staying fit with quadriceps tendonitis

Smelph

Barefooters
Nov 5, 2010
597
15
18
so yesterday my doc diagnosed me with quadriceps tendonitis (non-running-related injury, BTW), with a chance of a partial tear (if it's still a problem by mid-august -she said QT takes at least 6 weeks to clear up- it might be a tear and I go in for an MRI). After sitting on my butt for the last 3.5 weeks (illness among other problems; it's been a hell of a summer) I absolutely need to figure out what I can do to get some exercise (I have put on a few pounds already and need to get things under control).

usually if I can't run I use a stationary bike, but my knee hurts too much even on the lowest resistance setting, so that's no good. I am looking into rigging it up so I can use it as a "hand pedal" type thing (upper body cardio instead of lower body), but I am curious if anyone has any good ideas for other things I could do for a half hour of cardio a day that doesn't require a functioning knee.
 
Sorry you're going through all this, Smelph. Wish I could help more. Just don't try to push it, so you can get back out there sooner.
 
thanks TJ! Pushing it is the last thing I want to do. according to the doc, even if it is "merely" tendonitis if I try TMTS I risk a tear, which requires surgery and is something I really don't want! ;) I'm really glad running didn't cause it, but at the same time I'm kicking myself (or would be if my knee worked) for injuring myself while simply walking around the house! :D
 
Yeah, I got depressed in the boot for a week, put on pounds quickly, until I started thinking about all the parts of my body that were not injured, and that I could be exercising.
Not necessarily aerobic, but I started doing lots of core work, abs, push ups, arm weights, that sort of thing. In the long run, I really needed it to balance out my fitness (I'd been a bit of a girlie girl, and I never much worked on upper body strength or abs). I got a wobble board and a few stability balls, a few free weights. Now I'm totally addicted to it, and feel like my body is way more able to handle all sorts of challenges.
See if you can get some PT? That really helped motivate me to strengthen and stick with exercise, which I think ultimately led to a quicker recovery.
Hmmm, but for aerobic exercise.......
Also, it's boring, but what about elliptical? I know that works quads, but maybe not tendons?
Swimming?
Try to think creatively about what you can do, then try to stick to doing it.
Good luck and hopefully you'll recover quickly enough that this isn't somethign you need to worry over long.
 
thanks for the ideas and the moral support scedastic! I tend to ignore upper body as well, so this gives me an opportunity to do more of that for a while. My doc did order some PT, but the place they sent the order was crazy expensive ($300 for eval, $117/15 minutes of therapy) so I told them I would be holding off on that for a bit (I have terrible insurance). I might shop it around a little and see what other PT options I may have. swimming and elliptical are possibilities, but I need to be able to move my leg a little better first. right now I can barely push in the clutch on my car (yeah, driving is an adventure!), so anything where I have to move the knee (even walking is a bit touchy) is pretty painful but may be an option down the road.
 
How'd you do it walking in the house?
 
Yeah It took me a while to realize that it was getting too dangerous to continue rough-housing with the kids.
So is it a partial tear or they are just guessing at this stage?
The catch w/ PT is it is so expensive that NOBODY would do it without good insurance.
Like 3Xper week, at $300 per session, so $3600/month!!!!
And as rehab following a procedure it is pretty important, but as a remedy for what's ailing folks it's still pretty much guesswork as I've been finding with my family members and I.
 
Do a variety of exercises a few minutes each and do them all in a row to make it a cardio workout. Whatever basic things you know that don't cause any pain to the injured area. Google circuit training if you need ideas but there is probably great core stuff that will come in handy for running once your knee is sorted. Hip strength stuff is great for running too but not sure if those exercises would aggravate the knee.
 
YIKES on the pt! Yeah, I would never be able to do that without insurance.
If it's any consolation, my husband is pretty sure he cracked a rib demonstrating to our kids how to get the most out of their new slip n slide.
 
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