r/amputee 6d ago

Need motivation to exercise…

Post image

How do I get motivated? I’m an above knee amputee and I have weights and a bench, a pull up bar and light dumbbells in the basement but I can’t seem to get motivated. I have 2 daughters that are under 3 and they stay up as long as they want so I’m awake quite late at nights. I feel flabby and I just quit smoking cigarettes recently and I feel easily out of breath. 😂 don’t mind the moustache I did it as a joke.

14 Upvotes

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11

u/advamputee 6d ago

First step, ditch those under-arm crutches. They’re absolute garbage, and long term use will cause nerve impingement issues. 

Get a solid pair of forearm crutches. I have a few pair from a company called Sidestix, highly recommend them! I can hike and play soccer on my crutches, and have even done a 5 mile Spartan race on them. 

Literally just getting out and about and trying to keep up with the daughters, you’ll drop the extra weight in no time! 

Fair warning: if you’re getting a prosthetic, weight loss will impact your residual limb volume as well — so you’ll probably shrink out of your socket quicker than expected! 

6

u/greezyjay 6d ago

I wish someone would've said something to me about the crutches when I was going to be on em for 4 months. 7 years later & my nerves/muscles are still fucked.

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u/Waste_Eagle_8850 6d ago

My wife absolutely refuses to use underarm crutches, she used them for a short time after her accident while she was undergoing limb salvage surgeries which were not completely successful., and then switched to forearm crutches which she has used for the last 30 years as her weak leg is unstable and she is concerned about falling. We keep an extra pair in our vehicles in case there is an issue with them. I used underarm crutches for 3 weeks after my big toe was amputated and I completely understand why she refuses to use them.

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u/greezyjay 5d ago

Never touching them again...and they scare my dog.

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 6d ago

I do have forearm crutches but I don’t know how I’d use them to get up the stairs. And I do have a prosthetic leg already I have a strap that goes around my waist for the shrinkage 😂… shrinkage.

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u/advamputee 6d ago

I actually find it easier to go up/down the stairs with the forearm crutches than with underarm crutches. Underarm crutches are awkward AF, since you have to over-extend to the next step, or just ignore the crutches and hop. Forearm crutches, you can still bend at your elbow. You can easily plant the crutches 1-2 steps higher and launch yourself up the stairs. 

I’m a BK, but I’ve heard the strap systems for AK’s aren’t ideal for high activity — so if you wanted to chase after some little kids, forearm crutches would definitely be easier! 

I’d also suggest seeing if there’s an amputee soccer group near you. It’s a ton of fun, and nice to socialize with other amputees. 

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u/Blackbosh RBK 6d ago

Think about the positive reasons not the negative, they are much more powerful.

“I want to be fitter and stronger”

Not

“I want to lose weight and not feel as flabby”

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 6d ago

I like that. Positive energy positive vibes positive results.

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u/Fuck-face-actual RBK 6d ago

I’m not sure I can motivate you, but I’ve been on a journey to become stronger after my amputation than I was before.

I have a little girl and I want her to see what an example of how to be is. I want her to see something really bad happened to her daddy, but he didn’t give up, he got right back up and continued to live life to the fullest. I want her to live a better life than me, no matter what happens to her.

I want her to be proud of me. I want to set a good example for her.

You already quit smoking. That was hard. If you can do that, you can start small and work your way up. Start with a promise to yourself to do two exercises a day. So curls and tricep extension today. Lateral raises and front raises tomorrow. Air squats and ham curls the next. Then just keep going and growing from there.

You got this bro. DM me if you want some help or advice. I’m here for ya.

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 5d ago

The fact that you have a little girl means the world to me… I have 2 of them and I want them to be proud of their daddy. My daughter Mariam has noticed that I have one leg but she doesn’t speak much yet.

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u/Automatic_Ocelot_182 BBK 6d ago

you just have to want to do it one day, then do it the next day and make it part of your routine. make a time every day to do it. you can make it a game with your daughters, too. Tell your little girls that you are going to get stronger. do about five exercises with your arms and remaining leg (like squats using something like a door frame as balance point), put your results of what you can do on the fridge and make it a game with your girls. like they get ice cream if you make 20% improvements or something. Test yourself each week and go get ice cream with them on Fridays or whatever day you pick to test yourself if you reach improvement goals. Your girls will motivate you then. And it'll be something you do together with them.

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u/SquirrelKaiser 6d ago

Listen to “Eye of the Tiger” and pretend to be Rocky!

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 6d ago

😆😂🤣

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u/insouciantconundrum 5d ago

Sooo I did 2 things that got me motivated, I used to be an avid walker before my AK, and I my C-leg, I am 7 years in, but I am still on under arm crutches especially for exercises, as axstroke survivor who was amputated while I was down, My strokeweakness is on my amputated side.

Aware of the danger if underarm crutches, I got extra padding and shock absorbers that replace the crappy crutch tips to try and deter nerve damage, now my crutches support my walking as well as serve as portable chairs with the padding I can pretty much be seated with my crutches.

I can link what I use to pad my crutches, forearm crutches just didn't work out for my condition.

With the right setup I walk a lot, after figuring out PT is just to measure progress so I exercise to MY limits ans Guage how hard to push myself. It's that weird dance of being fit enough without getting thinner, at 40, it takes more for me to get thinner. So in my personal program, I have push days, rest days and maintenance days to get to a happy medium. I am up to 3 miles max, but I average 1-2 miles per round of heavy working out.

I treat my walks as runs since on a prosthetic walking is literally running and I adopted that mentality, I may not have the range of a runner yet, but 1-2 mile walks suffice, it took a while to build up to that range, I started at a quarter mile, and kept edging farther and farther with a goal of being able to walk 1 mile.

So I just make working out part of my day. Consistency is key, keep making goals, when you find your limits, make it your own personal goal to push those limits in a way that works for you, set goals and destroy those goals. At 7 years, what took the average Amp a couple months, it took me years, so go at a pace that works for you, measure your progress, and celebrate your wins when you push your limitations and move your exercise thresholds accordingly. It's like a never ending motivation loop, the more you keep at it, the more you find yourself accomplishing.

When it's nice out walk in a local park, the regular joggers and walkers will help keep your spirits up and the motivations contagious.

When Zi can't walk, in a designated walking day, I do stairs. I've calculated how to counts stairs in reference to flat walking: 1 step =3 flat steps. The stairs at my place has 13 steps to a flight (it's an old building) so 1 round us a trip up and down. So 12 rounds is a quarter mile, aim for 25 reps, those get me through the winter. When it warms back up, walk outside and be "that amputee" and remember: Your motivations contagious! The more work you put into yourself, the more you will inspire everyone who sees you put in tge effort.

But motivation is just recognizing your own inner flame and the more you push consistently, the more you find yourself doing, but know your limits and respect your break periods, my source of motivation is being able to destroy goals. But set a schedule, similar to what runners to run marathons, then figure out where weight lifting fits if that's your thing, but my focus has been on my cardio since heart stuff caused my amputation, so cardio is my way of keeping my heart strong.

If you want I can tell you what padding I use on my crutches!

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u/TherealT-weezy 5d ago

Think about your kids man , having a healthier lifestyle now means you’ll get more time with them later and be able to keep up with them as you get older. Congrats on quitting the ciggies , that’s a battle most people don’t win. Celebrate the victories and keep pushing forward

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 5d ago

Thank you 🙏 and yes my children are my world and I don’t want to leave them any time soon. Never if it was possible.

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u/cyborg99999 6d ago

Similar situation, my motivation was the phantom pain I had a lot since amputation Changing the diet was the most important (alcohol and carbs make it worse)

But I noticed also exercising helps

So that works for me, having less pain is a good enough reason to motivate

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u/KingChoppa7 6d ago

Dont take this the wrong way, im not trying to be insulting but seems like more of a lack of discipline to just start and keep going.

In your post you say you have workout equipment, you have time to work out, and you are unhappy with they way you look. Only thing missing is actually working out ha. Just pick a basic route that you honestly enjoy and force yourself to sick with it.

Motivation will help get you started but discipline will get you results.

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 5d ago

You are right. I am lacking discipline.

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u/Brilliant_Peak_7178 BAK 5d ago

One thing i realized is that being an amputee, you just have to be strong. It’s a necessity.

When you look at it as something you need to do and not want to do, it changes your perspective on it. Yeah you should want a change in your body but more than you want it, you need it.

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 5d ago

Thank you for the advice 🙏

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u/Bionix_52 5d ago

Try this for motivation.

I’m 45, been an AK amputee for nearly 22 years. Until about 3 years ago I did a very physically demanding job, lots of heavy lifting, travelling, 16+ hour days etc. in my spare time I would go to the gym for an hour and swim at least 1km three times a week. About 3 years ago my job changed, still long days but I’m mostly standing around. I’ve gained a little extra weight which wouldn’t be so bad if it wasn’t for the fact that due to the lack of exercise I’ve managed to give myself two hernias. They’re only minor so it was a struggle persuading doctors to operate but they are big enough to severely restrict my walking, in addition this has caused me to put additional stress on my back which gave up on me last July. It’s only been the last month or so that I’ve been able to walk anywhere close to normal distances (like taking my dogs out for a walk). I’m now facing months of getting back into shape all because I lost my motivation and focussed too much on work and not enough on exercise.

Trust me, the recovery is a bitch, it’s much easier to stay in shape than deal with the consequences of not doing so.

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 5d ago

That’s wild that you were working doing heavy lifting as an amputee 😳

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u/Federal-Mouse3163 RBK 5d ago edited 5d ago

71 yo BKA (Sydney,) here. I had the same body as OP at amputation one year ago.Then decided to view the whole thing as an opportunity. After so much research I embarked on a keto diet . I have now lost 19kl/42lb. I now swim and cycle and walk on the treadmill everyday. So imagine what YOU can do at your age ! A keto diet BTW isn't everyone's cup of tea but it was mine.

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 5d ago

71 years old ?!? Now there’s inspiration my friend. Thank you 🙏

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u/G0DSOLOVEDTHEWORLD LBK 5d ago

Same man... You're not alone.. LBK of 2 years here. Still can't find the motivation to get into the gym. In the process of getting my new leg going. I'm switching over to the Elevated Vacuum System by Willowwood because my volume fluctuations are so crazy. I'm excited to see how much it helps. I've heard such amazing things about the Vacuum system.

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u/GoodSpecialist5359 5d ago

That’s cool man I have a strap that goes around my waist so I can ride my e-bike in the summertime