busted knee

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2/13/12 10:13 A

A good friend of mine recently passed away. This man was in palliative care (end of life treatment). He could no longer walk, yet had exercise bands tied to the head and foot of his hospital bed so he could do chest flys and bicep curls every day. He was very inspirational when it came to fitness, even in his death.

So: do you have exercise bands? loop them around the couch leg and do rows on the floor. If you have weights at home you can do most exercises seated or lying down with 5-10lbs. There is also a seated yoga program out there for seniors that a woman with a spinal injury used to do.

Let that knee heel! I'm still dealing with a knee injury from when I was 16. I had a year of on the couch and weight gain, but now I am back! No more running or volleyball, but I have found lots of new activities that I just loved.

Hang in there. This sucks so much, but you will get back out there.

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2/13/12 9:30 A

CFLOTT,

I feel your pain. I have bad knees due to an injury from years ago that never healed right. Take whatever time you need to let that knee heal. Does this mean there may be sports you can't participate in ? Yup. I used to run and was getting close to being ready for a half marathon. Then my knees told me enough. Had to stop running. Does that mean I stopped all types of activity ? Nope. I may not run anymore, but there are plenty of other activities I can do with my less than perfect knees.

When your knee heals sufficiently for your doctor to give the all clear for exercise, consider taking up bike riding. I cycle. I walk. I do the elliptical. I can take dance lessons. There are all sorts of things I can do, I just need to be mindful of my knees limitations.

So, don't worry, all is not lost ! Like many athletes, you learn to adapt accordingly. As long as you are mindful of what you eat, you will not gain any weight. when it comes to weight loss, what matters most is what we eat. Good nutrition is what takes the weight off and keeps it off. Exercise is what keeps our bodies fit.

Everything really will work out.

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2/13/12 9:18 A

Hi CFLOTT,

I am so sorry for your injury. As the previous poster alluded to, this is just a blip on a whole lifetime of learning how to deal with the adversities of life. Talk with your doctor and see what restrictions he/she may have on your activity. Also, if you are recovering from an injury, now may not be the time to restrict your calories, but instead you may want to elect to eat enough to maintain your current weight. The reason, your body needs nutrients to recover and repair the damage, therefore if you are not consuming enough calories you may slow you healing down, especially if your injury requires surgery to heal.

Even if you are laid up for a bit and can't drop any more weight for a while, come to the message boards or to your teams and keep yourself accountable that way and hopefully you'll be up and moving in no time.

I wish you a SPEEDY SparkRecovery!

Coach Nancy

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2/13/12 9:06 A

I'm sorry you have to deal with this. Dealing with injuries can be so frustrating! Just remember that you will recover. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger! Like you said about focusing on nutrition, maybe this is the way to really tailor your meal planning skills. Are you able to to stand to cook? Maybe the time away from workouts can be used to prepare extra healthy meals.

Have you ever tried mantras? Whenever I'm feeling down or low in confidence, I try repeating something like "I'm happy, I'm healthy, and I will heal!" I usually keep the happy and healthy part the same and then customize the last part - for me it's usually "allowed to make mistakes!" (And I do think you still count as healthy while getting over an injury!) It's a good way for me to stop saying negative things to myself and start focusing on more positive thoughts.

Edited by: HONBAD at: 2/13/2012 (09:08)

Posts: 409
2/13/12 8:47 A

This was the year my husband and I were going to embrace winter and get out into it more. We're both working towards more healthful lives and skiing seemed to be a fun way to be active outdoors.

Well, last weekend I got going a little too fast and fell. I get my MRI results with my doctor on Wednesday. Well, I'd been struggling with my focus (eating too much, not exercising enough) and this just feels like another nail in the coffin so to speak. I'm going to be laid up for at least a month and may have surgery in my future.

I'm thinking that this is the time to really get my focus back with my nutrition. I feel like I've just lost a ton of confidence though. I'm not starting all over from where I was a couple of years ago but FEEL like I am from a self-image perspective.

So - I think I just need to whine for a bit. I did that quite a bit last week, too, though, and now it's time to get into action. If anyone has a word of support - I'd take it right about now!