Any lower limb amputees?

mom23mangos

My father just unexpectedly had to have an above the knee amputation as the result of complications from blood clots. Are there any amputees on here? Once he's out of the hospital and rehab facility I want to work on improving his upper body strength and cardiovascular health. I'm thinking swimming and rowing (I tried rowing on one leg and it seems plausable). Any other suggestions besides general strength machines?

pinuplove

No advice, but hugs to both of you. He must be reeling if it came on so suddenly. Blood clots are a scary business. Best wishes and rapid healing to him!

mom23mangos

pinuplove wrote: »

No advice, but hugs to both of you. He must be reeling if it came on so suddenly. Blood clots are a scary business. Best wishes and rapid healing to him!

Thank you. He is. He's convinced he will never be able to do all the things he used to do. I'm really trying to help him see otherwise. But I also want to be cognizant of the huge extra effort that using an above knee prosthetic places on the heart. He's 75 and was fairly active, but still.

MikePTY

mom23mangos wrote: »

pinuplove wrote: »

No advice, but hugs to both of you. He must be reeling if it came on so suddenly. Blood clots are a scary business. Best wishes and rapid healing to him!

Thank you. He is. He's convinced he will never be able to do all the things he used to do. I'm really trying to help him see otherwise. But I also want to be cognizant of the huge extra effort that using an above knee prosthetic places on the heart. He's 75 and was fairly active, but still.

Not me personally, and the situation is fairly different, but there is someone who trains at my Krav Maga gym who is wheelchair bound and has zero use of either of his legs. The training is adjusted for him but he is still able to do a lot of it and he is testing up for his yellow belt in a couple of weekends. He is much younger than your father, so that is obviously a factor, but I think that with determination, a lot more may be open to him than he thinks. It will just be an adjustment.

Chieflrg

I would look into leg press, belt squat machine, leg extention & curls for lower body.

Upper body is pretty wide open. Any row, press, arm work, etc...

Cardio assault bike or rowing are decent options to try especially if he has a prosthetic eventually. It would more beneficial so he can stimulate both legs. Also squats and deads in that same boat.

I've trained a couple upper body amputees and don't have experience with lower partial/limbs that still have function as of yet.

The body is a amazing thing and he will adapt through time.

Wish you both the best of luck.

Hannahwalksfar

Make sure he has a good therapist as well. I had a colleague who found it very difficult to adjust to amputation and fell into a very dark place. It’s tough.

Vune

Seconding the therapist.

I know a couple amputees and scores of people with mobility disorders. I know wheelchair USERS (they're not bound to it) who teach yoga, swim, lift, and surf. Sometimes, we need to give the world a push to accomodate different bodies. Any clever teacher or trainer would be willing to work with him and adapt what he enjoys doing. Trouble is finding clever trainers. But yoga, in particular, might help with both pain issues and body acceptance.

MikePfirrman

mom23mangos wrote: »

My father just unexpectedly had to have an above the knee amputation as the result of complications from blood clots. Are there any amputees on here? Once he's out of the hospital and rehab facility I want to work on improving his upper body strength and cardiovascular health. I'm thinking swimming and rowing (I tried rowing on one leg and it seems plausable). Any other suggestions besides general strength machines?

Actually, you're on to something with rowing. Look into Adaptive Rowing. I'm very active in the Indoor Rowing community and it's becoming huge there. Many war vet amputees are now rowing. There are also some really great people doing OTW (over the water) rowing with amputees. Look up Sean Gaffney. Talk about an inspiring guy. Not only got World Rowing to increase the classes of Indoor rows at the World Championships, he set a very high bar for a World Record (oh, he's also a world class powerlifter!).

http://www.usrowing.org/adaptive-rowing/

Another idea is Arm Bikes at certain gyms. I use one at my gym, not because I have to, but because the thing is a beast. Both of them at my local LA Fitness were broke and I stayed on them until they fixed them both. Great cardio exercise. It's like a Spinner, but for the upper body. They have one with a bench and one without (for wheelchair access).

I know most LA Fitnesses have this device.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5x7PsI3F_Es

aokoye

I third the idea of therapy and second the idea of rowing. Adaptive rowing, on the water and off, is very much a thing, and not just for veterans. There's a list of rowing clubs in the US with adaptive programs here. Of course this requires him actually enjoying rowing, but it's definitely worth a try. I would also look at, among other things, hand cycling (or cycling in general if he ends up getting a prosthetic leg.

eddiemonster1

I'm a below the knee amputee and I am pretty active with pilates, hiking, and other activities. Your dad needs to get a good prosthetist. That's very important. I am on my 3rd prosthetist and he is amazing. I tried for years to be active and my leg held me back. As soon as I took the advice of another injured veteran and switched to a specific prosthetist it was like night and day. The best part about it is I'm able to do stuff with my wife and kids again. It's easy to get into a bad place so he needs to stay positive and have a song support group.

mom23mangos

Thank you everyone for the ideas. @eddiemonster1 - I'm so glad you were able to find a prosthetic that allows you to be as active as you want. We are very fortunate in that we live down the street from the largest medical center in the US, so our options for physical therapy and prostheticians are top-notch. But I guess a lot of it will come down to what medicare will cover. And I hope to convince him to join a support group where he might be able to get good recommendations like you were. Also, there is an Ottobock branch just a few hours away and I don't know if he might be able to try out different options there.

HoneyBadger302

mom23mangos wrote: »

pinuplove wrote: »

No advice, but hugs to both of you. He must be reeling if it came on so suddenly. Blood clots are a scary business. Best wishes and rapid healing to him!

Thank you. He is. He's convinced he will never be able to do all the things he used to do. I'm really trying to help him see otherwise. But I also want to be cognizant of the huge extra effort that using an above knee prosthetic places on the heart. He's 75 and was fairly active, but still.

I don't have too much advice on workouts during the healing stages, but would like to offer some possible help for his feelings on what he can/can't do after:

I'm part of a pilon fracture group (after getting my own pilon fracture) and we have at least one member (and my own doctor knew of others) who have electively had their bad leg amputated. Granted, these are generally BTK, not above, so probably offer some other options, but they did it to IMPROVE their quality of life and ability to do things (most people have no idea how much a bad ankle severely limits your life).

That being said, I was at the track a couple weeks ago preparing for my upcoming race weekend, and there were TWO amputees out there riding - one BTK, one above. Both were riding in the 'fast' group. I also personally know of a parapalegic who still rides his motorcycle on the track at a pretty respectable pace.

So, if your father is stubborn enough and willing to push through things (even when he's down) I've met and known enough people who have proven "where there's a will, there's a way."

snickerscharlie

Huge hugs to you and your dad.