New ways to exercise with a useless right leg

theoriginaljayne

Sooo, because I'm an incredibly responsible person, I continued to run with a pulled muscle (right inner thigh) and an injured right foot for a couple of days. Then, last night, I discovered that I could no longer climb stairs... or walk... so no more running for me, for a while, at least.

However, I can't afford to abandon exercise entirely. I took a horribly long hiatus from working out in December, and I don't want to go through that again. I really need some creative ways to exercise while I allow my right leg/foot to heal.

What I can't do:
- Put too much weight on my right foot. I can now walk without it being too uncomfortable, but running, jumping, or balancing on one foot may cause involuntary yelping.
- Lift my right knee. This is what makes climbing stairs such a pain. I also can't do jackknives or full sit-ups, any sort of leg lifts, or lunges. Oddly, I can do squats without a problem.

I've been doing push-ups, chair dips, and planks, but frankly, I'm bored. I need some cardio. I need to burn calories! I need to SWEAT! Also, I need to work out something other than my arms...

Does anyone have any ideas? I'm desperate here. Thank you!

STARSHINE1975

Get some crutches and go for a walk. That will get your heart beating fast and it's a great upper body workout as well.

bambiphae

As an "experienced" exerciser and having endured many an injury (dislocated patella, bundle of nerves in my hip--most recent and led to my crash diet thing that was really insane but a good learning experience--plus miscellaneous aches and pains) I would recommend stretching and foam rolling. I would also recommend buying a better pair of shoes!! That knee pain might be due to poor alignment (I am so pronated, my alignment is terrible, and it causes lots of injuries ) so at least get some orthotics before you start running again.

If you have access to a pool, swimming would be the IDEAL!!! Best cardio after running that I've ever done!

In terms of preventing future injury, you may have gone too hard after taking such a long hiatus. It's awesome that you were so motivated to push yourself, but even I had to start back up from half a mile in November while I was getting over my hip injury. (Now I am back to 6 miles, which I am really happy about)While I was injured, I biked, which is something I would recommend to you if it wasn't snowy outside. If you have access to a spin bike or something, that would probably be ideal. Make sure to adjust the seat really carefully so your knee doesn't hurt. Bringing me to my next point: try taping it or wearing a bandage temporarily while you exercise to hold things in place.

bambiphae

by the way, never call yourself "responsible" because you ran with an injured leg. That's actually INCREDIBLY irresponsible. Dedicated yes, but not the most reasonable mindset to get into.