Wahine's exercises sound excellent. I'm guessing that I could have been at least a month ahead in rehab had I done this stuff while I was non weight bearing. Some of the rehab that I had to do had nothing to do with my broken ankle. For instance, I experienced back pain for the first time in my life because I inadvertently let my core and glutes atrophy.

The idea of maintaining some calf muscle on the injured side by working the good side is intriguing. Strong calf muscles can help reduce swelling in the lower leg but I'm not sure if a strong, non working, calf muscle can still help move swelling up and out. Still, the more calf muscle that you maintain, the faster you can rehab. Take it from someone who had nothing but a mushy, jiggly, sack of skin left on the back of her leg when she got out of the boot.

The good news is that even if you don't have the energy or motivation to exercise while you're healing, you can STILL get fit again. It just takes longer.