need suggestions for exercises do-able with foot injury

MKEgal

I used to do the elliptical or hills on the treadmill (or, yes, actually :gasp: walk outdoors!) for 60-90 minutes a day, plus weightlifting 2-3x per week, but developed a persistent painful non-healing injury in my foot and have been sidelined for months.
I don't like this. I don't like how I'm feeling or looking.

Right now, all I can comfortably do is ride my bicycle. (Comfortable in terms of "this doesn't hurt my foot".) And that's limited by weather, traffic, riots, etc.
A doctor suggested swimming, though I don't know if I could afford a pass to the county pool & haven't looked into when it's open for lap swimming. Also need a suit. But I do like swimming.

While I'm working on seeing yet another doctor in hopes of getting this fixed,
I thought I'd ask people here to see if anyone has ideas of other non-impact non-weight-bearing exercises I can try.
Is it worth it to just do upper-body weightlifting work?

Elise4270

MKEgal wrote: »

Is it worth it to just do upper-body weightlifting work?

Yes. I had surgery about 10.5 weeks ago and I'm only cleared to swim and do core and upper body. It's absolutely been worth it.

Might look into getting a Swiss/yoga ball. They are cheap -ish.

I recommend the pool pass. See if they can offer you a few days free to try it out. End of season (in the US), should be bringing out some summer clearance items. Invest in swimwear.

Of course, if you can find one, a zero G runner would be nice (I've yet to find one, maybe when pt starts, eh?).

Chieflrg

It's subjective to your pain level and the injury you have.

I currently lift and play catcher for hardball with a broken toe and plantar fasciitis. Find what works for you and what you comfortable with.

sarahkw04

I had a foot injury about 3 months ago and my doctor put me off of anything "explosive" - no box jumps, plyometrics, things like that - but encouraged me to keep working out. I did low impact stuff - upper body work, but also some lower body work like squats.

daweasel

I was a runner and developed not-quite-a-stress-fracture in my foot 18 months ago after some dodgy taping and "it'll be fine" advice from a physio. I ended up taking up road cycling and now I love it! I ride way more than I run these days. I wasn't able to run for a good 5-6 months or so.

When I couldn't run I was swimming a lot, which is great for your overall fitness as well as strength endurance, and I'd definitely recommend that. It should be pain free and with almost no risk of making your injury worse.

And definitely keep up whatever strength training you can do. I know first hand that it can be difficult to look at it in a positive way, and it might feel like a setback, but it also gives you an opportunity to work on different goals than you otherwise would, like chin ups or something. You may be able to do some lower body exercises on machines as well, like lying hamstring curls, leg curl machines, stuff like that that doesn't really use your feet at all.

Could you try the rowing machine? I couldn't use that for the first month or two but it was alright after that. If you're having trouble with walking then I'm assuming not at this stage, but if cycling is okay then maybe.

You could also look at getting a cheap indoor trainer for your bike so you're not limited by weather. Second hand you can pick up a basic, cheap one for less than $50 sometimes. Or spin classes?

cynnara1

This has been a blessing. My Orthopaedics doc just sidelined me until my bone spur is removed from the Achilles tendon. I've been wracking my brain on alternatives. These are great.

shabaity

Bone spurs in the ankle here I was just given some stretches and strengthening exercises, better shoes with some support and better braces for mma. I was also advised to not allow any kind of lock that's gonna stress the ankles.

Alisonswim46

Broken ankle with plate and screws 15 months ago here. As soon as I was able, I started aqua jogging. I use an aqua jogging belt. It felt good to be in the water and be able to move.