Actually, the the pulse doesn't "run out of gas" on the way to the periphery. Quite to the contrary, the pressure increases gradually from the aorta to the periphery. Measuring your blood pressure at the ankle doesn't give you much information. Your would need to measure at the same time at the upper arm and the ankle. The ratio of ankle-to-brachial pressure is called the ankle-brachial index (ABI for short). Ideally it is between 1.1 and 1.25. Once it drops below 1, there is a problem with vasoconstriction. Values in excess of 1.25 are indicative of Mönckeberg sclerosis. I can't go into details here, but just for info: The increase in pressure in the periphery is due to the larger arteries actively pushing the blood bolus that the left ventricle expels with every beat. The heart muscle alone couldn't do all the work. So, that's why a higher pressure at the ankle compared to the upper arm is a healthy sign.