Ankle Injury

[GailE]

Hi all,  I started with my FitBit in early August and have for the most part achieved my weekly goals.  Recently though I have experienced an ankle injury which was made worse from my sudden lifestyle change.  So, as I recover (basically no walking at all plus physiotherapy) I am feeling really down by seeking my terrible results on the leaderboard.  Any suggestions?  I hope to be back in my runners by next weekend taking it slow.   

[SunsetRunner · Accepted solution]

@GailE 

Allow yourself to recover by honoring your body and not forcing (would do more harm than good). Think positively: you'll get stronger out of it!

[WendyB]

@GailE I agree. you need to recover and not worry about the leaderboard right now.

[HelenaFitbit]

Your health is more important than anything else, you can risk getting a bigger injury on your ankle. Rest and take it slow. 

Wish you well, happy holidays! 

[Heybales]

Make new goals that are attainable and may even be more useful to a good body transformation than having more steps than your friends.

Like even with bad ankle - you can hit probably every single weight machine in a gym that is not pushing with your leg. Even leg curls and extensions can be done. Standing hip machine for glutes, ya, that' won't work, but still.

That is full body composition changes there, something walking can't accomplish.

Just make sure you manually log it as such. The few steps your get hobbling on crutches from machine to machine is no where near the burn you'll get.

Many said I inspired them as I went around on crutches for 3 months after trimalleolar break. And when Dr said I could put 15 lbs pressure, then 25, then 35, ect, I'd be pushing that weighted sled for that amount, even in boot with limited mobility. Once I had enough mobility allowd, I did the spin bike seated prior to being allowed to have enough weight.

Would I have gotten many steps on any of that? Not at all. Did I get a better workout than walking for that same time period? You better believe it. Day after boot off, I did a 40 mile group ride. And my strength was great.

[jrose1982]

1) Take it easy.  2) Reformat your goals.

Last year I sprained my ankle just 6 weeks before going on a vacation I had worked toward for a very long time.  For those first 6 weeks I did everything the doctor told me, plus vigorously praying for a fast recovery.

By the time I went on vacation, my ankle was about 80% to pre-injury strength and flexibility and, most of the time, I had no pain.  But I still took precautions.  I took my trekking pole and used it like a cane (kept it with me at all times, whether I needed it or not, just in case).  I iced and elevated both feet every night.  I took the vitamins and anti-inflammatories as prescribed, and went to bed early most nights.  I stubbornly refused to let my ankle stop me from doing the things I most wanted to do.  Aside from that, I was extremely careful, took every precaution I could think of.

By the end of my 3-week trip I developed a new pain in my "good" foot that was later diagnosed as a stress fracture caused by over use.  I guess I wasn't careful enough.  Don't be like me.

To fend off the leaderboard blues, reformat your goals to things you can do.  You can do some yoga; you'll just have to record your workouts manually.  Or you can shift your health focus to what you eat.  Make a new goal to track your food and/or make dietary adjustments you've been thinking about doing.  If you're trying to lose weight, focusing some energy on diet alone is something you can benefit from anyway.  And it'll help you keep your calorie intake low while your activity level is low due to your injury.

You can also track your physiotherapy like workouts.  I don't know how accurate the calories burned will be.  But you can set a workout goal.  Maybe change your goal to workout 10-14 times per week (5-7 physiotherapy, and 5-7 yoga or other).  That's twice as many workouts as most people can even think about, so seeing yourself meet that number each week should feel good.

[Susimardom]

This thread helped me feel I am not alone! I have plantar fasciitis and it's killing me seeing my dud numbers every day.

[Fabiana]

I had surgery in my left ankle posterior tendon. It's been almost 3 month on knee walker and crutches!. I am focused on calories intake :). I am not able to move very much.