United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Hey everybody,
okay... this time last year I was doing heavy training for the fall volleyball season. And I was able to do squats, hang cleans, dead lifts, blah, blah, blah. haha. Since my injury I have been proactive about what I eat and all that I do, to refrain from gaining weight. That has worked well, but I can't find a way to tone my legs.
Any exercise I see on TV or on the internet for legs involves two working arms to be in the plank position. I don't have two.
So... without futher adieu.. how do y'all keep your legs tones? I am not a runner, I can't stand it. I do a lot of walking because of that (but that isn't doing me much. And bodysquats don't either, I have tried.

So if anyone has a really cool routine they would like to share I would love to hear it!

if you have a YMCA in your area, there is usually a program in the weight room that programs an excercise routine to fit your specific needs. and also can conform to any disabilities you have. ours is called activtrax. i was in that program for a while, but had to do something different for other reasons. i am now in a dance class that is free to members. i have never danced a step in my life!! but is is soo much fun. we dont really get into the "correct" steps, we are there just for the excercise. i dont have much balance, so i have to be very carefull. check out the Y in your area. they are pretty good at coming up with something to help you out. i also have a hand bike i use a lot. i use it for my legs and sometimes for my arms too. it can be used while watching TV so you aint sitting like a bump on a log. lol hope this helps good luck with your arm.

It can be sooooo tricky trying to get a good workout, especially since half of the stuff for legs always seem to invovle 2 arms in some way. Like jmar said, a gym or rec center would be the easiest. I usually go the the gym and between my and knee and my arm, I only use 3 machines, but I use them well. I use the leg press, the hip abducter, and hip abducter (not sure if i spelled three last two right, but they are the ones that tone the inner and outer thigh) You could definately do more leg work than I do, it's my bad knee that keeps me from a lot of the leg stuff, not my arm.
At home I have a recumbent (reclining) excercise bike that I use to get a cardio workout, AND tone the legs and I walk everywhere too. I was in dance when I was a little girl up until high school, so I've found the warm up/cool down routines I learned from that to be really fun and perfect for keeping limber.
Also, just always keep it fun. I took belly dancing classes in college, so now I use what I learned then combined with some fun videos for an extra workout that is just enjoyable. I have to modify a lot of the moves and accept that I'm not the same person I was when I learned them (too much chocolate ), but that's been no problem for me, though if it WAS a problem, than I would just find some other activity that that caused no pain (mental of physical) I've found that if I'm doing even one excercise I hate, then it affects my workout as a whole (as in I begin to avoid it or it begins to avoid me, lol) Ususally the first thing I do when I'm either trying out a new activity or trying to resussitate an old one is check my mood. If it's negative from the start or I'm overworrying about the arm, chances are the actitivity is NOT going to go well so then I either put it away to try another day when my mood is better, or drop it for good and try something else that I think I will enjoy.
There are lots of basic toning excercises you can do at home too if a gym is out of the question. It's a bit tricky to describe by word. You can try looking at a fitness book or magazine for pics or a website like this one. (just click on the "create your own workout" tab and choose "legs". It has tons of videos.
http://www.self.com/fitness


Good Luck

Madison,

I bought "INSANITY" with Shawn T and exercise with his program. - Some of his exercises involve two arms - obviously, I simply improvise (for instance, on pushups, I go to my knees and use my right (good arm) to do them. With one arm, I couldn't do the push ups like he does - but it certainly works out my good arm well. Most of it is Cardio - so your legs will most definitely get a good work out. When he does the different stretches, If it involves my arm I make the motion without pressing or pulling with it. It has worked for me....and it is a good work out!

Good luck!

Try roller blading. this will work the quads, glutes, hamstrings & calves. for extra training skate up some hills. get the slowest wheels you can so that you get the most work from each session. I used roller blading as an aerobic exercise when I was a member of the US Ski Team. A few times a week will do.

Bill