I have to give up Rugby

tbrain1989

I play rugby quite regularly, the whole purpose of ever managing my weight was to be involved in the sport. most people arent that keen on beinng above 200lbs and fit but its all part of the game.

now fast forward and i have to stop playing due to a knee injury, ill spare you the details but its defintiley game over.

im only 24 and i would really like to find abother active hobby that is social.

anyone got any suggestions or advice. im happy to try almost anything

matthehat

Sorry about the knee man! But honestly my sport is weight lifting, its my favorite thing to do! Another one, that some might not call a sport is rowing!

blobby10

Touch rugby? I play that every week and we have loads of players who dont play full contact any more due to injury.
Same camaraderie, less physcial damage!! x

neandermagnon

you can do weightlifting... you will probably need to check with a physio what lifts are safe for your knee but you'll be fine with upper body lifts, and the lower body lifts there may still be ways you can do them, or you can find other ways to work those muscles. And for some injuries squats actually can help improve joint stability (but only go that route under the advice of a physio, because some injuries it'll make worse)

if you work out at a gym it's quite social...

to be honest it's hard to make suggestions re team sports without knowing about your injury and what kinds of activities your knee can still take... most team sports involve either running or skating, both of which put a strain on the knee... if the physio says they're okay then that will help you with what you can do.......... weightlifting is something you can do so long as a physio advises what lifts are safe for you, but even people who are paralysed from the waist down can still do upper body lifts so there'll be something you can do pretty much no matter what. Maybe water polo is an option as a team sport if all running is out of the question.

tbrain1989

i might be my own worst enemy here but i already go to the gym. its pretty common for rugby players to do weight training. i cant really see it being as fun as team sport. infact i prefer to train on my own to get it done.

My knee isnt totally destroyed but its close, with out labouring the point i can still actually run just fine, i enjoy running its the directional changes and impacts of rugby combined with the stop start nature that i cant continue.

the real thing is that i have to stop the game before i really ruin my knee, its not worth a couple more years of rubgy that could destroy my abillity to walk.

just wondered what else people got up to that was quite social and active

xidia

What exactly have you done to your knee? Stop/start and twists being a problem implies joint stability, which in turn implies physio work should help.

Any cartilage/meniscus damage is of course pretty much permanent, but people can and do continue all sorts of things without cartilage.

Eastern_Echo23

I gave up baseball after i needed ankle surgery on both feet, now i have arthritis problems in both feet.... I stopped playing after the age of 24. It was definitely game over when i shattered my nose taking a hot ball in the face at 2nd base... Now i just hike as much as my feet let me!

thebigcb

Its such a tough game, I did my ankle at 21, made it till 24/25 then it was too much, stopped.

Can you still run etc? You can look at jogging? Cycling?

Could you do maybe a martial art, has the physical aspect in it for you.

poedunk65

racquetball. I used to do karate but my knees gave out took me a long time to find something. I also swim alot

neandermagnon

directional changes would probably rule out most team sports that involve running even if you can run just fine in a straight line... maybe join an athletics club and just do running. That way you get the social aspect of it (as opposed to just going for runs on your own)

tbrain1989

i shattered my tibia when i was eighteen and the bone has a plate on top. couple that with my joints naturally hyper extending and ive got a virtually ruptured patella tendon which is constantly aggrevated by the movement of my knee.

that has put a lot of stress on the other tendons and im going under the knife to have tendon decompression surgery a bit of an arthroscopy and the cartlidge tended too.

its actually the consulting surgeon and physio team who have warned me that if i continue to play rugby post surgery then i will be having operations every few months and i will be putting my ability to walk at risk.

tbrain1989

I gave up baseball after i needed ankle surgery on both feet, now i have arthritis problems in both feet.... I stopped playing after the age of 24. It was definitely game over when i shattered my nose taking a hot ball in the face at 2nd base... Now i just hike as much as my feet let me!

hiking is my off season activity ive only jsut got back from Morroco and the atlas mountains my main concern and request for advice is... what the hell can i do with myself when all my friends are playing Rugby at the weekends?

thebigcb

Well at 23/24 dont get into coaching. It will only drive you insane. I stopped playing Hurling last year, and forced myself just not to go and watch them etc. Came back this year as a coach, now I still miss it, but at 27 my body knows its well past it.

Like breaking up, clean break, walk away, come back later.

GO out with the work crowd etc.

tbrain1989

thats sounds advice, thanks very much, at least to deal with the biterness of stopping,

if i go and watch straight away it will just tease me!

pensierobello

Hi T, what about swimming or cycling? Are you a fan? If you like it, it's actually great to do with other people - you could join a tri group, you could do the running if you're careful, or just stick with the cycling and swimming. I go on swimming holidays with SwimTrek and love open water swimming with others - join the Open Water Swimming group on Facebook.

tbrain1989

i have dont a couple of tri's and they are currently my best option. the straight line running is fine, its only 2 weeks ago i had my best 5k time.

maybe i should have put that,

its just ive recently moved and in setting up my new life ive only met rugby players. so literally every single person i know will be at rugby 3 days a week.

sijomial

That's really tough.
I lost one of my cruciate ligaments and a meniscus at age 31 and remember how frustrating it was having to give up contact sports and limit running.

I did manage to play squash to a highish level for 10 years afterwards (with a really good specialist knee brace) but my injuries are very different to yours. I would say that my prognosis at the time was far too conservative. Basically I was told to accept a level of disability and expect knee replacement by 50 - neither of these things happened!

My current main activity is cycling (very controlled movement, especially with proper cycling shoes, no impact) which also helps enormously with quad strength and hence knee stability. Your medics will have to guide you if cycling is suitable for you with your patella issues.

Rugby coaching or refereeing would be great ways to stay involved.
Best of luck.

Alatariel75

Can you take up a martial art? many of them are not leg work heavy and I know from my TKD classes that the instructors, once aware of an injury, will work with it... it's very social and I love it...

Eastern_Echo23

I gave up baseball after i needed ankle surgery on both feet, now i have arthritis problems in both feet.... I stopped playing after the age of 24. It was definitely game over when i shattered my nose taking a hot ball in the face at 2nd base... Now i just hike as much as my feet let me!

hiking is my off season activity ive only jsut got back from Morroco and the atlas mountains my main concern and request for advice is... what the hell can i do with myself when all my friends are playing Rugby at the weekends?

I usually watch my friends play baseball during the season... sometimes my coach will let me step in and take a few swings... I played on the Unofficial university Co-ED league in Ann Arbor as well as a local church league. The church league is just a bunch of old guys who get together and play.. So i am always welcome there...

I also go for long walks on light trails. There is a huge natural park near where I live...Some of the trails are from roman days ... that is my vice. Spectate and Do what your body can handle

lilmissmanx

I play rugby and I also crossfit. It certainly has a social element that you're looking for, combined with weightlifting & other gym stuff. And you'll be supervised by coaches, who you can discuss your knee issues with to see what exercises should be scaled or modified to suit you. And if you're into the competitive side of things there are competitions to take part in.

Inkratlet

Crossfit.

100% social and everything is scalable to work around your injury. Most Crossfit gyms let you do a free taster session, so you can give it a try before believing the bad press (there is good press too, but negativity always stands out more)

I have knee issues - nowhere near as bad as yours - but there isn't anything I can't do because of my knees. I just have to be a bit careful.

thebigcb

thats sounds advice, thanks very much, at least to deal with the biterness of stopping,

if i go and watch straight away it will just tease me!

Totally mate, and you start convincing yourself that " I'll train and get it right" then you do it again and end up getting a new knee before you are 35.

I tried to stop playing for years, but would end up going up to say hi, then start training again blah blah blah.

Nothing matches the "changing room banter etc" even now as manager of players I played and trained with for years, its not the same as being out on the pitch, bursting some bloke to even the scores etc.

tbrain1989

i was hoping there might be a similar sport that has a similar atmosphere.

i appreciate all the responses though guys and gals, i think the tri's is the best bet.

im not sure about crossfit.. i really dont get it? as far as ive seen it promotes a competiton in quantity rather then quality and for all its worth. who wants to be known as the best at exercising? theres no end goal

thebigcb

water polo maybe?

No knee problem, team sport?

tbrain1989

thats not a bad idea, ill have a look if there is one near by

Inkratlet

im not sure about crossfit.. i really dont get it? as far as ive seen it promotes a competiton in quantity rather then quality and for all its worth. who wants to be known as the best at exercising? theres no end goal

Rich Froning Jr. does? :laugh:

Of course there's an end goal. You decide for yourself what it is. But yeah it's not so clear cut as a team sport where the aim is to win a match. TBH all my sports have been like that - I'm competing against myself. I think I prefer it that way, I might actually have a chance of winning :drinker:

xidia

In that case, I'd definitely say triathlons are your best bet. I'd advise against pure running, but as one of three components you should do fine. Maybe also pick a club initially based on friendliness and inclusiveness - you can always find a more competitive group once you've built up a social circle.

I sympathise though, I really do. My life long knee issues (deformed femoral groove, lax ligaments, resulting meniscus damage) flared up dramatically last month with a transient dislocation of the patella, which for a couple of weeks looked like a ruptured quad tendon. I've been lucky this time, and I wish you all the best for your surgery and recovery.

xcalygrl

Can you see if there is a running club near you?

ETA: If you feel comfortable that you can just run. THey often train for events, like 5k, 10k, half marathons, etc., together.

BusyRaeNOTBusty

Mountain biking. You can do it alone or with friends and it's totally cool to drink beer afterwards.

hnsaunde

I'm having a "rest" season (I'm recovering from a shoulder injury), and I've been doing weight training during the week, and hiking and some easy scrambles on the weekends.

Good luck to you, I hope you heal up well, and you have my sympathies, I know how hard it is to stop playing even when your body says no more.

HeidiCooksSupper

What the hell can i do with myself when all my friends are playing Rugby at the weekends?

It sounds snarky to say, "Get new friends" but that's not how I mean it. Find out what other folks are doing at the same time as your Rugby weekends and join them. For example, local Sierra Clubs are often into group hikes and filled with young healthy folks. Similarly, local road runners' groups and cycling groups.