I broke my ankle about a month ago, two days before Mother’s Day and unfortunately I have to spend Mother’s Day in the hospital.
You can read more about it here.
Before I go on, I have a special workout tracker free printable and an easy exercise plan for beginners for you by the end of the post. So make sure you continue reading 🙂
Reality Finally Hits
I have never broken any of my bones before so this was a traumatic experience for me because when it first happened, I was in so much pain.
A day after my surgery, I was allowed to go home and that’s where reality finally hits.
I have to learn to use the crutches to move around the home and it was very challenging.
A couple of days of using them, my body started aching so much especially under my arms. That’s because I have to use muscles in my body I haven’t used before. My body was aching so much for that first few days.
Actually, I’m not at all surprised because I haven’t been physically active for quite some time.
Flashback
A few years ago, I was doing Pilates, swimming, doing home exercises like HIIT and strength training. I was pretty fit and I was on the Keto diet, which worked for awhile for me.
After the pandemic hit, my life took quite a turn, affected my mental health as well as my physical health and everything went downhill from there. I put on most of the weight that I lost, I ate what I wanted, hardly exercise and now I feel like I’m back to square ONE again.
Can you relate?
Because I bet that most of you are in the same situation right now. Your physical and mental health have been affected by the pandemic or many other circumstances in your life that’s out of your control.
So I was living my life just like that. Day in and day out. Not making any changes to my actions, my diet or physical health, or lack of one and then boom! I fell and broke my ankle.
Wake Up Call
Sometimes it takes something serious like this to wake you up. And it did.
I was sharing a room with another patient in the hospital and she has a similar experience of breaking her bones. This is her third time back to the hospital because of her broken ankle and suffered from complications and a couple of infections. And she was NOT getting any better even after 5 months since she broke her ankle.
I hate to say this, but she was also morbidly obese. She was a huge lady and I have a sneaky suspicion that having the extra weight on her was one of the reasons why that she was still limping and not getting any better.
I did not want to experience what she did. So I decided with more resolution than ever to start losing some weight after I am back from the hospital. But I took some time off work and have given myself some grace to rest and recover first.
I’m Ready to Take Care of Me
On the third week, I felt ready to do some exercise.
I started watching some YouTube videos on physiotherapy exercises for your broken ankle and also some non-weight bearing exercises.
So I started exercising my right leg (with the broken ankle) first. Just focusing on that one foot for the first couple of days. I started small like 5-10 minutes a day.
Then I started exercising my left foot together with my right foot.
I started tracking my exercises every day. And now am aiming to exercise 15-30 minutes a day. Just doing some strength training for my legs and my abs.
I will probably add in some upper body exercise next week when my legs feel stronger. But for now, I’m focusing on one part of my body at a time.
Aim for the Long Haul
This is crucial because I want to focus on my physical health for the long-haul. Not just for a month or two.
Personally for me, because I haven’t exercise for awhile and I have a broken ankle, I’m going to take the smallest step possible to start with. I want to encourage myself to start and succeed in finishing this small action first.
This encourages me to take on the next step and the next step and the next step.
Overtime once I feel stronger and more confident in my body, I will continue to challenge myself in training different parts of my body and increasing the duration of my exercises.
If you haven’t exercise in a long time like myself, try focusing on one part of your body at a time first. Or if your limbs are all working, you can focus on walking or doing HIIT just for 5 minutes a day if that is what you can only manage. Then overtime, increase the duration and the intensity of your exercises.
The key here is to start.
If I, with a broken ankle can do it. There are no excuses why you should not.
If you really care about your health, then you should make a plan and do your best to stick with it.
Workout Tracker Free Printable
You can plan by using my workout tracker free printable.
Here’s also a quick easy monthly plan you can follow below focusing on 3 x exercises per week.
This plan is for beginners or for those who want to get back into exercising again after a long period of hibernation. You can switch the days up if you like. But I want to keep it simple for you and to create a simple routine which you can follow every week. You can look up on YouTube for videos that focus on exercising specific parts of your body. This is a great plan to follow and you’ll get awesome results if you combine it with a healthy diet plan.
I personally like Chloe Ting’s exercises because she has a variety of them and her workouts can be quite challenging. She also creates free workout programs and challenges if you like to check them out. You can also use the links below from the timeline, do your own exercises or find your own on YouTube.
But definitely start with this simple plan first and then branch out on your own 🙂
Free Exercise Plan for Beginners
Week 1
- Mon – 10 minutes of Cardio (walking/jumping/dancing)
- Tue – Rest
- Wed – 10 minutes of Strength Training (Abs)
- Thu – Rest
- Fri – 10 minutes of HIIT (Abs, Glute, Arms)
- Sat – Rest
- Sun – Rest
Week 2
- Mon – 20 minutes of Cardio (walking/jumping/dancing)
- Tue – Rest
- Wed – 20 minutes of Strength Training (Abs, Glute, Arms)
- Thu – Rest
- Fri – 20 minutes of HIIT (Abs, Glute, Arms)
- Sat – Rest
- Sun – Rest
Week 3
- Mon – 30 minutes of Cardio (walking/jumping/dancing)
- Tue – Rest
- Wed – 30 minutes of Full Body Workout
- Thu – Rest
- Fri – 20 minutes of HIIT (Abs, Glute, Arms)
- Sat – Rest
- Sun – Rest
Week 4
- Mon – 30 minutes of Full Body Workout (walking/jumping/dancing)
- Tue – Rest
- Wed – 20 minutes of Strength Training (Abs, Glute, Legs, Arms)
- Thu – Rest
- Fri – 30 minutes of Full Body Workout (Abs, Glute, Arms)
- Sat – Rest
- Sun – Rest
Rinse and Repeat
By the end of the 4th week, you can take the same plan above and apply it for the following week. Switch it up with different exercises, increase the days, duration and intensity of your exercises as you get stronger. And remember to follow a healthy and sustainable diet to get the most of your exercise routine.
I hope that helps. Happy tracking and exercising!
Let me know in the comments below if this tracker and exercise plan has helped you in any way.
And if you like this tracker, I have other amazing health and fitness printables as well. The workout tracker free printable was taken from the Health and Fitness planner and if you want to get super serious with your health and fitness, lose a few pounds, create a yearly plan, build great habits, eat more healthily and track your progress, this planner is going to change your life!
Love my freebies? Would love the support!
Printables, design elements, graphics and any digital products provided on this site are for personal use only. You may NOT modify them or redistribute them for free or monetary gain without the written agreement from the author, Janice Banks. You may share these with your classes or co-workers (educators/teachers/tutors) as long as they are not modified in any way. Please share the link to the blog post if you want to share these digital resources with others.
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