Sunday, September 19, 2021

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. 

Weekly Rundown
Monday: pool running and strength training
Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: trail walk 7 miles
Thursday: strength train with SJ
Friday: walk 6 miles
Saturday: watersking
Sunday:TBD

Pool Running

I decided to do a short 30 minute Fluid Running class on Monday before strength training. I downloaded the Take the Long Way Home class. Of course. This is a 90 minute endurance session, but you can stop at 30 minutes or 60 minutes. I intended this workout to be a warm up and so I did the first 30 minutes, during which we did 2 long runs of 9 minutes each. It was just what I needed. Next week, I'm planning on upping these sessions to twice weekly. 

Do I look like I'm running?

Walking

Wednesday's trail walk was before I saw the ortho, and I threw in several running intervals. They felt really good, but as the distance increased, my ankle started to talk to me. This surprised me since the fibula is not a weight-bearing bone. I really thought my foot would do the talking. Maybe being a heel striker is a win for once? The weather continued to be absolutely perfect. 

This was before I saw the orthopedic surgeon
It felt good to run...

When I woke up Friday morning, I was still feeling pretty discouraged about my ortho visit and didn't want to do anything. After a cup of coffee, I came to my senses. I decided to pull out the new shoes I was saving for my return to running and wear them on my walk. I'm so glad I did, because every time I looked down at them, they made me smile. I ran into a couple of my running friends, who are both training for marathons. It was great to see them and they gave me lots of encouragement. The beautiful weather was also a win!

Aren't they fun?

Strength Training

I mentioned last week that I was going to do the hypertrophy strength cycle at the gym. The workouts are meant to be done in 3 sessions, but between working out with SJ and all my other activities, I don't have 3 days to devote to this. Fortunately, it is a hypertrophy session, which means lighter weights and higher reps. I downloaded the 3 workouts and did them all, eliminating a few of the lifts that were repetitious. It was great but boy was I sore for the next 3 days!!!! When I told Sammy Jo what I did, she said it was fine but she laughed about my DOMS. She said that hypertrophy strength does cause more soreness because of all the reps. I'm pretty excited about this training cycle!

I don't have a heavy kettlebell, but this Kettlegryp allowed me to do 50# deadlifts with my dumbbell.

On Thursday, I met with Sammy Jo to resume my strength training. We're working on upper body but she is planning on putting some lower body work back in as well. I did some work with the resistance bands doing banded side steps and a hamstring movement that was new to me. I also worked my lats with the band and did forward reclined dumbbell flies as well. I finished up with some core work. 

These are lats of fun!

Waterskiing

Saturday was just beautiful and yep, I went for one last ski around the bay. The initial plunge into the water was a shock--it was really cold (70F). But once I got up and out, it was fine. The lake conditions were perfect for skiing and my hubs pulled me until I couldn't go any longer. This is the latest that I've ever gone skiing in Wisconsin. In spite of all my injuries this summer, I skied more than I ever have and I am so grateful!

GoPro footage is blurry

Supper Clubbing

We had big plans for Saturday evening-we were going to Ishnala, the iconic Wisconsin supper club, for dinner. My youngest drove out from Madison and knowing in advance that there was going to be a wait for a table, we arrived a little after 4. However, we weren't expecting to be told that there was a 3 1/2 hour wait. That was a shock! We went to the bar and ordered brandy Old Fashioneds, the traditional Wisconsin cocktail. They were delicious! We made the decision to go elsewhere to eat, though. Too bad. What a cute, kitschy place. We'll go back someday--during the week when it will hopefully be less crowded. 

Brandy is from Wollersheim, a local winery and distillery


How was your week? Are you enjoying some amazing early fall weather? This is the best time of year to be in the Midwest. Any fun fall activities? 

I'm linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Rundown. 


46 comments :

  1. I'm so sorry your healing progress isn't where you thought it'd be. You've done such a great job of staying active. The supper club sounds so fun. Too bad about the crazy wait. Yikes!

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  2. How fun to get in one last water ski-I know you love it. I bet it feels good to be back at the gym doing strength training. I like to mix up the workouts like that as well and love a little soreness sometimes. I think the fact that your foot is feeling better is a sign you are healing. Look how far you have come! Your X rays will catch up soon. Hang in there

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    1. You know me...I'm just going to keep doing what I can. It was just such a unwelcome surprise.

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  3. That's a bummer on the ortho's news...but (as you know), it's a short blip and all will heal. Patience is tough, especially when everyone else is moving and grooving. I've been there. I do a lot of light/medium weights with high reps...no wonder the DOMS are regular guests LOL

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    1. When I first broke my ankle and foot, he told me it would be 3-6 months before I'd run again. At the time, I didn't believe him, but I guess he knew what he was talking about. :p

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  4. I'd be just like you - it's so hard to be patient for an injury to heal! But it will, and you will be back to running full blast very soon.
    Well done on the hypertrophy strength cycle, Wendy. Doing 3 sessions in 1 is pretty badass!
    Those Old Fashioneds look amazing. Isn't it possible to make a reservation at the restaurant? Or is it just simply first come, first served?

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    1. No reservations, sadly! We'll go back during the week where it shouldn't be so crowded.

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  5. Oh, that's frustrating and disappointing... especially when you were throwing some running in there and feeling good. But at least you can still walk. I know... walking is not running. But it's a good thing to throw in there- I find that when I'm injured, if I ONLY do pool running I go berserk, or if I ONLY walked I would hate it- but being able to mix it up makes it all bearable. Hang in there- the time will pass and you'll be running again. And you'll be super strong when you get back to it!

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    1. I know you get it! I'm resigned to walk for a couple of weeks and then attempt some running again, as long as I'm feeling good. My ankle and my foot have been hurting the past couple of days, so rest will be a good thing. Again.

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  6. I'm really sorry about the news from the ortho. You are doing a great job staying active -- those x-rays will soon catch up! Hang in there!

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  7. The waterskiing has definitely been the silver lining of your injury, Wendy! I'm sorry the news wasn't what you wanted to hear, but you are healing. And you can run a little. There's that.

    3 1/2 hours! Wow. Who would wait that long? There was a restaurant that got great reviews in the town we stopped at on the way home from ME. We'd already decided to try a different one, but we saw that the other one has a line out the door! I'd love to go back someday, maybe, and give it a try.

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    1. Yes, we will go back but during the week. That was ridiculous and we would have been hammered had we stayed, lol

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  8. When I broke my ankle it didn't heal as fast as the doctor expected. He said I should boost my calcium intake. I really wasn't eating any dairy or taking calcium at the time so I upped it. It was frustrating! I was stuck in West Yellowstone at a Forest Service compound, in the winter. Not much to do, no gym, super cold!

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    1. Interesting advice! I already take Vitamin D and Calcium, so that isn't an issue.

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  9. It's so hard to have to wait so long for the healing to happen, I'm sorry. Lovely weather here (sun with fresh air today) and having lowered my mileage is working well for me as I actively enjoyed the run as well as the company. Phew!

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    1. It's boiling hot today, but cooler temps are right around the corner. Looking forward to it.

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  10. I am very sorry for the bad news. However you are working well to stay active and to be ready to come back to running as soon as possible.
    When I broke my femur the surgeon said: you will not be able to run anymore. It happened in September 2007 ......

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  11. Sorry that your healing is slower than expected. I think its good news that you're feeling good though! That says more than an xray I think. I'm jealous of that nice fall weather! It still feels like summer here.

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    1. It's summer again today! Holy moly it's hot. But the cooler temps will return in a day or so.

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  12. I’m sorry you’re not healing as quickly as you’d like. We’ve been in Hawaii this week (first time in 18 months) and I’ve enjoyed some great runs. No Fall weather here. Going home tomorrow and temps are looking good - still in the 90s during the days, but cooling to upper 50s at night.

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  13. Oh no on your ankle not being healed as much as you'd hoped. Hopefully, it will make great progress by your next appointment. Thank goodness you're able to stay so active in the meantime. Yay for one last waterskiing adventure!

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    1. Today would have been even better--it's really warm out, but there were so many boats on the water!

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  14. My younger sister went to that supper club over the summer and I didn't believe her about the wait; I thought there was no way she waited that long- but maybe she was telling the truth, ha! I love how old-fashioneds are a traditional Wisconsin supper club drink. I hope you found a good Plan B for dinner!

    I'm sorry to hear about your ortho appointment. Recovering from an injury is so hard.

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    1. We did--we went back to the craft brewery, lol. But we will go back to Ishnala--on a week day!

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  15. Thank you for your blog, you are a unique voice and I appreciate your insights! I have been working as a physical therapy assistant in an outpatient sports med clinic for over 25 years. I have never seen someone with your fractures do as much walking, hiking, waterskiing and now running as you are. Maybe your desire to be active is blunting the pain signals that you may have honored? I hope you don't end up needing surgery after all this time.

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  16. I was sorry to hear that your follow up appointment didn't go as expected :( but it seems like you have a good plan in place to stay active and still give your injury what it needs to continue healing.

    I love those Brooks sneakers! I think that they have the best patterns/colors for their sneakers, especially the Ghost sneakers. I'm looking forward to seeing the pattern for their Christmas sneakers later on this year.

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    1. I agree with you on the Brooks! I've bought a few of their novelty patterns and they are so much fun!

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  17. I’m so sorry about the word from the ortho. What do you mean about the x-ray lagging behind?

    I’m pretty sure I couldn’t lift 50 lbs. I’m still rebuilding upper body strength after my fractured rib/hand in January, and barely reach for my 20s yet. ~sigh~

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    1. The xray doesn't always reflect what the patient is demonstrating clinically. Sometimes in my job, I'll diagnose pneumonia based on my exam and what the patient is showing, even with a normal chest xray. If I repeat the chest xray a few days later, it will show pneumonia. That's why we never rely on imaging alone when we are making a diagnosis.

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  18. I'm sure you'll be back on the trails (with the doctor's permission that is) soon! Do they recommend any specific foods to promote healing?

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    1. Wouldn't that be nice? No, just a reminder to take it easy. What is easy?

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  19. That is so interesting about the xray lagging. I experienced something similar to you when I broke my arm... felt NO better 2.5 weeks into it and I was all convinced I was defective and would never heal. Well, I did. It's just not linear, just as you said!

    The only time I lift 50 pounds is lugging 2 25-lb boxes of kitty litter from my car into the house. It's about all I can handle!!

    My dad gave me those Run Hoppy booze shoes for my birthday a few weeks ago. :) They're the best. I'm going to wear them later on today for my first time at a local run club & happy hour. And thank you for reminding me to be grateful I can run at all, vs. dreading it since I hate running at night and normally don't do it!

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    1. Sounds like fun and I wish I could join you! I love the shoes and look forward to wearing them again for my walk this week.

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  20. So sad to hear this. I didn't want to be a Debbie Downer but when I broke my foot years ago (waterskiing no less), it took 10 weeks and then when I broke my other foot in a 5k, it took about 8 weeks..... those foot bones are stubborn.

    I hope your xray catches up to you. I know you need to run.

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    1. I hope this makes you feel better, I was not given a boot just crutches...no walking...zero activity. You have been active so you will return to normal sooner...

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    2. It's frustrating, that is for sure! But we all heal differently and of course, different orthos with different philosophies. I do appreciate you sharing your experience, tho.

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  21. I love that you are pool running!
    Looks like you are doing as much as you possibly can to stay active as you recover!

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  22. I'm so sorry for your frustrating news. That had to be quite a blow. You're doing a great job managing the disappointment, but still.

    Fall and Halloween are kind of my favorites, but the boys aren't digging it. I'm not letting them hold me back, though. I'm going to watch the movies I want, and make the themed meals I want, and boo to them. Litterally.

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