need advice, training with fractured rib?

[Kapten Klutz]

I'm new to MA and to my style, so I really need some advice. My school is wc but there is contact sparring at higher levels, and to lead up to where we can spar we progressively increase the amount of impact in drills. To make a short story shorter, something glitched and I took an unexpected hard shot to the flank from an 85 kilo guy who can punch.:eek:

Now I wonder, does anyone have any tips for training with a broken rib? The doctor's advice seems a bit too much on the safe side: no training at all for 1 month, no contact training for 1 month after that. I'd hate to be gone that long from my class, and wonder how soon people usually start with lighter training again. For example, if something doesn't hurt (too much) is it okay to do it? Could I do pushups after, say one week, but should I avoid situps? Obviously I don't want anyone hitting my trunk for a good while, but could I train techniques with a partner without contact? Worth noting is that my healing time will be slower since I'm almost 40. Any advice or descriptions of your experiences are very welcome.

[Kapten Klutz]

Doesn't anyone know anything about this? I did a search but it came up empty. I can't believe I'm the first person training kung fu to ever break a rib. But it is the first time for me so I don't know anything about it.

[Chief Fox]

Yeah, the doctor knows something about this but it sounds like you don't want his advice.

The doctor will probably error on the side of being conservative but I would at least take two weeks off completely and then see how you feel from there.

[Kapten Klutz]

Yeah, the doctor knows something about this but it sounds like you don't want his advice.

The doctor will probably error on the side of being conservative but I would at least take two weeks off completely and then see how you feel from there.

Thanks for the answer. It's not that I don't want the doctor's advice but that I'd also like other poeple's advice as well. When you say "two weeks off completely" do you mean two weeks away from the class, or two weeks of total rest, like not even any pushups?

[Chief Fox]

Thanks for the answer. It's not that I don't want the doctor's advice but that I'd also like other poeple's advice as well. When you say "two weeks off completely" do you mean two weeks away from the class, or two weeks of total rest, like not even any pushups?
Well I'm not a doctor but I would probably go with how I was feeling. Fractured ribs suck. I've had one from a snowboarding injury. It was very difficult for me to take a deep breath with out pain. If you go back to training too soon and acidentally get hit there, you will be on the ground crying like a little girl and you may even make the injury worse.

So if you can do pushups pain free, then I would probably do them. I would also use that deep breath test as a guide. If you can take a pain free deep breath then I might go back to light contact.

Like I said, I'm not a doctor and only you know how you're feeling. So if you feel good then go for it. With that said, I would still probably take some time off from all physical activity just to give my body some time to heal.

Hope this helps, and don't push it too hard.

Good luck.

[Kapten Klutz]

That sounds very reasonable and about like what I'd guess by trying to use common sense. Hearing it from someone who's been there before means a lot, thanks. FWIW I won't be trying to gain any muscle mass or the like for att least three weeks to a month, but if some lighter training doesn't cause pain I might try it just to not fall back too much.

When to go back to class is a hard decision for the reasons you mention, and since I don't want to go back too soon with a bunch of special needs like a primadonna. At the same time, falling behind would also impact the others later.

Part of the trouble is just that I hardly know the instructors, so far it's just been go there, train, leave. Guess this is an opportunity to break the ice.

Thanks again for the input.

[yu shan]

This kind of injury needs rest bro, been there done it. Fractured a few many moons ago, got the same instructions as you got. I tell ya, I pulled the intercostal muscles between the ribs once and I thought I was going to die from the pain. Take the rest, but at least go in and be in attendance at your school. You can still learn by watching and you can still rest the injury. I expect this with my tudis, unless they have the flu... dont even come in. Good luck.

[Kapten Klutz]

Thanks for the tips, Yu Shan, especially about going back fairly soon to at least be able to learn by watching, and maybe standing and practicing the techniques solo. There are plenty of coordination issues that are good to train even in slow motion (at least for me). My idea now is to return as soon as I can at least get through the warmup without wincing. Be able to jumprope or jog in place and breathe deeply. I'm hoping that will be at the latest about 8-10 days after the injury.

[Becca]

This kind of injury needs rest bro, been there done it. Fractured a few many moons ago, got the same instructions as you got. I tell ya, I pulled the intercostal muscles between the ribs once and I thought I was going to die from the pain. Take the rest, but at least go in and be in attendance at your school. You can still learn by watching and you can still rest the injury. I expect this with my tudis, unless they have the flu... dont even come in. Good luck.
'Specially the stomach flue.:mad: ;)

Don't know how much stance training you do, but it would seem to me that your ribs hurting would "encourage" you to keep your back up strait. Also, no jarring for a few weeks. I found that breaking bones means that anything jarring hurts even if you aren't working the affected body part. Push-ups would probably be fine. Squats and lunges might be good, too. But make sure you stop if it starts to ache too much. Breathing hard may stress your cracked rib if you try to push through it.

Might also be a good idea to ask your teachers for advise. They may have some very good ideas on how to continue working on your sparring without you needing to actually be hit. For instance, I ruptured a joint capsule on one finger (I know, not the same as a rib) I took a week off, then asked Sifu about how I could still participate. He had me buy one of those honking metal hand and wrist braces so I could still keep my hand imobilized, then had me focus on defending by evasion rather than blocking with my hands. I tended to leave my head open. Learning to evade helped me imensly. It also helped my training partners get better at hitting oddly moving targets, so you participating will not nessisarily hinder them at all.:)

[Kapten Klutz]

Thanks for the interesting points. You're definitely right about the jarring, so far trying to jump rope has not been an edifiying experience. Mr. Rib no happy. Lunges, squats and anything smooth seems to be okay as long as it doesn't use the muscles right over the rib. A weird thing is I sometimes get a phantom pain (well a very real pain actually) on the opposite side from the injury. I wonder if I'm compensating to take strain off the injured side and overstraining the okay side.

I'll definitely take your advice and send an email to the head teacher.