of visits to A&E in the UK, according to NICE, external.
But Tawiah tells What's Up Docs? they can be avoided "if you are strong and aware of your foot and ankle and the chain that affects it". Here are three ways to strengthen your ankles:
The foundation to building strong ankles and reducing the risk of injuries is being "brain to body aware", says Tawiah - meaning you can sense what movements your ankles are making without relying on looking down at them.
"It's about sending information from the brain down to our foot and ankle to ground us and build a good foundation for any exercise training that follows," she says.
To build brain body awareness Tawiah has some examples of exercises that require you to watch your foot while you do them.
She suggests starting with smaller movements of the toes as this can affect how we "load [weight] through the ankles". Two examples are:
