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Rössing-Lelesiit: Step by step under the water

Having picked up a serious injury at the end of January, Alexander Rössing-Lelesiit has – quite literally – taken a step forward in his recovery journey. Recently, his rehabilitation program has had him making use of the underwater treadmill at the Athleticum in the Volkspark.

Alexander Rössing-Lelesiit is stepping up his recovery process, no pun intended. The 19-year-old suffered a high-grade tear of the syndesmosis ligament in his right ankle during January’s Hamburg derby, an injury that will see him sidelined for multiple months to come. The Norway youth international is now able to move around without crutches, and has been continuing his recovery with the help of the underwater treadmill at the Athleticum in the Volkspark.

“I’ve started walking in the water. It’s been going well, and my body has reacted positively to it,” said the winger when asked about the exercises he’s been doing in the 3.5-by-1.52-metre pool. The benefit of a session of this kind comes as a result of the hydrostatic pressure improving fluid removal from damaged joints. The buoyancy helps to reduce the body weight, meaning that jumps, runs, and lunges represent less of a risk than when performing the same movements on land. Through the use of an underwater treadmill, the athlete can get back to sport-specific exercises quicker as well as work through endurance training. In addition, a player’s workload can be managed more carefully through precise incremental changes to the machine’s speed and resistance.

“I feel really good,” explained Rössing-Lelesiit, who made 14 competitive appearances and provided one assist for HSV this season before sustaining the injury against FC St. Pauli. The youngster completed the first phase of his rehab in his native Norway, allowing him to relax as much as possible in the early stages of his recovery. “I had a great time there. It really helped me to be able to see my family and friends. It did me a lot of good mentally. It was a good distraction from the injury, a chance to not just think about football.” For example, Rössing-Lelesiit visited his school and went to watch his old youth team, Lillestrøm SK. Now that HSV’s number 38 is back in Germany, his full focus is on working towards a return to action. This will take time, of course. Until then, Rössing-Lelesiit is taking it one step at a time.