Cardio exercises without the use of the ankle?

BeautyFromPain
BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
edited December 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi! I was just wondering other than shadow boxing what other exercises you could do without the use of an ankle? My joint in my ankle is inflamed from overuse and I can hardly walk :( I did a full body weights routine today but just wondering what cardio I could do?

Replies

  • 1a1a
    1a1a Posts: 761 Member
    Theoretically, bike riding should be ok, it's meant to be low impact. Try it, stop if it hurts. And yup, boxing/punching/waving your arms around will get your heart rate up and is certainly better than nothing (just feels unco to me).
  • jessmars
    jessmars Posts: 131
    Im not sure if you have a gym membership or not, but they have those arm bikes which gets your HR up........At the physical therapy clinic I work at a lot of our ankle patients use the stationary bike...but make sure you listen to your body if you get on the bike.
  • hush7hush
    hush7hush Posts: 2,273 Member
    Swimming!
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    Im not sure if you have a gym membership or not, but they have those arm bikes which gets your HR up........At the physical therapy clinic I work at a lot of our ankle patients use the stationary bike...but make sure you listen to your body if you get on the bike.

    Oh yeah, forgot about those! Thanks :)
  • FlynnMacCallister
    FlynnMacCallister Posts: 172 Member
    Swimming is always good for recovery cardio, and if you go to the gym, you could try a rowing machine; it does require some force and range of motion through the ankle, but it's a bit gentler than the impact from walking or running...

    You can always go lighter and longer with the weights; the effect is exactly the same.
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    Swimming is always good for recovery cardio, and if you go to the gym, you could try a rowing machine; it does require some force and range of motion through the ankle, but it's a bit gentler than the impact from walking or running...

    You can always go lighter and longer with the weights; the effect is exactly the same.

    Uhh I'm not doing weights more than 1 day in a row?
  • pkev
    pkev Posts: 1
    Hey! Though this isn't always a popular perspective in fitness circles, if you have a gym membership, any exercise you do, even those involving weights, can be cardio - just do lots of reps at very low weights. The key is keeping yourself moving so your heart rate stays up. Anything that gets (and keeps) your heart racing is cardio!

    Very low weight will (hopefully) keep your muscles from tiring out before your heart gets pumping. It will make you stronger, build serious stamina, and increase your lung capacity. it's a recipe for serious fat-burning. And if you're someone who believes that too much weight training will make you bulk up, take it from me - there's nothing to worry about - you can't bulk up without copious amounts of testosterone (and TONS of calories!), and women aren't exactly known for generating a lot of testosterone :)
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    Hey! Though this isn't always a popular perspective in fitness circles, if you have a gym membership, any exercise you do, even those involving weights, can be cardio - just do lots of reps at very low weights. The key is keeping yourself moving so your heart rate stays up. Anything that gets (and keeps) your heart racing is cardio!

    Very low weight will (hopefully) keep your muscles from tiring out before your heart gets pumping. It will make you stronger, build serious stamina, and increase your lung capacity. it's a recipe for serious fat-burning. And if you're someone who believes that too much weight training will make you bulk up, take it from me - there's nothing to worry about - you can't bulk up without copious amounts of testosterone (and TONS of calories!), and women aren't exactly known for generating a lot of testosterone :)

    I'm NOT scared of bulking, the only problem is when I lift, I lift HEAVY and can hardly even move the muscles I have used the next day.
  • FlynnMacCallister
    FlynnMacCallister Posts: 172 Member
    Swimming is always good for recovery cardio, and if you go to the gym, you could try a rowing machine; it does require some force and range of motion through the ankle, but it's a bit gentler than the impact from walking or running...

    You can always go lighter and longer with the weights; the effect is exactly the same.

    Uhh I'm not doing weights more than 1 day in a row?

    If you can't do normal cardio, but you can manage the weights, you can just do lighter weights than you would for strength and do longer sets instead, to replace the cardio you would be doing. Things aren't either-or, there's aspects of strength and cardio in everything you do, the main difference being how much extra weight you add to your body to do them.
  • FixItDuck
    FixItDuck Posts: 112 Member
    I sympathise with the ankle injury. I decided to move on from cycling and introduce a bit of running, only to sprain my ankle first time out and nearly 2 months later I still can't run on it. Even cycling was making it worse, but I am hoping to get back on my bike this weekend (too dark in the evenings, here now).

    Swimming would probably be about the best option I reckon, if you can get to the pool. It's not really an option for me as I would have 2 small people who need supervision, taggging along with me!

    How about walking? I still get pain from walking, but as long as I wear supportive shoes, it's not too awful. Maybe try having it strapped for extra support.

    Will be watching to see if anyone has any suggestions I can use too!

    Good luck, I hope your ankle recovers soon and you find some cardio exercise you can do without too much pain.
  • BeautyFromPain
    BeautyFromPain Posts: 4,952 Member
    I sympathise with the ankle injury. I decided to move on from cycling and introduce a bit of running, only to sprain my ankle first time out and nearly 2 months later I still can't run on it. Even cycling was making it worse, but I am hoping to get back on my bike this weekend (too dark in the evenings, here now).

    Swimming would probably be about the best option I reckon, if you can get to the pool. It's not really an option for me as I would have 2 small people who need supervision, taggging along with me!

    How about walking? I still get pain from walking, but as long as I wear supportive shoes, it's not too awful. Maybe try having it strapped for extra support.

    Will be watching to see if anyone has any suggestions I can use too!

    Good luck, I hope your ankle recovers soon and you find some cardio exercise you can do without too much pain.

    I would swim but when I take my glasses off I am basically blind so may not be the best idea, lol.
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