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Lower Body Training after Broken Ankle

whidor

New member
Just started weight training again (3x/wk) & cardio (3x). I am now about 60# more than I want to be at 5'4". I have a very definite pear shape. The dilemma is that I broke my ankle last Oct. (needed 2 surgeries to repair–has plate on one side/pins on the other. Squats, lunges and calf raises are difficult (even painful). Can anyone suggest variations or alternatives to the standard lower body exercises that don't require so much flexibility in the ankle area? Leg curls, extensions & toe presses don't seem to be enough over the long haul. I have a bit of equipment at home (bench with leg attachment and a standing abductor/adductor machine) and would prefer to do it there, but also have a gym membership.
 
Sorry to hear about your ankle! I had bunion surgery 10 years ago and you don't realize how truly helpless you can feel when one of the wheels isn't working right!

Have you gotten any feedback from your doctor on that? If he/she hasn't already, I would request some exercises to help strengthen the area as well.

Definitely dont' do things that will aggravate the area. If you have some limited range of motion, some of it may be due to scar tissue? Your doc could recommend some activities to help break that up.

Things like leg extensions will help you build up your quads nicely. Also leg press may be an option because there is no additional stress put on the ankle trying to balance. Another alternative to squats would be sissy squats. You can wrap a towel around a stationary (won't move when you pull) object about waist level. Hold on to the ends and do a strict squat move, dropping down as low as your butt can go without breaking form and without hurting. Keep your head up and back straight and you will feel some serious burn in your quads and butt.

You might find the stair master to be OK for cardio - actually any of the low impact cardio machines should be ok. I did the stair master in my foot cast after the bunion surgery! Had to cut the cast down far enough for a flexible ankle, but it worked!

Good luck!
Sassy :angel:
 
Re: Lower body training after broken ankle

I will certainly try those suggestions. And, as luck would have it, I have an appointment with my orthopedic surgeon on Monday.

Thanks for the info.

By the way, how effective is the Elliptical for butt and thighs, and can I adjust the settings to make it really target those areas?
 
I had a similar injury around 10 years ago. After a few years I learned to compensate by putting heel lifters under my feet for squats, using the hack squat machine and smith machine a lot more and getting incredibly strong on the leg extensions and leg presses! You can do a lot with just those few exercises. Calves are a bit harder. For me, I found donkey raises were easier than sitting or standing raises, but it really depends on how limited your mobility is.
 
MS, thanks for your response

My ankle is not as flexible as I had hoped after almost a year, but it's better than it was. Let's just say that I definitely don't ever worry about that knee going over my toes when stretching (in fact, I still have a lot of difficult with stairs, the heel stays a couple of inches from the step whether I'm going up or down). I think it gets a little more flexibility after I apply Icy Hot. I'm tempted to try putting some on that ankle before trying to squat but I'm afraid I'll overestimate its range and wind up paying for it later. Of course, I would rather live with it as is than risk further injury. I don't think the lack of mobility comes from the metal inside, but rather from having my foot in the flexed position for so long with the cast. How much more flexibility I'll be able to get, and over what timeframe, I have no clue, but my surgeon does think I'm making great progress. Did you flexibility continue to improve over the last 10 years or did it get to a certain point and stop?

Any sports therapists out there who might be able to lead me in the right direction as far as exercises that would increase my ankle/foot flexibility?
 
The amount of flexibility you'll regain depends on how much of the stiffness is due to bone impingement versus soft tissue scarring. Bone impingement (from mishapen or rough joint surfaces) and osteoarthritis are harder to work around than soft tissue scarring. In any case, stretching and hot/cold treatment are your best bet (and a ton of patience). But osteoarthritis is almost inevitable (eventually)in this type of ankle injury :(

So work on the stretching etc... but in the mean time work on alternatives that will get your legs strong and awesome looking:)
 
Thanks for the heads up on the possibilility of osteoarthritis. My doctor never mentioned it but I'll make sure I ask him about it on Monday. I also looked up some information on preventative measures (mostly getting exercise, maintaining appropriate weight for my height and proper nutrition).

Thanks again, MS.
 
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