Active Ankle T2 Ankle Brace, Medium, Black, Rigid Support for Men 7-10 & Women 8-11 Shoe Size, Adjustable Brace for Sprained Ankle, Volleyball & Cheerleading, Lightweight EVA Padding, Fits Left or Right Foot

I was dealing with worsening ankle pain for fifteen years. My feet pronate excessively and have gotten worse. I use Superfeet and found that raising the arch support with shims would help alleviate the pain. A physical therapist suggested side support so I tried this device. It allowed me to be able to comfortably walk with less pronation. I can now use my whole foot with ZERO ankle pain. I've had several 20 mile days and my feet feel great! I'm so happy. I wear them on both feet. They are comfortable and wonderful.

I was first introduced to Active Ankle T2 when a lot of my volleyball teammates in high school used them. At the time, I wasn't looking for anything in particular and was accustomed to those lace-up ankle braces that a lot of people wear for basketball. Over the years, I finally gave up on those lace-up braces simply because my feet were not getting any blood circulation. If you've used those things, you know what I'm talking about. After a few times up and down the court, my feet would go numb and I wouldnt be able to walk around the court. Eventually, I would just not wear those things and risk it.However, I had a bad ankle sprain during a league game in basketball and felt the need to get some protection (not going to compare low top vs high top basketball shoes here). After thinking about the braces, I remembered my volleyball teammates and gave them a try. Wow. I've been missing out. The brace has 2 sides with padding that go up to your high-ankle area. the 2 sides have large velcro which the 4+/- inch strap wraps around your ankle. you can tighten it pretty securely. i'll admit that I've rolled my ankle during games with these braces on but have not experienced anything severe that stopped me from playing the following week. KEY feature that i love is that these didn't restrict blood flow so there were no issues wearing these and tightening the strap to my comfort. The built in padding on the sides of your ankle is sufficient after getting used to it.Awesome brace and highly recommended. I definitely would buy again (in fact, I lost one of my braces a few weeks ago and replaced it immediately).**********************UPDATE: 2014i still have my braces and they still work wonderfully. one thing i want to mention is that some of the newer basketball shoes have a midsole cushion built as an insert to the shoe (for example, the Kobe 8, Kobe 9, and Lebron 11). i've used this brace recently with the Kobe 8 and tried to insert the brace UNDER the midsole (which is about 1 to 1.5 inch thick). the brace still worked fine and the brace was inserted below the midsole for added comfort.still recommend!

Bought this about a month after an ankle surgery, when I was about to switch from airboot back to wear a normal shoe on the injured side. I wanted additional support on the ankle to be sure that I wouldn't break it again. But as I was browsing through the amazon reviews, I couldn't make up my mind for this one or the laced-with-strap one#1 Laced Ankle Brace With Stabilizing Strap For Flexible Support. Breathable Neoprene Braces Made By Product Stop. (Small), so I bought both, I'd rather waste a little money than running the risk of getting injured again and going through another surgery. In the end, I don't think it's a waste at all, because both served me well, in different phases of recovery. As other reviewers mentioned that this one requires some "break-in", well, the break-in was way too painful for an ankle with nails and metal plates inside and right out of an airboot. The laced-with-strap one was NOT as flexible as their title sounds, but it offered painless sturdy support right after the airboot. The benefit of this one is for my healthy ankle or when the injured ankle completely healed and pain-free, then it has obvious advantages over the other: 1) easy to put on; I put it inside the shoe I am about to wear the next day the night before, so takes almost no additional time in the morning as I am leaving for work. The other one needs to be put on after the socks, so it will take a bit more time every morning. 2) This is good for long-hour activities. The other one, I felt the pain as the front edge rubbed to the bottom of my foot when I was walking for about 2~3 miles. This one had no problem like this at all, as its bottom is inserted under the sole of the athlete shoes. I didn't feel "break-in phase wearing this on my healthy ankle or months after the injure one completely healed. In summary, T2 is unbearably painful for an injured/recovering ankle to break-in; but once healed, T2 offers good support during long-hour exercise. I am glad I bought both during my recovery.

For being listed as a "rigid" support, it is not as rigid as I had hoped. I have it fit per the instructions and as tight as i could get it. In normal walking the support is okay. for anything beyond that, I dont suspect this will hold up to much.It is though, much more comfortable than I suspected.Edit: a few hours after the above post I went for a bike ride. As my ride was wrapping up I jumped up onto a curb and "looped-out". While I was "looping-out" I planted my feet to catch myself, although much lower than I normally would. When I planted my feet, my ankle collapsed in the brace. Please note that I am not reducing its rating but rather I am raising It to 4 stars. It is true that no matter how much external support you have, it will NOT stop things like this from happening. It willing only reduce the risk. Now, the reason I am giving it an extra star is because if I did not have it i would not have made it to the hospital as easily as I did. My diagnosis was that I broke my fibula, fractured my ankle, and separated the membrane between my tib and fib. This required surgery. When I lifted my ankle without the brace it literally flopped over. The brace held me together until I could get to the hospital. I am also absolutely certain that the damage would have been much worse if I was not wearing it.