Injury

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anna-lou
Posts: 35
Joined: Wed Jul 13, 2011 7:11 pm
Location: Cambridgeshire

Injury

Post by anna-lou » Mon Mar 05, 2012 4:46 pm

Hi fellow paddlers,

I have recently suffered quite a nasty injury and have broken my ankle over the malleolus bone twice and dislocated it, i have had surgery and now have a plate and three pins on the outside of my ankle.

Alot of you know me i paddle div 1 K1 and and prem/1 C1 i am interested to see if any other paddlers have had similar surgery/ injury and have paddled C1 again??

Thanks

PeterC
Posts: 236
Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 12:14 am
Location: Fife Scotland

Re: Injury

Post by PeterC » Tue Apr 10, 2012 12:40 pm

I am not a C1 paddler (thankfully) but do have knowledge in general of what you have had done from a professional point of view. Proper padding to support your ankles properly should allow you to paddle. There will be some trial and error.

Looking further to the future once you have all healed up if things are 'catching' the metalwork can be removed.

You might not find doing ballet as an alternative would be a good idea!

NickP
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2012 7:23 pm

Re: Injury

Post by NickP » Tue May 01, 2012 10:12 pm

Hi Anna-Lou,
Just to give you a bit of background, I used to be a C1 paddler back in the 80's, have a degree in Chiropractic, but am non-practicing, so know quite a bit about bones and muscles:) Wish I knew all this when I was paddling.:)
This is my first post here so won't make it too long-winded-I think perhaps C1 paddling doesn't do our ankles any favours-the foot is usually supinated, which is a combination of three movements-plantarflexion, adduction and inversion-don't know how you caused your injury, but supination often figures in in injuries of this type.
I reckon C1 paddlers should put a little roll underneath the ankle, probably an inch or two in diameter-then the ankle doesn't have to plantarflex as much, so that then the other two movements do not have to occur-try to design your cockpit so that the foot is fully pointed, with no lateral movement-a bit like paddling faster-don't let the boat roll from side to side, but in this case don't let the foot roll from side to side.
I suspect that sustained supination in the boat would pre-dispose a paddler to ankle injuries, so it would be best to prohabilitate the ankle to lessen the chance of injury-I can take you through this process if you you are interested-basically balance exercises.

Nick

anna-lou
Posts: 35
Joined: Wed Jul 13, 2011 7:11 pm
Location: Cambridgeshire

Re: Injury

Post by anna-lou » Sat May 05, 2012 10:19 pm

Thanks for taking the time to post. I did it by planting my foot and my studs stuck in the grass as i went to change direction so was a lateral dislocation.

That would be really kin thankyou though im not sure what you look like! im going to hpp at the weekend to do kayak giving it more time before i try C1.

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