Cardio for a bum ankle

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linzmarie316
linzmarie316 Posts: 52
in Fitness and Exercise
I run every day & recently hurt my ankle. I am in a large amount of pain & there is a lot of swelling. Doctor says no running...which I don't think I could do if I tried, and no elliptical!

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  • kjm3579
    kjm3579 Posts: 3,974 Member
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    I injured the tendons in my right ankle about 1-1/2 years ago and did Bikram yoga for about 10 months to help with recovery and flexibility -- it was extremely painful at first but it did eventually heal and I'm back to running on it again.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    edited January 2015
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    I was recently diagnosed with arthritis in my foot (AND sprained my ankle just before Christmas) and I started swimming laps for my cardio. I do the breast stroke because the frog kick does not use the ankle motion that the flutter kick does. Bonus: you get strengthening in addition to cardio.

    ETA: my doctor suggested biking on the recumbent bike. No strain and minimal movement in the ankle area since it is mostly thigh and calf
  • cheshirecatastrophe
    cheshirecatastrophe Posts: 1,395 Member
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    Do you have access to a pool? You could pool run to keep up your running-specific fitness.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
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    cheshirecatastrophe wrote: »
    Do you have access to a pool? You could pool run to keep up your running-specific fitness.

    I found that pool running actually hurt my ankle more because of the bending and pushing off the bottom. On the other hand, OP's injury could easily be a different part of the ankle than mine was and not be affected by it. I did love sitting in the whirlpool and flexing and stretching my ankle in the hot water. I think that helped me recover more quickly.

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