Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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My husband was a competitive soccer player his entire life. Unfortunately, his knees have gotten really bad, and he's had MRIs and physical therapy and all that, but nothing has helped. As a result, he physically cannot play any more. He's not heavy or anything, but he's lost a lot of tone and I know he doesn't feel as good about his body.

Is there anything that could replace it that wouldn't put a lot of pressure on his knees? He doesn't really enjoy cycling, and weight-lifting seems more like maintenance work than fun to him. Mark Sisson is always talking about incorporating play into your workouts, and it's like my husband can't do that at all, which really sucks.

I feel like I'm looking for a magic bullet (something fun, competitive, physically strenuous, and yet doesn't stress the knees!), but I thought someone out there might know of something that I hadn't thought of.

flag	asked Jul 7 2011 at 14:35 Satapa 569●3●9

Nutritionator · Accepted Answer · 2011-07-07 15:06:45Z UTC

I've been a soccer player since I was 4 (22 years) and I don't want to have to think about giving it up but I figured I'd throw out some other activities I like that he might also.

Kayaking is a great workout, extra bonus if you bring a fishing pole.

Swimming anywhere you can find water. I put off giving actual lap swimming a try for a longgg time and now it's probably my favorite form of exercise. Might require getting up early but it's meditative and results in an amazing workout.

Rock climbing might be tough on the knees but not as bad as ground sports. Another awesome workout that gets the adrenaline pumping.

I'll keep it short and let others have their say. Also, is he paleo? Paleo is great for our joints!

jesuisjuba - paleorepublic.com · Answer 2 · 2011-07-07 14:46:28Z UTC

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My top suggestion would be swimming. If he wants to work on his upper body? He can use a pull-buoy, my favourite of all time is the one made by Tyr. Work on the lower body? Kickboards. And swimming is fun. He can be inside, outside, flip around and float when he's done with his set. If he really starts getting into it there are Master teams he could join to be competitive again. Also yoga and pilates. Good luck!

answered Jul 7 2011 at 14:46

jesuisjuba - paleorepublic.com
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	i was going to say swimming - it's great...and on the plus side he can go for a steam or a whirlpool afterwards as well! – Thumper Jul 7 2011 at 15:00
	ditto, my husband got toned again swimming after losing good use of his knees. – Louisa Jul 7 2011 at 15:55
	My sister has had serious knee and ankle surgery, she actually has a prosthetic ankle now, so she has to be very very careful as her body actually rejected the implant before the latest one. She tried recumbent biking and it just didn't work out well. She's an older sibling, and in no way will the youngest have good advice, but I won and now she swims. She lost weight and toned up - the pull-buoy helped immensely and allowed her to get in the pool if she was hurting. Now might be a good time to start planting the seeds of Paleo in her :) Happy swimming to all! – jesuisjuba - paleorepublic.com Jul 11 2011 at 3:06

StephNY · Answer 3 · 2011-07-07 16:34:37Z UTC

I've got a couple Trikkes. They are 3-wheeled cambering vehicles. Very easy on the knees. I'm one of the younger riders I know. If you've ever seen any late night infomercials on the golf channel, that would be what I ride.

I got into it a few years ago. Lots of fun to ride distances, you can alter the way you ride to work different parts of the body harder. I enjoy the challenge of hills, personally. I love my Trikkes.

www.trikke.com is the main site

www.bloodpowered.com is a great resource site but currently down for the week as they make upgrades. There is also discussion there on other HPVs.

So I realized my reply was incomplete. As for competitiveness- I like to race cyclists. They never know I'm racing them unless it's my dad, but really it's a competitive thing for me to try to keep up with the cyclists. It's how I push myself.

The downfall is that it's bodyweight only. I sometimes ride so that it's like I'm doing single leg squats. More often than not though, I just like to leave the lifting for the gym and entertain myself while "racing" the cyclists and get a good workout by practicing my hill climbing.

Way more comfortable than a bicycle, but that's just my two cents.

Vrimj · Answer 4 · 2011-07-07 18:22:30Z UTC

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Similar to swimming, but has he considered Water Polo? It has a lot of the team and competition and game aspects of soccer without the impact to the knees because of the water.

answered Jul 7 2011 at 18:22

Vrimj
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Ditto and can I say YUM to a H20player's bod!!!! YUM! It is a LOT of sprinting with low impact eggbeater workouts. Oh, but let him know he needs to cut his nails short and wear two suits. H2Opolo is not for the weak hearted. – Marie Jul 7 2011 at 23:14

UncleLongHair · Answer 5 · 2011-07-07 15:12:41Z UTC

I used to run about 3-4 miles 3-4 times per week. I had a knee injury a couple of years ago from which I recovered (soft tissue only). But we have knee problems and arthritis in our family, so I have been looking for other exercises that do not stress the knee, similar to your husband.

In terms of work-outs, I now do a combination of kettlebells, floor exercises (i.e. push-ups), and Burpees, and some yoga. I now have the best muscle tone of the past 10+ years.

I don't have much time for competitive sports these days, but I always enjoyed volleyball, which is more jumping and sprinting and doesn't bother my knees. In the past I have done rock climbing, and that is not hard on the knees much at all in my experience.

mari · Answer 6 · 2011-07-07 20:35:52Z UTC

If you play doubles tennis on clay courts, its pretty easy on the knees. My grandpa is able to play after knee replacement, and I was only allowed to play on clay for 3 months when I was returning from surgery. Its more pressure than, say, swimming, but its also way more fun than just going back and forth across a pool. Just make sure its clay, not hard courts which are basically cement. Good luck!

Some exercise to replace competitive soccer?

6 Answers