Weight loss with an injury

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leoniehickson7472
leoniehickson7472 Posts: 1 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I have a serious knee injury and on crutches non weight bearing on left leg. Any advice or exercises I can do? I am trying my best to limit KJ intake. Can be a struggle to make healthy foods that transport well on crutches !

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  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,682 Member
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    Ask your doctor about exercises that you can do and when you'll be able to start PT. You might be able to do pool running or some Pilates exercises that focus on the core but don't stress the knee. Some arm exercises (weights) might be possible as well. But ask the orthopedist.

    Several years ago I developed a pelvic stress fracture while training for a HM. I couldn't do much exercise and I was climbing the walls. Oddly though, I lost weight. Partly because I was too depressed to eat, but also because I was able to focus solely on my diet without the distraction of being hungry from exercise. Healthy foods are no harder to transport than unhealthy. Salads are good. Meat and vegetables. Fruit. If you can't walk much, you won't be tempted to run to the kitchen for snacks. It is possible to lose weight without any exercise. You just have to make it a priority.
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
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    When I was laid up with a fractured ankle, I lost weight, too, mainly because getting to the kitchen and then finding a way to carry food out of the kitchen was more of a hassle than it was worth. It was a small silver lining in an otherwise frustrating experience. :)

    I remember the joy when I was finally down to a single crutch and could actually carry a cup of coffee for myself! :)
  • zjpq
    zjpq Posts: 198 Member
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    You could do arm exercises in your chair?
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Don't do what I did!
    Couldn't weight bear on one leg for 3 months after a dopey car driver rearranged my knee, got depressed, ate too much and really piled on the pounds.
    Limited exercise isn't really going to make much of a difference to your calorie balance compared to simply eating the right amount.

    I did rehab at least once and sometimes twice a day and "walked" (stumped?) a fair distance every day on my crutches which built some serious traps and triceps but found transporting food was hard when I made the mistake of buying Easter Eggs for the family without thinking through how I was going to carry them home....
    Get a backpack.

    You need specific rehab exercise advice from a professional as your serious knee injury may not be the same as someone else's serious knee injury.
    But you can do upper body strength work of course and there are upper body cardio machines too - arm bike and a cross country skiing simulator for example but these are fairly rare in gyms.
  • xvolution
    xvolution Posts: 721 Member
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    It might be a good idea to invest in a set of resistance bands. They give resistance to the muscles being worked, but lowers the risk of injury since gravity doesn't have much of an effect on them. It's why a lot of hospitals use them in rehab programs, so you can use them to rebuild strength in that knee once your doctor give you the ok to do so.

    I had to use them last year to help regain the ability to walk after an allergic reaction with statins caused muscular degeneration in my legs.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    The body uses calories for healing. Go to maintenance

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