Help with exercise plan for my daughter

[lunabee34]

My 16 year old daughter is a runner who has been having tendon issues that interfere with her running. She hasn't been able to run since the first week of December. She is sad, frustrated, sleeping poorly, and managing her anxiety poorly as a result. The issue is currently with her foot.

Does anyone have any suggestions for exercise that might not exacerbate the injury? Once the inflammation calms down, walking seems to be okay, but she really wants to be doing something that gets her heart rate up and is more of a workout. We tried the stationary bike, and after about 16 minutes, her foot started hurting. Swimming is out because there's no indoor pool in our town.

I'm just at a loss. I feel so helpless and bad for her. She tested positive on an autoimmune scan, but we can't get into the pediatric rheumatologist until March. I tried to get her GP to call them and expedite the appointment but he won't do it because he doesn't see enough evidence that it's a rheumatology problem instead of a musculoskeletal one. He is referring us to PT, so hopefully that will happen soon, but in the meantime, I don't know what to do to help her get the exercise she needs.

Help!

Comments

[tei]

Not really the cardio she's looking for, but perhaps a focus on core strength would be helpful to her running when she starts back up? Most core exercises are either lying down or involve only minimal weight on the feet, so perhaps some sort of ab-focused circuit at a quick pace would fit the bill.

Rope pulls of various types could be a cardio-focused exercise, too-- either those machines that you sit down and basically pull a circle of rope down from above you, or sitting on the ground and pulling on a rope attached to a weight or sled, if you have the space for it.

[lunabee34]

*nods nods*

These are great ideas. I think you can never go wrong with focusing on your core.

Thank you!