THE CANKLE.

On Saturday I was given an article from the Wall Street Journal: "For Body-Conscious Women, It's Now the 'Cankle' That Rankles."  Maybe it's the time of year for ankle-anxiety with all of us wearing strappy gladiator sandals, leggings and mini skirts? 

Personally, I don't hear too many Lithers getting upset over chubby ankles.  It's more about thunder-thighs, fatty knees and muffin tops. Not too many people really have "true" cankles, anyway.  Just so you know, a cankle is a portmanteau word combining calf and ankle, and refers to "the area where the calf meets the foot in an abrupt, non-tapering terminus," according to the Urban Dictionary.

What's even more interesting is that there are "cankle busting workouts" popping up all over the country.  What??  These people are clearly doing something wrong. 

At Lithe, we don't see cankles and that's because we attack those stems by working the foot and ankle shoe-less at the barre or bands.  Beginners are always shocked at how their feet/ankles/calves ache in the Immersion.  We have to really build foot/ankle strength and stamina for regular level classes or you won't be able to stand in "stiletto" for more than a minute. 

Shoes (albeit supportive), really make it easy on the body and the many muscles of the foot/ankle while working out.  Because we work shoe-less at Lithe (oh, the horror!  We receive a lot of flack about this from "trainers") and from the foot up the leg, we really work the foot in a good way (stabilization & strength) and that is why Philly ladies who Lithe and roll their ankles sporting a pair of super stilletto Louboutins will never break it.

Combine that with the cardio, stretching, balance and plyometrics (jumping) movements that we do with light weight training in every class, we really work the foot/calf AND blast ankle (and body) fat pronto--There's not a cankle in the house!

Image of a cankle-less women in Yves Saint Laurent shoes via Garance Dore

Comments

[Kristina]

That's true, I remember the first time I tried Thigh High, my heels and calves were especially sore, but worth it!