Recently, after excessive exercise and physical pressure, I injured my foot. My injury caught me at a bad timing and completely off-guard, as I had just found my new exercise routine without the gym. It’s the first time that I have a serious injury since I started working out more intensely over the last couple of years. While it’s important to take some time off to rest, heal, and recover, which I did, I also didn’t want to stop all exercise. So, I did some research and found ways to maintain base fitness while recovering from my injury. Here are some of my findings.

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Despite what I wrote, there is no way around it – in sports, there are always injuries. However, if you simply want to maintain a base of fitness, there are ways to stay active. Before we carry on, it is important to add that dealing with an injury is just as mental as it is physical. So, whether you have to take two days or two months off from your schedule, make sure to prioritize both during your recovery. The mental health benefits of exercise include less stress, higher confidence, and even better creativity. And while it takes time to lose strength, the mental impact of removing exercise from your routine happens almost immediately. Of course, the treatment to use is the one most fitting to your condition. Here are the possibilities:
If you are sidelined for a few days – in the physical aspect, treat it as a time for recovery. Taking a few days off of exercise is no big deal. This time off is not only important for the recovery of the injury but also our performance. Our body needs some rest and recovery time, also for it to maximize the benefit from training and working out. In the mental aspect, use these few days wisely. Remind yourself that this is just a temporary situation and use this time on your hand productively, and if you are looking to replace the mental release you get from your workouts, try using relaxation methods like meditation.

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