Exercises That Can Help Manage Pain as You Recover From Your Injury

As a workplace injury victim, you are likely suffering from significant amounts of physical pain. You might have been prescribed pain medication to take away some of the pain, but there is a limit to the amount of pain medication you can take. If your pain still lingers after taking your drugs as prescribed, consider using light, non-contact exercises to manage your daily pain levels.

Do not start an exercise regimen without first consulting with your doctor. Depending on your condition, exercise can stress the injured part and actually hurt you more. The exercises below are designed to help injured individuals recover, but the types of exercises that will work best for you depend on the type of injury from which you are suffering, its severity, and your overall fitness level.

Sprains occur when ligaments, the tissue that connects bones to each other, are stretched too far or snapped. Sprained ankles are a fairly common type of workplace injury. If you are suffering from a sprained ankle, use a resistance band to do simple strength exercises with the affected leg. Slowly push your foot to stretch the band, flexing your foot, then slowly return to the starting position.

Your rotator cuffs are the clusters of ropelike fibers found in each shoulder socket. These can be injured in workplace accidents, resulting in lessened ability to use the affected arm. To strengthen an injured rotator cuff after an accident, do pulling exercises that put a gentle pressure on the muscles in the arm.

Back pain is one of the most common results of workplace injuries. This is because your back and spinal cord play critical roles in every movement you make, from walking and jumping to lifting and pulling. Treat your back right by incorporating one or more of the following exercises into your routine:

• Stretching and resistance exercises in water;
• Walking;
• Riding a stationary bicycle;
• McKenzie exercises. These exercises work by “centralizing,” or moving, a patient's pain to another part of his or her body that is better equipped to handle it; and/or
• Lumbar stabilization. This type of exercise isolates the patient's “natural spine,” which allows the patient to then do resistance and strength-based exercises with correct posture.

If you exercise using weights, avoid injuring your back further by choosing light weights.

As you recover from your workplace injury, your role is to be a proactive patient and do all that you can to become healthy again. Contact a dedicated San Jose workplace injury attorney to develop your workplace injury claim to seek the monetary compensation you need to make a full recovery. Contact Corsiglia, McMahon, & Allard, L.L.P. today to schedule your free legal consultation with our firm. We proudly serve clients throughout the Bay Area, San Mateo County, Alameda County, San Benito County, Monterey County, and Santa Clara County.

• What Is an Ankle Sprain?
• How to Strengthen Your Ankle After a Sprain
• 5 Exercises for Rotator Cuff Pain