How Jon Beason of the Giants Came Back From a Crucial Injury Isometric Exercises and Water Therapy Helped Strengthen His Foot Without Risking Re-Injury

By Jen Murphy

An injury is often a setback for any fitness routine. But Jon Beason, the middle linebacker for the , says he views an injury as “an opportunity to improve.”

“You can’t feel bad for yourself, you need to think about coming back stronger than ever,” he says. “Injury is part of being an athlete. It’s always a better story when the great MVP players and Super Bowl winners overcome adversity.” The 29-year-old was the second linebacker chosen in the 2007 NFL draft. Mr. Beason went to the and turned heads with his power and speed, and played in the three consecutive years. But he suffered a season-ending Achilles injury on his left heel during the first game of the 2011 season and knee pain that required surgery ended his 2012 season. He was traded midseason in 2013 to the Giants, where he put up an impressive 93 tackles in 12 games. He credits his comeback performance to a careful diet and the encouragement of the Giants training and coaching staff.

But during a preseason workout in June, Mr. Beason pivoted on his right foot and tore ligaments and fractured the sesamoid bone in the foot, just under the base of his big toe. Sesamoid injuries limit an athlete’s power when propelling forward while running, says Lewis Maharam, who has a sports medicine private practice in New York. The injury is common among football players and runners, he says.

Mr. Beason avoided surgery, but was in a cast for three weeks and a walking boot for another three.

He returned to practice on Sept. 1, a week before the Giants’ season opener, but aggravated the injury during a game on Sept. 14 against the Arizona Cardinals. Originally listed as questionable for play in Sunday night’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Mr. Beason started the game, sporting a special cushioned shoe to protect his injured foot. He put up three tackles, but the Giants lost 27-0.

“When you seem to be making progress, getting reinjured can feel like you’re back at square one,” he says. “But you have to have the will to fight and take the rehab step by step and say ‘I’ve progressed to this, now what’s next?’ until you’re back and stronger than ever.”

The Workout

For the past four months he has focused on isometric exercises, which isolate the joints in his foot. “I’m contracting my toe down against the ground to simulate muscle firing patterns,” he says. But “the exercise limits the range of motion so I don’t strain the injury further.” He uses elastic Thera-Bands of varying resistances to improve his range of motion. He puts a band around his big toe and flexes and extends the toe until he can’t do it any more. He puts the band around his ankle and moves the ankle from right to left to build up strength and stability. To strengthen his calf muscle, he does calf raises standing on a platform with his heel hanging off, which requires a less intense lift. “These are all simple, simple exercises,” he says. “But sometimes the simplest exercises are the most tedious to do.” To keep his cardio up, Mr. Beason started walking on an underwater treadmill six weeks after the June injury. He then graduated to jogging underwater. The more you are submerged in the water, the less pressure there is on your joints, he says. “So I started with the water level at my neck and eventually the water was at my hips, which took about 50% of my body weight off.” Mr. Beason now runs underwater against the force of two water jets. “The force from the water makes it hard to pick up my knees,” he says. “It feels like I am pulling a sled and really gasses my legs, hip flexors and quads.” He also ran on an antigravity treadmill, which lessens the impact of a person’s weight while running. He had custom orthotics made for when he runs on turf to help disperse his weight when he hits the ground and to prevent his injured foot from bending too much. Even in a walking boot, Mr. Beason was at the gym performing upper body and abdominal exercises. He is able to use the hamstring curl machine, leg press, abductor and adductor machine and do abdominal work without aggravating his injury. “It’s not like my whole body is injured,” he jokes.

The Diet

“In college [at the ], I ate whatever I wanted,” says Mr. Beason, “but as I got older I realized nutrition was key to performance.” Four years ago he met a bodybuilder who explained to him “diet is just an equation, an exact science.” He took that to heart and now eats nine times a day, and measures and weighs all of his food. He aims to eat about 340 grams of protein a day. “That may sound astronomical, but that’s what I need to maintain or gain my muscle mass,” he says. Three of his nine meals are protein shakes, while the other six are whole meals. He might have 1½ cups of complex carbs such as broccoli, cauliflower or asparagus, and 6 ounces of lean protein such as pork or fish. He avoids all carbs after 3 p.m. His last meal of the day is often 6 ounces of lean meat with leafy greens and balsamic vinaigrette. Mr. Beason isn’t completely virtuous. “I love food and I give myself one cheat day to have a big steak, french fries, fried chicken,” he says. “My grandma makes the best barbecue you’ll ever have in your life.”

The Playlist

Mr. Beason uses 8tracks, an Internet radio website, to curate playlists, but rather than music, he listens to motivational speeches. “Listening to people talk about overcoming adversity helps me refocus when I need to regain my edge,” he says. His playlists includes words from Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi as well as quotes from inspirational movies such as “Rocky.”