Our Moving Crew online chats have grown so popular (pause for wild cheering) that we cannot provide even glib answers, to say nothing of substantial, helpful ones, to all of the questions we receive in our allotted hour. And so today we revert to our Crew and A format, to take up a query posed twice last week, yet sadly ignored by your hard-typing servants.

The question: I'm nursing an injured leg (or foot) but still want to exercise. What can I do?

(41560.000000 - Getty Images/stock4b Creative) In Depth About the Crew | Ask the Crew Susan Morse Health section assistant editor, hiker, kayaker, swimmer and dabbler in a variety of exercise regimens. » VISIT THE ARCHIVES Browse the Archives Recent Columns Discussion Transcripts Save & Share Tag This Article  Saving options 1. Save to description:  Headline (required) 2. Save to notes (255 character max):  Blurb 3. Tag This Article

"We will put people in the water," says Lynn Millar, a professor of physical therapy at Andrews University in Berrien, Mich., and a fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine.

Patients who cannot put any weight on the injured leg "can do deep-water jogging with a [flotation] vest" and, then, as they heal, progress to the shallow end of the pool (standing, but still exploiting the buoyancy) and eventually back onto land, Millar says.

Lack access to a swimming pool? Yeah, we know. Millar suggests using a stationary cycle with just one leg. (Don't whack your hurt leg with the free-spinning pedal.) Depending on the nature and severity of your injury, you may be able to pedal with both. Elliptical machines or rowers may permit activity that the treadmill prohibits. The Arc Trainer, should you belong to a club that has invested in one, is a remarkably low-impact aerobic device that's unusually kind to bum knees.

Another strategy: upper-body circuit training with weights. Do a circuit at a gym with machines or weights, or set up your own at home with dumbbells and a chair or bench.

Even with a bad wheel you can perform the military press, biceps curl, French curl, lateral lifts, lat pull-down, chest fly, pec deck, etc. (all of these are done seated). Crunches, too. Move through the circuit a couple times, with little or no rest between exercises, and you'll elevate your heart rate too.

Millar emphasizes that very few injuries require staying off the hurt area completely for more than a couple days. "Outside of acute fractures, you can start to put weight on most of these injuries fairly soon," she says, although in almost all cases you should dial back the intensity of your activity.

A bench press, for example, requires pushing your feet into the ground to stabilize your body. "So you might have to reduce the amount of weight" to account for the fact that you only have one leg to push off, Millar says. "But at least [that physical activity] will give you some muscle maintenance, even if you don't make gains" in your fitness.

Marc Connell, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist in Chevy Chase, suggests upper-extremity bikes, contraptions resembling sewing machines that allow users to pedal with their arms while seated in a chair. These are found in physical therapists' offices and a few high-end health clubs. Many physical therapists now offer free drop-in visits for patients who want to work out on specialized equipment between appointments.

The most important thing, experts say, is to keep the physical activity habit going, somehow, while you heal. And then come back slowly so you don't re-injure yourself. A long layoff can easily become a lifelong layoff if you're not vigilant.

No chat today, but the frenzy returns next week. In the meantime, e-mail: move@washpost.com .

-- John Briley