best way to get back to fitness after injury
what is everyones best suggestion for getting back to peak fitness fast. My ankle was fractured about two months ago and has taken till now to heal back to a point where i can run/ride/swim comfortably. Unfortunately due to this i’ve lost all fitness i had (beer probably has been a contributing factor too) and i need to get back to something resembling healthy a.s.a.p. so i can hit the slopes.
i hear interval training combined with a bit of home strength/core exercises like pushups, squats, wall sits and the good ol’ situps is a pretty good starting point. I don’t have access to a gym until the start of july so they need to be stuff i can do with basically a pair of runners and my own body weight.
cheers
You can do alot with running, swimming and body weight!
If I were you and didnt have gym membership, this is what I’d set myself up to do:
Running: Start with a continuous run, and build up the time and speed. Then, Id go into interval training once you have an alright baseline. Eg Jog, sprint, jog sprint.
Swimming: Simple lap training is effective. Can do interval as well.
Core exercises/strengthening: Use body weight for pushups, tricep dips, bridging, core exercises eg plank, side plank, crunches etc. If you can get hold of dumbells- do bicep curls, shoulder press, lat raises etc and for lower body- squats and lunges are great.
Have fun getting fit again 
Cheers,
yeah i’m looking forward to the challange! it’s pretty amazing how quickly you become unfit when you can’t even walk normally
One of the most effective ways is interval/fartlek training (I still laugh at the work “fartlek” - hehehehe)
As part of my fitness regime the running group I run with does a fartlek session just about every week…..try something like this…
Run Hard for 1 min, slow run for 0.5 minute
Run Hard for 2 min, slow run for 1 minute
Run Hard for 3 min, slow run for 1.5 minute
Run Hard for 4 min, slow run for 2 minute
Run Hard for 3 min, slow run for 1.5 minute
Run Hard for 2 min, slow run for 1 minute
Run Hard for 1 min, RECOVER!
Might not sound like much but if you do it hard you are going to feel it BIG time in tired legs and your lungs screaming…...do that every week in combination with other activities (swim, regular run, ride bike) and you will be ready
Should you ever injure yourself wheer you can’t run, suggest “Deep Water Running” - its not the most exciting of activities but it will at least keep your running legs fit….more info on DWR at http://pfitzinger.com/labreports/water.shtml…I used it when i had a calf injury and could not run for 6 weeks….
I have had alot of injuries. 10 operations to be exact. the one thing i cannot stress enough is dont do to much to soon. Its better to rehab for an extra 3 weeks than be out of action for another 6 weeks.
Longtimedead, I feel your pain buddy. I fractured my ankle in two places a few weeks ago and can’t really put weight on it. I’ll try some of the excercises the other users mentioned. Thanks guys
Anyone who is used to exercising moderately or aggressively can understand the frustration of having an injury that prevents you from keeping up your normal routine. It is very important, however, to treat yourself gently in order to get back on track as quickly as possible without compromising your health.
If you have suffered an injury such as a sprain, pulled muscle, or repetitive use injury, the first thing to do is apply the RICE principle. RICE is an acronym for rest, ice, compression and elevation. For example, if you twisted your ankle as in the above example, once you got home you should lie in a prone position and put ice on the injury for twenty minutes. Resting and icing it in a prone position for twenty minutes on, twenty minutes off for the first forty eight hours will decrease pain, inflammation and swelling. You can also take ibuprofen to help with the inflammation and swelling. Of course, any medication or treatment plan should be approved by your doctor before implementing. If you have severe pain you should definitely seek medical advice from a trained professional. If the injury is milder, however, continuing the rest and ice treatment while wrapping the sprain and keeping your leg elevated should help the healing process.
I’m all for the RICE principle but….
The swelling RICE prevents is the bodies natural way to protect injured areas from being used while it recovers. Swelling fills an injured area with fluids that prevent joints and muscle working- forcing the area to be rested, supporting and cushioning the joints, cause pain that is essential to tell you your injured and put internal pressure on blood vessels reducing blood flow.
If bleeding is present (internal) RICE will help stop the bleeding but not as effectively as compression (also good for external bleeding) - natures way to stop bleeding is for blood to clot and ‘plug’ the broken vessels.
RICE is a practice born from professional athletes who need to get back to their job asap. It can immediately stop swelling and pain and allow an injured area to continue to be functional. Long term gains (to my knowledge) have not been studied. If unsure about the nature of an injury RICE is the best practice as it is an immediate EMERGENCY treatment. Kind of like using sticky tape to hold a racing car together until the race finishes.
Anti-Inflammatory medication helps remove fluid, relaxe muscle and reduce pain. They are very effective during recovery.
The BEST way to recover from injury (not the quickest) is to slowly get back to using an injured area, listen to your body and fucus your mind. Stretch, rest, exercise, stretch, relax, warmth, EAT WELL and DRINK WATER, don’t put toxins in your body!!!!! - take your time. But lets face it who can afford to do that- life is short and time is valuable!
If we lived for 1000 years I would take the long road to recovery.
It also depends on your age;
-from 35 years on your body stops replacing cells with brand new ones instead it replicates from the old so an injured cell in an over 35yo can be replaced with a new copy of that injured cell.
-below that ‘age group’: ‘new’ cells are being formed but the process slows as you get older.
-children can fully recover from incredible injury, the younger you are the better the result as the injured cells have time to be completely replaced. (remember stem cells can build any tissue)
In reality;
You probably don’t diet as good as you should, drink enough water and didn’t have the injury treated immediately-accurately. You want to get back to using it asap and will push your expectations.
MEDICAL PRACTICE IS NOT AN EXACT SCIENCE
My top 3 most important and proven results to recovery;
1. Mind power works - believe in something and don’t be deterred.
2. Ask your biological parents/grandparents/siblings about similar injuries they’ve had and the effectiveness of their long term recovery.
3. Listen to your body - it’s gods temple and can tell you all you need to know. Learning the language is the hard part (this is the language doctors intemperate).
Don’t get down, happiness heals everything - most drug therapy will improve happiness which will assist in the drugs ‘real’ job being done.
Yes, but not always; while the cardiovascular workout that running gives you is great for your heart, jogging exercise can do major damage to your knees and other joints if you push yourself too hard too quickly. It is important for joggers to know their bodies, to carefully and safely test their limits and to be able to respond to signals their bodies give them. You should also always start your jogging workout with a 10 minutes of stretching as a good jogging warmup. right ??
If you’re near a beach, running on sand is great for building strength back up after an injury.
It makes you work harder so you don’t have to run as far, and the sand absorbs impact which is good for you injury.
Just don’t push it too hard and listen to your body.
Also this advice is usually for knee injuries, so check with your doctor first 
Skipping’s also an option. Not too expensive to invest in either.
It is medically proved that laughing is very healthy for our body and mind. I am Gustavo Woltmann, a yoga teacher I also believe that there is no effective medicine other than yoga for healthy body and mind growth.