- Strength training for leg injuries is perfect for building tissue tolerance and movement patterns as it’s highly configurable for specific goals
- Strength training should be carefully controlled and progressed in keeping with tissue healing and injury recovery
- Exercises target potential underlying causes, maintenance of general leg strength and progressive loading of the injured tissue
Phase 1
- Gentle loading on the injured structure
- No more than mild discomfort at the injury site
- No residual soreness after exercises
- In stable positions (on two feet, holding on to support, etc)
- Eg. Isometric (static) holds while leaning against a wall
- Moderate loading on uninjured areas
- Focus on maintaining strength in areas that can support injured area
- Include a mix of strength, stability and movement pattern exercises
- Complex movement patterns are not required
- Eg. Double and single leg deadlift for an ankle sprain (no ankle movement required, double leg targets strength, single leg targets stability)
- Cardio training without stressing the injured area
- If possible, add some simple cardio in but not at the risk of irritating the healing tissue
- Cardio selection does not need to be related to your sporting goals
- Use an interval or variable intensity approach for best effect
- Eg. Bike for 10min including 5min of 20sec hard:10sec easy repeats
Phase 3
- Load the injured tissue during complex movements
- Select movement patterns that mimic sporting demands
- Control the loading via speed, range and complexity of the movement
- There should be no discomfort or soreness at the injury site, however mild tightness may be experienced
- Eg. Walking lunge for calf tears
- Add a combination of heavy loading, complex and high speed movements
- Select sport-specific movement patterns
- Deliberately involve the injured area but only with correct technique (no compensations)
- Add load or speed based on the requirements of the sport
- Eg. Box jumps for return to basketball
- Sport-specific cardio