# Leg muscles



## Honda (Aug 27, 2012)

Hi all, after being bed ridden in hospital for six weeks and I mean not allowed out only for toilet after contracting a serious infection (not to do with my legs) my leg muscles are none existant through lack of use and my legs struggle to support my body. Looking for advice on what supplements will be good to help build them back up again? Thanks for your time, appreciated!


----------



## Marve (Jul 5, 2013)

Supplements as in vitamins?

I think the best thing is to just build up your activity levels bit by bit. I assume you are getting no physio support so the best thing I would do if I was you would be to set yourself a spreadsheet and detail down the things you can do (depending on your levels before), so maybe walking, squats, lunges, running and set yourself up a spreadsheet where you build up what you do little by little, day by day. Combine with some stretches in between and you should come back to life in no time.


----------



## SubtleAggressiv (Jul 17, 2010)

I previously spent 4 months in bed unable to walk due to a fractured pelvis. All my muscles wasted away and I had to build myself up from the bottom again.
If you’re looking at food supplements to fix your issue you’re looking in the wrong place.
First thing I’d recommend is getting a physio who will prescribe safe exercises and just as important is that as you get stronger they can sort out muscle imbalances and spot and work on any other issues that may arise.
Get some resistance bands which will allow you to control how much resistance you apply on each muscle group during exercise and you can increase as you get stronger. This may be helpful if you’re finding it difficult to stand so you can lay down and work on improving your leg strength without risking a fall. Once you’re stronger and able to stand then the body weight exercises will be your bread and butter, just focus on good technique and mobility. Chances are it won’t just be your legs that need work but also your core (abs and back) so don’t neglect the rest of your body.

Make sure you’re eating enough and eating well - fruit and veg, good carbs, fats and lots of protein if you’re free and able to do so. I can only assume your infection hasn’t affected this but please check with your GP before starting anything strenuous.

All the best


----------



## mattr8700 (Jan 17, 2016)

I was in a similar position 4 years ago, spent 6 weeks in hospital with an infection, confined to an isolation room. I’d lost 2 stone and so much muscle function in that time. The hospital gave me fortisip drinks as a way to help get my calorie intake up and it’s full of nutritional goodness. 

The hospital gave me a Zimmer frame, walking stick and crutches to help around the house but it was quite a while before I could walk unaided and brought a wheelchair for outdoor use. 

Physiotherapy helped a lot, they wouldn’t discharge me until I had done a week of physio in the hospital. Walking with parallel bars, exercise bike, leg extensions/leg curl machine, balance boards, steps, that sort of thing, all to help build up the muscle and strength again. I was spending 2 hours a day using their facilities and visited once a week for 6 months after being discharged. In-between that is visit my own gym (on crutches or in the wheelchair) to keep up the exercises.


----------



## uruk hai (Apr 5, 2009)

At the risk of stating the obvious, a good diet, good clean sources of protein etc.

Apart from that and as already said training, you could start with simply walking up and down stairs and if you're into training progress onto squats and for quad building front squats if you can, build it up very carefully and I would train for a mixture of strength and size. Calf raises, hamstring work which could include dead lift, Romanian dead lift, good mornings etc. A strength day with progressive over load and a volume day next.

Good luck.


----------



## slim_boy_fat (Jun 23, 2006)

I'm surprised the Hospital didn't give you exercises to do - I had sheets of them to do daily when I was in isolation for 6 weeks.


----------



## c87reed (Dec 9, 2015)

They really need to get you in touch with their physio dept. Presumably they haven't automatically done this due to the infection not being directly related to your legs. I would give them a hand to join the dots together and make a request for them to put the provision in place. I broke both of my legs 12 years ago and so like yourself I was laid up and not weight bearing for a long period of time. In my case it was pretty obvious that I would need physio and so this was arranged and took place through regular hospital visits.


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

I had a compound medial malleolus fracture, a lateral malleolus fracture and a posterior malleolus fracture of the ankle and a broken fibula 6 years ago.

I was non weight bearing for 2 months and a lot of my right leg muscle wasted during this time.

I had physio at the hospital for the following 4 months.
Broke ankle late August, discharged from physio mid Feb

I'm surprised the hospital hasn't put you under physio as a matter of course.

Same as slim_boy_fat my hospital gave me sheets of exercises to do in between physio visits


----------



## ollienoclue (Jan 30, 2017)

As above seek advice from a physiotherapist as soon as you can. They will know what movements and exercise is safe for you. I doubt you will be up to anything strenuous but you would need a GP appointment before doing that for sure.

Laying in bed for protracted periods of time causes a loss of muscle tone and strength very rapidly and it is worse the older you are. I forget the numbers but it can hi nearly 5% muscle mass per week according to your age.

Back and core muscles I presume would be affected as well and need careful management to get right again.


----------



## Stoner (Jun 25, 2010)

I spent seven weeks in traction and a further six weeks on crutches following a severe break on the pelvis (acetabulum for all you medical folk!) after a car crash. My routine, from the physio, was lots of swimming because it doesn't put weight on the joint, and walking to help rebuild the muscle. I was also told that for every week spent inactive will take 2 months of activity to rebuild the muscle so don't expect results overnight.

The good news is that it does come back so don't panic if it takes longer than you think


----------

