1 broken ankle +6 wks sitting on bum= 1 discouraged mama

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JamieCRodriguez
JamieCRodriguez Posts: 88 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I broke and had surgery on my ankle several weeks ago. Doctor's orders: non-weight bearing until Feb. 7th when i get my cast removed. At this point my daily workouts consist of 30 minutes of walking (with crutches)/push ups/ sit ups. I wonder; how many calories does one who sits on her bum most of the day need, and what other exercises can I do without bearing weight on my ankle?

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  • RachelNyra
    RachelNyra Posts: 5
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    You poor thing! Firstly I hope you get well soon. It's amazing that you're still doing exercise, even crutches walking. I'm very impressed. Regarding the calories you need can you edit your profile to say you are now less active? Otherwise maybe that old diet 'standard' of 1200 calories? Best of luck and don't weigh in till the cast comes off!
  • RachelNyra
    RachelNyra Posts: 5
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    Also I just saw walking with crutches is actually in the exercise section. Awesome.
  • JamieCRodriguez
    JamieCRodriguez Posts: 88 Member
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    thank you! Great suggestion. I updated my activity level to sedentary (which, I have to admit, makes me kinda sad). That took my daily calorie allowance to 1200 so you were right on. I saw walking w/crutches listed a few weeks ago. I can tell you it surely is a workout if I have to go a distance. My 2012 goal is to get some nice looking arms so I consider this an opportunity to get a jump start on that. :laugh:
  • BadDoggie987
    BadDoggie987 Posts: 1 Member
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    Sorry to hear about your ankle. I broke my foot in the middle of last year, and because of the type of break it took around 12 weeks before I could get rid of the crutches. Let me tell you - that 3 months sucked.

    I can offer a little advice in 2 areas, calories and exercise.

    For calories - whilst it's great to decrease the calorie intake, you need to remember that the body is healing, and you must make sure that you're getting the nutrition that you need. Don't cut the intake too much, and perhaps look at vitamin supplements etc - best to consult the doctor on that stuff.

    For exercise - the 'walking on crutches' thing is a tough workout, and burns great calories, but I found that my hands got too sore from walking long distances. Some searching around the web reveals a few good options, mostly focused on upper body exercises such as arm and shoulder exercises with light weights and lots of repetitions (turning weights exercises into essentially a cardio workout).

    Just don't end up doing what I did - feeling sorry for yourself and lazing around on the couch.... it's the precise reason that I need to lose an extra 10kg (20lbs) now!! :)

    Best of luck and a speedy recovery!
    Dog
  • shakybabe
    shakybabe Posts: 1,578 Member
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    If you got (or can borrow) a Wii, boxing and Tennis will give you a good workout and you can do them from sitting, also Wii sports resort can also be done from sitting (the cycling one there gives arms workout) .

    Or if you got a cheap pedal exerciser thing, you can put it on a table and give arms a workout instead!
  • merd0210
    merd0210 Posts: 32 Member
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    I recently broke my ankle and went from extremely active to sitting around (it is driving me crazy). I have also tried walking with crutches but it starts to hurt the hands and armpits the longer i walk (and the snow now doesn't help). I never even thought about the Wii to help with excercise, thank you for the idea I will start today!
  • JamieCRodriguez
    JamieCRodriguez Posts: 88 Member
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    I recently broke my ankle and went from extremely active to sitting around (it is driving me crazy). I have also tried walking with crutches but it starts to hurt the hands and armpits the longer i walk (and the snow now doesn't help). I never even thought about the Wii to help with excercise, thank you for the idea I will start today!


    I am able to use the crutches fine but only because a few friends who are nurses gave me lessons and fitted me properly. Now I can go a great distance (although I'm from Alaska and I stay inside cuz snow and crutches don't mix). I also do floor work (push-ups/ sit ups/ leg lifts/ bicycles)
  • MostlyWater
    MostlyWater Posts: 4,294 Member
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    Broke my ankle once and my foot twice. Even when you go back, take it easy.
  • kristelpoole
    kristelpoole Posts: 440 Member
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    I had 2 surgeries in December, so I was out for about 6 weeks as well. I wanted to make sure I didn't gain weight during that time (it was the holidays, too!), but I also got realistic about things and told myself that as long as I maintained, I'd be happy. So look up your BMR and TDEE at http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators.html and try to stay under or around those numbers. You'll be getting adequate nutrition for healing and you won't gain weight from being immobile. But please don't plan on losing 2lbs/wk while you're out unless you have a LOT of weight to lose. You'll be working back into things, albeit slowly, but you need to focus on healing right now. Good luck and I feel your pain!!

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