Exercises for just lower body (broken shoulder)
gypsyrose12
Posts: 21 Member
Good morning,
I broke my shoulder last week and would really like to maintain some fitness. Prior to the injury I had just started at the gym and noticed my muscles getting stronger and I was feeling great.
Can anyone recommend exercises for me?
I broke my shoulder last week and would really like to maintain some fitness. Prior to the injury I had just started at the gym and noticed my muscles getting stronger and I was feeling great.
Can anyone recommend exercises for me?
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Replies
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I think checking w your doctor would be best...sorry about the shoulder1
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My doctor was very unhelpful and I don’t believe this requires his advice.
Just looking for exercises not for my shoulder but for my legs.2 -
I would just do walking for right now. Even if you do leg exercises you could strain the shoulder tensing up. Running you could stumble (I have many times). Like previous you should ask your doctor but I think the bones should be given time to fuse.1
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walking in a pool may be something that is stress-free on the rest of body...but I would still run it by your doctor.0
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I've seen people do spin classes with broken upper body parts and pregnant but with stay in the seat the whole time. You are supposed to keep a light grip on the handle bar, but with you body angled forward it might not be best for a shoulder? Sitting upright is an option but I find it is harder to really dig deep for hills completely upright.
A lot of the rehab exercises I did for dislocating my knee involved sitting on a machine and doing leg presses, straightening calves , leg raises, etc. hence you upper body was unaffected except for keeping your core tight.
Perhaps a physical therapist would know best exercises to do that wouldn't affect your shoulder.
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I should also add that it is a hairline fracture, not a full ‘break’ where the bones separate...I was lucky!
I have been doing a cycling action with my legs when sitting and using one weight in the other hand and doing squats, the thing where the get drop your knee etc, I’m wondering if that is effective?0 -
gypsyrose12 wrote: »I should also add that it is a hairline fracture, not a full ‘break’ where the bones separate...I was lucky!
I have been doing a cycling action with my legs when sitting and using one weight in the other hand and doing squats, the thing where the get drop your knee etc, I’m wondering if that is effective?
Be careful with that, Because the stabilizer muscles in your shoulders don't care where the weight is, you could impede healing. I'd stick with walking and Recumbent biking until you get cleared by the doctor.
I know we don't normally think of the shoulders as part of your "core" at least in this context they certainly are.1 -
stanmann571 wrote: »gypsyrose12 wrote: »I should also add that it is a hairline fracture, not a full ‘break’ where the bones separate...I was lucky!
I have been doing a cycling action with my legs when sitting and using one weight in the other hand and doing squats, the thing where the get drop your knee etc, I’m wondering if that is effective?
Be careful with that, Because the stabilizer muscles in your shoulders don't care where the weight is, you could impede healing. I'd stick with walking and Recumbent biking until you get cleared by the doctor.
I know we don't normally think of the shoulders as part of your "core" at least in this context they certainly are.
It’s difficult because the Orthopedic specialist gave me little information on recovery and he’s now on holidays so I have no idea about the timeline or what exercises I should be doing for the arm - it happened almost 2 weeks ago. I have never had this injury so I don’t even know if what I’m doing is helping or if I’m not doing enough.0 -
gypsyrose12 wrote: »stanmann571 wrote: »gypsyrose12 wrote: »I should also add that it is a hairline fracture, not a full ‘break’ where the bones separate...I was lucky!
I have been doing a cycling action with my legs when sitting and using one weight in the other hand and doing squats, the thing where the get drop your knee etc, I’m wondering if that is effective?
Be careful with that, Because the stabilizer muscles in your shoulders don't care where the weight is, you could impede healing. I'd stick with walking and Recumbent biking until you get cleared by the doctor.
I know we don't normally think of the shoulders as part of your "core" at least in this context they certainly are.
It’s difficult because the Orthopedic specialist gave me little information on recovery and he’s now on holidays so I have no idea about the timeline or what exercises I should be doing for the arm - it happened almost 2 weeks ago. I have never had this injury so I don’t even know if what I’m doing is helping or if I’m not doing enough.
Take it easy and as Stan said do some biking and refrain from as much core involvement as you can. It won't hurt until it does and then you will likely wish you had taken a seperate route.
1.Do too much now and prolong recovery
2.Play it safe, take it easy and be back to your normal self sooner rather than later.3 -
Honestly I would stick to recumbent biking (it's not worth trying to sit on a non-recumbent bike, really it's not) and be patient until your ortho gets back. I was going to say, ask for a referral to an physical therapist, but if your injury is anything like mine (and it probably is - I also fractured my shoulder earlier this year), you probably won't be allowed to do much if anything with that arm until X weeks out (I think in my case it was six weeks out but I'd have to check). I would call your specialist's office and ask if there are specific stretches for that arm that you can do, but otherwise you need to be patient.gypsyrose12 wrote: »stanmann571 wrote: »gypsyrose12 wrote: »I should also add that it is a hairline fracture, not a full ‘break’ where the bones separate...I was lucky!
I have been doing a cycling action with my legs when sitting and using one weight in the other hand and doing squats, the thing where the get drop your knee etc, I’m wondering if that is effective?
Be careful with that, Because the stabilizer muscles in your shoulders don't care where the weight is, you could impede healing. I'd stick with walking and Recumbent biking until you get cleared by the doctor.
I know we don't normally think of the shoulders as part of your "core" at least in this context they certainly are.
It’s difficult because the Orthopedic specialist gave me little information on recovery and he’s now on holidays so I have no idea about the timeline or what exercises I should be doing for the arm - it happened almost 2 weeks ago. I have never had this injury so I don’t even know if what I’m doing is helping or if I’m not doing enough.1 -
Honestly I would stick to recumbent biking (it's not worth trying to sit on a non-recumbent bike, really it's not) and be patient until your ortho gets back. I was going to say, ask for a referral to an physical therapist, but if your injury is anything like mine (and it probably is - I also fractured my shoulder earlier this year), you probably won't be allowed to do much if anything with that arm until X weeks out (I think in my case it was six weeks out but I'd have to check). I would call your specialist's office and ask if there are specific stretches for that arm that you can do, but otherwise you need to be patient.gypsyrose12 wrote: »stanmann571 wrote: »gypsyrose12 wrote: »I should also add that it is a hairline fracture, not a full ‘break’ where the bones separate...I was lucky!
I have been doing a cycling action with my legs when sitting and using one weight in the other hand and doing squats, the thing where the get drop your knee etc, I’m wondering if that is effective?
Be careful with that, Because the stabilizer muscles in your shoulders don't care where the weight is, you could impede healing. I'd stick with walking and Recumbent biking until you get cleared by the doctor.
I know we don't normally think of the shoulders as part of your "core" at least in this context they certainly are.
It’s difficult because the Orthopedic specialist gave me little information on recovery and he’s now on holidays so I have no idea about the timeline or what exercises I should be doing for the arm - it happened almost 2 weeks ago. I have never had this injury so I don’t even know if what I’m doing is helping or if I’m not doing enough.
Wow thank you so much. I haven’t spoken to anyone else who has had a broken shoulder so that is super insightful to get your recovery timeline. This is only week 2 and I’m staying positive and just doing small movements each day (the arm is not able to move much at all) I’ve been doing the pendulum exercises and moving my elbow to avoid it becoming frozen but that’s it?
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Body weight squats, body weight lunges (either in place or walking), single leg body weight deadlifts, leg press machine, seated hamstring/seated quad machine, seated calf raises. You can also do a whole bunch of abdominal excercises. Go on the internet and watch videos of these excercises to make sure that you’re performing them correctly. I had a grade 3 ACL, MCL and Meniscus tear in January. The doctor told me that I probably wouldn’t be able to run or do lower body resistance training for at least 6-8 months. I opted out of surgery went to PT and got back in the gym ASAP. My knee is now better than ever.1
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CutNjacked wrote: »Body weight squats, body weight lunges (either in place or walking), single leg body weight deadlifts, leg press machine, seated hamstring/seated quad machine, seated calf raises. You can also do a whole bunch of abdominal excercises. Go on the internet and watch videos of these excercises to make sure that you’re performing them correctly. I had a grade 3 ACL, MCL and Meniscus tear in January. I opted out of surgery went to PT and got back in the gym ASAP. My knee is now better than ever. You got this!
I would be really cautious with any sort of ab work. as well as anything like lunges or single leg deadlifts that induces torque/torsion. as @jessef593 said "It's not going to hurt until it hurts, and then it's too late".0 -
No worries. I'm generally don't share a whole lot about what exact rehab exercises I get prescribed to do on this forum, but given how conservative it was I don't thing it's a big issue. Before you keep doing pendulum exercises I would call your ortho's office and ask if another ortho who works there and can look at your chart is ok with that. I was allowed to do next to nothing save for I think two, maybe three, stretches all of which involved my arm being supported. That was it. I thankfully didn't lose very much mobility but I also am pretty flexible so no one was surprised.gypsyrose12 wrote: »
Honestly I would stick to recumbent biking (it's not worth trying to sit on a non-recumbent bike, really it's not) and be patient until your ortho gets back. I was going to say, ask for a referral to an physical therapist, but if your injury is anything like mine (and it probably is - I also fractured my shoulder earlier this year), you probably won't be allowed to do much if anything with that arm until X weeks out (I think in my case it was six weeks out but I'd have to check). I would call your specialist's office and ask if there are specific stretches for that arm that you can do, but otherwise you need to be patient.gypsyrose12 wrote: »stanmann571 wrote: »gypsyrose12 wrote: »I should also add that it is a hairline fracture, not a full ‘break’ where the bones separate...I was lucky!
I have been doing a cycling action with my legs when sitting and using one weight in the other hand and doing squats, the thing where the get drop your knee etc, I’m wondering if that is effective?
Be careful with that, Because the stabilizer muscles in your shoulders don't care where the weight is, you could impede healing. I'd stick with walking and Recumbent biking until you get cleared by the doctor.
I know we don't normally think of the shoulders as part of your "core" at least in this context they certainly are.
It’s difficult because the Orthopedic specialist gave me little information on recovery and he’s now on holidays so I have no idea about the timeline or what exercises I should be doing for the arm - it happened almost 2 weeks ago. I have never had this injury so I don’t even know if what I’m doing is helping or if I’m not doing enough.
Wow thank you so much. I haven’t spoken to anyone else who has had a broken shoulder so that is super insightful to get your recovery timeline. This is only week 2 and I’m staying positive and just doing small movements each day (the arm is not able to move much at all) I’ve been doing the pendulum exercises and moving my elbow to avoid it becoming frozen but that’s it?
I should also note that I was already seeing a PT at that point for my knee surgery and we definitely had to make some changes to take into account having to protect my shoulder. I did try to ride my bike inside on the trainer a handful of times but it was a losing battle. The only reason my PT even let me do so was because she knew I was used to getting onto and off of it and wasn't worried about me falling while trying to get on without the use of my right arm.
Like you, I avoided surgery but it was definitely a, "if you do too much too soon you might need surgery." Tomorrow I will be three months to the day out of my injury. I am still noticeably weaker in almost all areas and am still in PT for my shoulder, but I shocked myself and my PT yesterday when I was able to do a pull up successfully.2 -
OP -I hope you’re on the mend soon
I had a proximal humeral fracture (broke the “ball” of the shoulder joint) last November and had it fixed early December. Two weeks after surgery I was in the gym doing leg weights (pulley machines) and recumbent bike / treadmill brisk walking (at a speed where I didn’t HAVE to swing my arms. I did drop 10kg on the weights so I didn’t feeel the need to “stabilise” through my upper body.
By 6 weeks x-ray showed the fracture was healed and I went back to the elliptical and v low resistance on the rower.
Now, (with physio approval) I’m introducing upper limb resistance work. Maybe could have started earlier, but had range of motion problems to overcome first.
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kathrynhoward84 wrote: »OP -I hope you’re on the mend soon
I had a proximal humeral fracture (broke the “ball” of the shoulder joint) last November and had it fixed early December. Two weeks after surgery I was in the gym doing leg weights (pulley machines) and recumbent bike / treadmill brisk walking (at a speed where I didn’t HAVE to swing my arms. I did drop 10kg on the weights so I didn’t feeel the need to “stabilise” through my upper body.
By 6 weeks x-ray showed the fracture was healed and I went back to the elliptical and v low resistance on the rower.
Now, (with physio approval) I’m introducing upper limb resistance work. Maybe could have started earlier, but had range of motion problems to overcome first.kathrynhoward84 wrote: »OP -I hope you’re on the mend soon
I had a proximal humeral fracture (broke the “ball” of the shoulder joint) last November and had it fixed early December. Two weeks after surgery I was in the gym doing leg weights (pulley machines) and recumbent bike / treadmill brisk walking (at a speed where I didn’t HAVE to swing my arms. I did drop 10kg on the weights so I didn’t feeel the need to “stabilise” through my upper body.
By 6 weeks x-ray showed the fracture was healed and I went back to the elliptical and v low resistance on the rower.
Now, (with physio approval) I’m introducing upper limb resistance work. Maybe could have started earlier, but had range of motion problems to overcome first.kathrynhoward84 wrote: »OP -I hope you’re on the mend soon
I had a proximal humeral fracture (broke the “ball” of the shoulder joint) last November and had it fixed early December. Two weeks after surgery I was in the gym doing leg weights (pulley machines) and recumbent bike / treadmill brisk walking (at a speed where I didn’t HAVE to swing my arms. I did drop 10kg on the weights so I didn’t feeel the need to “stabilise” through my upper body.
By 6 weeks x-ray showed the fracture was healed and I went back to the elliptical and v low resistance on the rower.
Now, (with physio approval) I’m introducing upper limb resistance work. Maybe could have started earlier, but had range of motion problems to overcome first.
I have the exact injury, the proximal humerus. I’ve never had this before so as the pain is going I’m starting to feel more positive and like I can do more but I don’t want to rush it. The specialist just told me to keep the arm moving and that was it, he left for holidays so I was not and am still not able to contact the office for questions (already tried).
Thanks for sharing your experience, it’s really interesting.
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I would really recommend getting some physio. They’ll give you great “do” and “don’t” guidelines. If you can’t see one, to keep the arm moving, the first exercises the physio has me doing - immediately post op, was cradling the bad arm with the good and “rocking a baby” in both the side-to-side and forwards (without the sling support I was given). Also, hinge forward from the hip so your arm is dangling (straight) and “stir the pot” in both directions.
PS what country are you in? (I ask because I’m UK, so only really know that healthcare system)1 -
Oops. Just the-read the thread. You’re already doing the pendulum stuff so the last 2/3 of my previous post is irrelevant.
The stuff about getting to see a physio though... can’t recommend it enough.0 -
I broke my shoulder 5 years ago. It was a nasty break with a shattered shoulder blade going up into the shoulder.
I'm in the UK and was automatically referred for physiotherapy after 6 weeks. Before that I was supposed to wear a sling which immobilised my arm and shoulder and not move that side at all.
Physio helped a lot and I'd highly recommend it. Recovery was a long process but, I'm much older than you, have osteoporosis and at the time was very unfit.0 -
I am 6 weeks post op now having multiple fractures in my humerus. PT and my Ortho surgeon said specifically “no working out until after the 6 week check.” The logic is possibility of a fall, strain across your body. As someone said earlier, if you feel pain, it’s too late.The need is to let the bones properly knit, and develop a level of mobility and initial strength in the recovering shoulder.
My 6 week post op check is tomorrow and I’ll ask my surgeon what lower body workout I can start. I’ll share his answer.0
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