Step 3

Physical preparation

Physical preparation is a crucial aspect of getting ready for foot and ankle surgery. I put it second behind mental prep as I believe that the foot and ankle  needs to physically be prepared for surgery. WE get far better nueromotor outcomes with a Pre-habilitation that includes physical prep. 

A good physical prep involves exercises / activities that can help improve strength, flexibility, and overall physical condition not just of the foot and ankle but of the while body.

Baselines established

By focusing on physical preparation, you can help optimize your recovery and outcomes post-surgery. The first key aspect of physical preparation is strengthening exercises.

• Specific exercises can help build muscle around the foot and ankle, which can provide better support and stability during the recovery process. 

• Search our course menu in the links below to browse all the different surgeries that we have recovery plans for that are specific pre surgical preparation exercises

• Additionally, flexibility exercises can help improve range of motion and reduce stiffness in the joints. 

• These type of mobility exercises should be part of a specific plan that is designed by your health therapist or surgeon and need to be implemented in the lead up to your surgical day.

• Habit formation

• Activities of daily living charted for the week

• ADLs as they are termed in the industry refers to all the normal daily activities that you do. Meaning. From wake up to sleep.

• This includes things like - work  - exercise  - domestic duties - 

• Step counts per day one of the best ways to help manage your foot and ankle surgery is by getting some step counts of your avg daily, weekly steps both during the week or on weekends so that in the recovery we can see what percentage of ADL steps counts you are up to. 

• Optimal Land spread sheet

• One often overlooked aspect is getting your upper body physically prepared to use crutches . Have you ever used crutches. What sort elbow vs arm pit - can you navigate around single legged what about going up and down stairs

In conclusion, physical preparation plays a vital role in the success of foot and ankle surgery. By incorporating strengthening and flexibility exercises into a pre-surgery routine, patients can help set themselves up for a smoother recovery process. Remember to always follow the guidance of healthcare professionals to ensure that the exercises are safe and effective for your specific situation.

We have online physical preparation modules that include all the exercises for you entire body in our course guide and in the course menu section.