Hey, All -

Congrats to all the "losers". I had a quick question for you guys on how an injury affected you on program...

Last week, I did 6 hours of Zumba and felt a little rough on Tuesday. But, I thought, if I worked through it, I'd feel better. Saturday morning, I did an hour of Zumba and felt great... then my daughter asked if I could jump on the trampoline with her. We had a ball... and felt good... until Sunday. I.could.not.move.

Went to the doctor on Monday to discover that I had torn a ligament in my back. He said he didn't know how long I'd be "out of commission" but it could be a few weeks up to a month. Although he did say that he was proud of my weight loss so far!

I'm a bit depressed and panic-y at the thought of gaining any more of my weight back, although I don't see how I won't, given the lack of activity.

Has any of you experienced an injury or break from activity while on program? How did it affect you?

I just posted the exact same question the other day. Hubby and I went kayaking on Sunday. We had some trouble getting them down off the car, and I caught the kayak awkwardly and it landed hard on my leg, and I felt a small twinge in my back. Then it was gone. My leg hurt, but you don't need legs to paddle, so we went out and did 7 miles of paddling. I was a bit sore in the shoulders that night, but the next morning I was ok. So I thought. I went to work, and moved wrong-BLAMMO! HORRIBLE muscle spasms, unable to drive myself home for about 30 minutes. Out of commission. It still hurts, but yesterday I was able to do a gentle walk, so long as I did not twist my torso. Today I went to the gym and used machines to work my lower body, and rode the sit down stationary bike. So far, so good. I don't know where your back pain is, but mine is in the middle this time, so I think the strained/torn ligament/muscle story is likely. Just don't get discouraged, and if you have someone to massage it, that def helps. Feel free to pm me if you want to talk about it. This is not the first time this has happened, and knowing me, it won't be the last.

My center told me that the program is 90% diet and only 10% exercise. They told me avoid doing weight training and to stick with cardio only. I still do 30 minutes of belly dancing or cardio 3 times a week (ok, I skipped Monday, but I got a hour and a half of walking in, so I don't feel bad). I think the idea is that you still lose on the program, even without exercise. Exercise will just help to maintain your muscles you already have and help you lose weight faster.

Rachels77, if you can get out and walk, great, or if you can use an eliptical bike or something else that does not hurt your back, also great. But don't overstress yourself. Your weightloss will most likely slow down while you are out of commission (and I know that is probably maddening with being so close to goal), but it should not stop entirely. Just relax, rest your back so it heals properly, and soon you will be up and moving again. I am sure your center can offer ideas on exercise that will not bother your back.

I'm an avid exerciser and didn't exercise much on the green menu as I wasn't getting enough calories (it worked out well b/c I was nursing a hip injury). When I started exercise I changed to metabalance. I really feel that even on metabalance if you are not exercising you should continue to lose, just slower. Rest for your back is more important than the exercise.