exercise with a broken collerbone ?

egirlcat207
egirlcat207 Posts: 51 Member
edited November 18 in Fitness and Exercise
Had an accident very recently and ended up with a shattered collerbone and bruised ribs. Have to have surgery to set the bone. No, not planning on any weight lifting but am curious if there are any exercises I can do after the surgery - which is just next week. I don't want to lose any muscle and full mobility will probably be about 10 weeks . I was considering eating a high protein diet..will that be enough ? What about lower body exercises ? Like walking or something equally as low impact ? I don't have a pool which I think would be optimal . Suggestions ?

Replies

  • Debmal77
    Debmal77 Posts: 4,770 Member
    treadmill....on incline??...I would check with my doctor also..
  • meganjcallaghan
    meganjcallaghan Posts: 949 Member
    regardless of what exercise you do (and yes....check with the doctor), you do use up extra calories (unfortunately not much done in the way of studies to put a number on it for you but after my kidney donation surgery I ate probably about 500 - 700 extra calories a day and after 4 weeks I had only put back on 4 of the 12 extra pounds I'd lost pre-surgery) so eating a little extra to make sure you are getting the necessary nutrients to heal is a good idea....and you might as well make it protein, I suppose.
  • Michael190lbs
    Michael190lbs Posts: 1,510 Member
    Just rest it for a while seriously just heal!! Watch your calorie intake and rest/ recovery will be the best thing you can do!! I had a botched hernia surgery that caused me to break ribs every two months for two years (11 ribs total) it was horrible!! I put on 50 lbs because I was eating crap (biggest mistake) and not moving obviously. Its been two years since I had surgery to fix the first screw up and have lost 85 lbs being smart.. Be smart just heal and eat accordingly!!
  • cheshirecatastrophe
    cheshirecatastrophe Posts: 1,395 Member
    edited May 2015
    Well...10 weeks, you are going to lose upper body muscle and mobility. The good news is you can get it back with time and effort--I did from 6 weeks on the DL with a broken wrist. :) I'd ask your doctor about what lower body exercises you can do--leg machines, core work, maybe the elliptical (low-impact) or walking. I've definitely seen people on the elliptical at my gym with an arm in a sling, which I presume is a collarbone issue. I can't imagine sweating on purpose with my arm in an actual cast from e.g. a broken wrist.
  • sunnyside1213
    sunnyside1213 Posts: 1,205 Member
    Eat things with calcium and magnesium. Try low impact and walking, but if it hurts, stop. I have been there and it is miserable without surgery.
  • chriscolh
    chriscolh Posts: 127 Member
    Eat well, and rest. Seriously. I broke my collarbone years ago. Long story short, I was impatient and not willing to take the time I needed to heal. My collarbone continued shift and move every time I did something stupid. It took 3 times longer to heal than what it would have if I had just rested, and is now 1/2" shorter because I wouldn't leave it alone. You can get stronger later. You need to heal now. Again, focus on nutrition and you'll be ok.
    Just my 2cents, but it was a hard lesson learned!

    Good luck, and I hope you heal well and quickly!!
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    Talk to the doctor, but I've had some shoulder operations and walking, lower body weight machine work was what I could get by with. Best of luck.
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