A Little Downtime

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The week started off strong. I had a minor surgical procedure scheduled for Tuesday. I knew that I'd have to lay low the rest of the week, so I started the week in high gear, making sure I got some good sweat in before I was banished to the couch. 

RA Checks In

Throughout my recovery from my ankle and foot fractures, I secretly marveled and was grateful that RA remained quiet. My recovery has been steady and I've been able to increase my activities accordingly. However, this week, RA reminded me that it's always around. I've been having a flare and while it hasn't sidelined me, I have felt pretty achy and my joints are swollen. I'm not sure what triggered the symptoms--the change in the weather? Or maybe my 3 1/2 hour hike on Sunday had something to do with it. As always, I am grateful for what I CAN do, even when I don't feel like it. 

As we RA warriors like to say, motion is lotion. I do actually feel better once I get moving. Let's hope this flare just fades away. 

Friday's walk/run

Can I Start Running Again?

That was the question on my mind this week. It's been over 3 months since my injury and I've been feeling pretty good as I continue to increase my activity towards my usual level. The only thing that I'm not doing is running. Do I dare start easing back into running again?

I know there are readers who are shaking their heads, maybe even shouting NO! at the screen. Hear me out. I used the word ease when I talk about running again and that is exactly what I intend to do. No way am I planning on jeopardizing the healing process nor am I looking at developing a compensatory injury from overdoing it. Remember, my ortho didn't tell me I couldn't run when I last saw him but he did caution me that too much activity can delay healing. For the past month, I've put running on the back burner again. I'm feeling good. So I figured, why not try?

I'm Walking, Yes Indeed

"I'm walkin', yes indeed,

and I'm talkin', 'bout you and me,

I'm hopin', that you'll come back to me...yeah..."

~Fats Domino

Another month without running, but September saw continued steady improvement on the healing and more crosstraining. I did have 66 miles of walking--not bad, all things considered. This month, I am participating in the Ice Age Trail Mammoth Challenge, which requires 41 miles, all on the IAT. As I mentioned in my Coffee Talk post, the biggest challenge for me will be finding time to get up to Wisconsin and on those trails! I'm happy to have this on the calendar since I won't see my ortho until the end of the month. Hopefully, then I will be cleared to run. 

Adjusting My Expectations

As promised, I nixed the running and cut back on my walking miles this week. Work continues to be busy and I am spending the entire day on my feet, seeing patients. I won't lie, in spite of wearing supportive shoes--Danskos and Alegria--my foot throbs at the end of the day. My ankle is mostly quiet, but at night, I have to position my leg just so, otherwise, it hurts. 

Sigh. When people ask me about it and I express my frustration at the slow healing, the response I usually get is: "What did you expect?"

At 3 months post-injury, I fully expected to be back running again. I'm not running and it will be a little longer before I can. I'm adjusting my expectations, continuing my alternative workouts to maintain fitness and build back my strength. I've pulled out the new running shoes that I was saving for my return to running and wearing them on my walks.

Running, I'm so ready for you.

You Can't Hurry Healing

I need to run, run, to ease my mind. I need to find, find, some speed of some kind...

Oh, you can't hurry healing, you just have to wait...

Oh, healing don't come easy, it's a game of sit and wait...

You can't hurry healing, you just have to wait,

You gotta trust, give it time,

No matter how long it takes...  

~Adapted from You Can't Hurry Love. Apologies to The Supremes and Phil Collins and the songwriters

I saw the orthopedic surgeon this week. It's been 10 weeks since my injuries and while he's pleased with how I'm feeling, the x-rays didn't show much progress with my healing. Remember, the x-rays always lag behind what is happening in real time. I also had to remind myself that healing isn't linear. I'm not worried that my fractures aren't healing, but still, it wasn't the news I was hoping for. 

I did runfess to him that I've been trying out some short bursts of running. While he didn't tell me I couldn't do that, he did tell me that too much activity can slow down the healing process. 

So no, I'm not cleared to return to running but I can continue to keep active with restraint. Patience is not one of my strengths. Between the overwhelming stress I'm feeling from work and my expanding waistline, I need to break a sweat. I'll go back in 6 weeks for repeat x-rays. In the meantime, I have plenty to do to keep myself active. 

A Little Bump on the Road to Recovery

I've been doing so well on the road to recovery that I was surprised to hit a little bump this week. On Saturday I woke up in a world of hurt with a full-blown RA flare. Actually, I had trouble sleeping because I could not get comfortable. I thought about getting up for some ibuprofen but it seemed like too much work at 2 am. 

The last time this happened was 2 weeks after my second dose of the COVID vaccine. Two weeks ago, I received my 3rd dose of the COVID vaccine. Coincidence? I'm sure not. I'm just hoping that this flare will be short-lived. And that it doesn't interfere with my recovery.

Timing is everything and with the not-so-great weather this weekend, we stayed home from the lake. That gave me time for guilt-free rest on the couch, watching the Wisconsin Badgers play football, catching up on blogs, and reading.

Cheesing

Life is Better On or In The Water

As you might already know,  I was out of town last week, visiting my former Weekly Wrap cohost Holly. We were joined by our friend Teresa for a really fun Camp Hoho girls' weekend! I shared all the details on my IG. There wasn't any running but there was a lot of water time and a lot of laughs. I came home on Monday with a smile on my face and rode that wave (pun intended) into an extended weekend getaway with my hubs in Wisconsin. 

Because truly, life is better on the water! I have to take advantage of every opportunity to get out there and get wet. The season is way too short for us in the Midwest. 

Just Keep Swimming

As I continue to heal and feel better, this week I upped my cross-training, adding rowing to my injury recovery regimen. I tried walking again this week, but this time, out of the boot. I couldn't move too fast, though. And I got out on the lake on my SUP, on a perfect summer day. It sure would have been nice for some waterskiing...sniff sniff. While I am so happy that are so many activities I can do, I had the realization that it really is going to be a while before I get back to running. That is a bitter pill to swallow. 

I see the orthopedic surgeon next week and I'll have more of a plan after that. For now, I'm taking Dory's advice from Finding Nemo--Just Keep Swimming.

Monday's Fluid Running session

 

My Injury Bingo Card

Coming home after a fun vacation away is tough, wouldn't you agree? I also had this past week off work, but with the broken leg, there wasn't a whole lot that I could do. I did my best to get some activity in almost every day. Mentally, that helped a lot. On Thursday, I saw the orthopedic surgeon for my follow up.

He was fine with everything that I'm doing and agreed with the strategy to let pain be my limiting factor. He was also pleased with my progress and re-xrayed my foot and ankle. There wasn't much change in the images because it is early in the healing process. 

However, the orthopedic surgeon thinks I may need surgery on my foot.

Surgery was not on my injury bingo card this year. Of course, neither was a broken leg. Actually, I don't remember signing up for injury bingo at all. I must have clicked on one of those phishing emails or something...

The fracture in my foot is displaced and he says it's unlikely that it will heal on its own. If I wasn't so active, he said he would allow more time for it to heal before deciding on surgery. He said healing could take up to 6 months and that doesn't come with a guarantee. Even if I have surgery, it will be a minimum of 3 months before I can think about running again. In the meantime, I can continue to do non-weightbearing exercises.

As you can imagine, I was pretty devastated by this news. After seeing the ortho, I needed some time to process this information. I spent much of the day on the couch, foot on a pillow, and Cocoa by my side. As the day went on, I was feeling better and ready to move forward. I do have my moments of melancholy, though. I sure miss running!

Pop! Goes the Ego

Starting the new year with an injury was not part of the plan. But you know what they say about plans...and the universe is laughing at me once again. Instead of finishing up some miles in preparation for my half marathon next weekend, I'm spent most of the week sitting on the couch with a heating pad on my back. Nursing a dislocated sacroiliac joint and a bruised ego.

There's nowhere to go but up from here.

Running Hot

You wouldn't know it by the weather but fall has arrived. I'm going to sound like the old timer that I am, but I don't ever remember it being this hot this time of year. The temperatures have been in the 90s all week, smashing records every day. The humidity is trying to keep up with those temperatures. I know you southern folks are all laughing at us, but we northerners are just not accustomed to these conditions this time of year.

It may sound like I'm complaining, but I'm not. I'm just astonished--and it isn't just our weather that gives me pause. Terrible hurricanes, earthquakes...it's like the world is coming to an end or something! Wasn't that supposed to happen on Saturday? If you're reading this, we are all still here and still roasting and running. Runners don't stop just because Mother Nature has lost her mind.