Ankle injury; help me come up with a taxing cross-training program.

I was just kind of hoping that I could find some kind of exercise that helps with my stress/anxiety as much as running does. If this is the actual goal (vs. weight loss or cardiovascular fitness), this might be your chance to expand your stress management repertoire to include something like mindfulness meditation, which research is showing does help manage a range of anxiety disorders. Improved bodily awareness (taught in mindfulness meditation, also, learned through feedback in rehab Pilates, with good instruction, yes that is key) might help arm you against hurting yourself more when you get back to it. (I know it's the opposite direction of where you're head's at, but where your head's at doesn't seem to be helping your body.) I agree that yoga would be a bad idea. Personally, I wouldn't do a thing other than what's been medically advised without good instruction. Way too easy to get into weird compensations and imbalances -- especially if you've done your shoulder in as well, which suggests that something about your technique, biomechanics, or actual body parts isn't right.

Does your gym have a rowing machine? I was able to do that when I had posterior tibial tendon dysfunction. Kept me sane. You can do wickedly exhausting intervals on the rowing machine (like rowing for 12-15 calories every minute on the minute for 10-15 minutes). Also, would swimming normally help? I don't know how big your pool is or if your gym has a pool you can use.

I'm looking for the same thing for different reasons. I've found several low-impact cardio videos online, but not sure if that's what you want. Seconding rowing too. It's a great workout, I just don't have access to a machine.

How about any one of these http://neilarey.com/workouts.html be neila rey.

Whoops. I glossed over the part about wonky shoulder. Ignore my comment about swimming normally. Another idea is just to do a set number of push ups and sit ups continuously for a certain number of minutes. Like in 10 minutes, try to do as many sets of 5 push ups/20 sit ups (or whatever your fitness level allows) as possible. It's surprisingly tiring!

Can that leg bear any weight? If regular cycling didn't do anything, have you tried spinning? You might also give bikram yoga a try just for the hell of it.

Can you do active yoga? Like the Jillian Michaels yells at you kind?

I have never found anything to be as strenuous as running. Yeah, it sucks to have to cool it for a few weeks, but you need to take care of your body and let it heal or you're only going to be out for longer. If you're in good shape now, stick with the cycling and aqua running and you won't have any trouble hopping right back on the horse when your leg is healed up. I'm always surprised at how quickly I regain endurance after a break from running and I am no kind of serious athlete.

Thanks so far! I think rowing would probably be a bad idea. The doc said my other leg is pretty beat up as well, which could potentially turn into ANOTHER stress fracture. I kind of had the perfect storm of conditions leading up to these injuries: Bad form, low cadence, bad shoes, running too much too quickly, etc. Cotton dress sock: I hear ya, and I am trying to be careful. But running was such a stress reliever for me. I was just kind of hoping that I could find some kind of exercise that helps with my stress/anxiety as much as running does. peep: I've heard about spinning, but am kind of fuzzy on the details. Is it similar to indoor cycling? In any case, I'll give it a look. roomthreeseventeen: Maybe! I'll see if I can find some exercises I can manage.