sidelined briefly by injury

4leighbee

I guess I'm just looking for some encouragement. I'm eating in a deficit and rely heavily on my running. I sprained my ankle today and am just a little anxious about staying on track without that daily, heavy training (not to mention emotional therapy). Not a whiner ... but whining a little ... who's been there? How did you adjust your daily intake to get through it successfully? Thanks!

yesimpson

Sorry to hear that!
I recently sprained my foot and before that a hip flexor problem meant I needed to dial back my running dramatically. Don't do the same as me and try to 'struggle' through or go too hard into rehab exercises as if that will make you heal better. Depending on the severity of your injury, in a few weeks you could be walking/swimming/doing low impact stuff to help build back up, but rest is really important now to let your ankle heal. It is frustrating, I totally get that.
You will need to reduce your calories, but remember any weight gained or fitness lost can be lost again later, it's nothing worth stressing over. It will likely be easier to return to where you were yesterday than it was to get there in the first place.
I hurt my foot three weeks ago (it was a minor muscle sprain) and pulled a muscle in my hip trying to stretch too aggressively a week ago (which really wound me up because I knew I'd been stupid) and after just taking it easy with a hour of walking 3 days this week, I went for a half hour swim with no pain at all this morning, which felt fantastic after my setback - so you have that awesome feeling to come in the near future! I did have to drop my calories to allow for being much less active, and I was sure I'd have gained weight since I stopped running - apparently only 0.1 of a pound though in 5 weeks, so managing your weight without high intensity exercise can be done.

Feel better soon.

frameloss

Hi, I just had foot and knee surgey. I am a frustrated with not working out as well. But I know the rest now will allow me to come back stronger! Just listen to your body, stretch

4leighbee

Thank you both! This is just what I need to hear! WTG on that swim ... so excited for that day. I know this is temporary and I count my blessings daily for a healthy body.

4leighbee

I wonder if it would be risky to do compound lifts after the initial I-can't-get-to-the-car nonsense has improved. If I have to sidestep unexpectedly, I could end up on the ground. I imagine there is part of the lifting program that I could still do. And stretch - lol, but less enthusiastically than you did, @yesimpson - that totally sounds like me! I will kick butt doing whatever I'm permitted to do. I'll be the best gentle stretcher I can possibly be. dammit ...

yesimpson

4leighbee wrote: »

I wonder if it would be risky to do compound lifts after the initial I-can't-get-to-the-car nonsense has improved. If I have to sidestep unexpectedly, I could end up on the ground. I imagine there is part of the lifting program that I could still do. And stretch - lol, but less enthusiastically than you did, @yesimpson - that totally sounds like me! I will kick butt doing whatever I'm permitted to do. I'll be the best gentle stretcher I can possibly be. dammit ...

Are you able to see a PT? They can advise you on what you can & can't do safely - sometimes the right kind of activity is helpful to the healing process.
Hahah it's so hard when you're a go-in-all-guns-blazing person - usually enthusiasm and pushing yourself is a good thing, not so much with dodgy ankles.

ka97

I've had a long history of ankle issues (years of playing soccer). Last year I had surgery. No running for over 4 months. It was brutal. I tried to keep my calories at maintenance while I was off my feet. It was really hard!!! I find that when I can't run, I gain. It's not just that I don't have the extra calorie burn, but it's also that I don't have the stress relief that I get from running. I start to fall back into old habits and start stress eating. Preplanning and prelogging my meals helped somewhat. Without the extra running calories I really had to think about how to spread my calories throughout the day.
Once I got into a walking boot, I was at the gym doing upper body lifting. It wasn't much, but it was something. As soon as I was out of the boot, I started full body lifting, swimming, and low resistance spin biking. I did gain a few pounds. Once I was fully swimming and biking I was able to maintain. The swimming and biking actually helped me to retain most of my fitness. It was the ankle rehab and recovery that was slow.
Definitely take care of your ankle. Use caution and return to running gradually. You don't want a lingering injury, and you don't want future issues because this one didn't heal properly.

MrMuzzles

All injuries at any cost are downers. It's great to see so much encouragement. I would like to point out once your back in business -move forward with the lesson that preventive injury exercises (balance, reactive, proprioception ) should not be overlooked. As a trainer, I see these same injuries day in and day out. Running is one of many choices of cardio...but to keep your ability to be a constant runner requires maintenance outside of running. Best of luck in recovery. Shall you have questions, feel free to reach out.

Sincerley,
Coach Rivera 'aka' MrMuzzles
Corrective Exercise Specialist.
facebook.com/muzzlefitness

4leighbee

^^ great point, thanks!

4leighbee

ka97 wrote: »

I've had a long history of ankle issues (years of playing soccer). Last year I had surgery. No running for over 4 months. It was brutal. I tried to keep my calories at maintenance while I was off my feet. It was really hard!!! I find that when I can't run, I gain. It's not just that I don't have the extra calorie burn, but it's also that I don't have the stress relief that I get from running. I start to fall back into old habits and start stress eating. Preplanning and prelogging my meals helped somewhat. Without the extra running calories I really had to think about how to spread my calories throughout the day.
Once I got into a walking boot, I was at the gym doing upper body lifting. It wasn't much, but it was something. As soon as I was out of the boot, I started full body lifting, swimming, and low resistance spin biking. I did gain a few pounds. Once I was fully swimming and biking I was able to maintain. The swimming and biking actually helped me to retain most of my fitness. It was the ankle rehab and recovery that was slow.
Definitely take care of your ankle. Use caution and return to running gradually. You don't want a lingering injury, and you don't want future issues because this one didn't heal properly.

This is pretty much what I'm expecting and am concerned about. I sure hope it's not four months though. I might be in a white, padded room, if so. I will try to be patient. Thanks.

4leighbee

yesimpson wrote: »

4leighbee wrote: »

I wonder if it would be risky to do compound lifts after the initial I-can't-get-to-the-car nonsense has improved. If I have to sidestep unexpectedly, I could end up on the ground. I imagine there is part of the lifting program that I could still do. And stretch - lol, but less enthusiastically than you did, @yesimpson - that totally sounds like me! I will kick butt doing whatever I'm permitted to do. I'll be the best gentle stretcher I can possibly be. dammit ...

Are you able to see a PT? They can advise you on what you can & can't do safely - sometimes the right kind of activity is helpful to the healing process.
Hahah it's so hard when you're a go-in-all-guns-blazing person - usually enthusiasm and pushing yourself is a good thing, not so much with dodgy ankles.

I might reach out in that direction. I think I'll give it a day or so and see how quickly I'm able to weight-bear. If it looks like I'm in trouble for the long haul, I will be seeing a sports PT - someone who understands how important it is and how frustrated I will become. Thanks for your comments.