Building muscle in a wheelchair

wheels1872

I’m trying to build muscle in a wheelchair but struggling any advice is welcome

JBanx256

Not sure what your physical capabilities are at this point or what equipment you have access to - can you/is it practical for you to move from your chair onto the different seats of machines (or benches for free weights) at the gym? Does your chair give you enough freedom of movement that you could use weights while staying seated in it? If you're going to be staying in your chair, is there adequate support (or is your core strong enough - remember we have no idea whatsoever what your starting point is here) for you to safely lift from there, especially to overhead, etc? Do you have a physical therapist and if so have they given you any guidelines or restrictions?

wheels1872

I can do the likes of bicep curls from my chair I can’t do overhead I prefer to do that on a machine

Xellercin

Do you have a physiotherapist or occupational therapist who can help you figure out an exercise plan? I'm on crutches and I would be lost without physiotherapy.

wheels1872

No but might get one

Xellercin

wheels1872 wrote: »

No but might get one

I strongly recommend it, but in the meantime, there are tons of online resources for exercises for those of us with disabilities. But nothing beats having someone customize a routine for your and monitor your progress.

When you don't have a fully functional body, it's really easy for certain parts to get overtaxed, so that's where professional evaluation and monitoring is so valuable. It's not just a matter of figuring out what exercises you can do with the limbs that work, any yahoo could figure that out. It's a matter of understanding how your body works as a whole, and that's what really matters for you to achieve optimal conditioning.

If you have insurance, then chances are both PT and OT would be covered.

wheels1872

Yea thank you for your advice