Stress fracture rehabilitation in Canberra.

Bone stress injuries need more than time off, they need a structured reloading program and an honest look at why the bone failed to keep up. Graded return to impact, running progression, and bone-health risk screening.

Runners, defence & court sports
High- vs low-risk site management
Energy availability (REDs) screening
Criteria-based return to impact

Book an assessment → 0418 153 608

Understanding bone stress injuries.

A stress fracture is the end stage of a spectrum that starts with a bone stress reaction: repetitive load exceeding the bone's ability to remodel and repair. Common sites include the tibia, metatarsals, navicular and femur, and the site matters enormously, because some (like the anterior tibia or navicular) are high-risk for poor healing and need more conservative management.

Just as important as the injury is the reason it happened. Training-load spikes explain many cases, but under-fuelling relative to training (low energy availability, part of the REDs picture), low bone density, menstrual disturbance and certain medications all reduce the bone's capacity to adapt. A rehab program that ignores these misses the point, and invites the next one.

How we treat it.

Early management respects the healing bone: offloading as required for the site, while everything trainable stays trained, bike, pool, upper body and unaffected-limb strength work. As healing progresses we reintroduce load in stages: walking volume, then impact preparation (heavy strength work, hopping progressions), then a graded return-to-run program with explicit progression criteria.

In parallel we screen the 'why': training history, fuelling and energy availability, bone-health risk factors, and, where indicated, coordinate with your GP for bone density assessment and bloods. Progress letters keep your GP or specialist in the loop throughout.

Screening & risk review

Training load & surface history
Energy availability / REDs indicators
Bone density & medical risk factors
Coordination with GP for imaging & bloods

Return-to-load stages

Offload & maintain fitness
Progressive strength & impact prep
Criteria-based graded return to run
Prevention: load, fuelling, bone health

Funding: This program can be funded through NDIS (self- and plan-managed), DVA (D904 referral), Medicare CDM (GP care plan), Workers Comp/CTP, private health or self-pay. We confirm the right pathway at your first visit.

What the evidence says.

A stress fracture is a bone that lost the remodelling race, and the evidence says two things matter beyond the initial offloading: why it happened, and how you return. Risk factors are well established, rapid load increases, low energy availability and RED-S, vitamin D and calcium status, menstrual disruption in female athletes, and a return that simply waits out the pain without addressing them invites the next fracture. Graded reloading on a symptom guided timeline, with strength work throughout, is the standard of care, and high risk sites need specialist oversight.

How I treat it.

During the offload phase you keep training everything the fracture does not load, bike, pool, upper body, strength on the safe side, so fitness survives the healing. I screen the why properly, including energy availability and training history, and refer for medical workup where the pattern suggests it.

The return to running is written down, progressive and boringly disciplined: walk run progressions, load rules, and strength benchmarks before each step up. It is slower than people want and faster than a second fracture.

What we aim for.

Healing protected while fitness is preserved
The underlying cause found and fixed, not just the crack
A written, graded return to full training
One stress fracture, not a career of them

Frequently asked

Frequently asked.

It depends on the site and severity, low-risk sites often return over 6–12 weeks; high-risk sites (navicular, anterior tibia, femoral neck) are managed far more conservatively and in coordination with your doctor. We progress on criteria, not the calendar.

Yes, and you should. Everything that doesn't load the injured bone stays in play: bike or pool conditioning, upper-body and trunk strength, and often heavy strength work for the rest of the lower body. Detraining helps nothing.

Usually a mismatch between load and capacity. Sometimes that's purely a training spike; often there's more underneath, under-fuelling, low bone density, or hormonal factors. We screen for these and involve your GP where indicated, because fixing the cause is what prevents the next one.

Related pages.

Key evidence

Recent literature behind this program.

A selection of the research and clinical guidelines that inform how this condition is managed at Fitness & Wellbeing Physiology.

Hoenig T, Ackerman KE, Beck BR, et al. Bone stress injuries. Nature Reviews Disease Primers 2022;8:26.
Mountjoy M, Ackerman KE, Bailey DM, et al. 2023 International Olympic Committee's (IOC) consensus statement on Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs). British Journal of Sports Medicine 2023;57:1073–1097.

Evidence summaries are provided for information only and are not a substitute for individual clinical assessment.

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Same-week availability for NDIS, DVA, CDM, CTP and private clients.

Prefer to call? 0418 153 608 · or email admin@fwphysiology.com