Elliptical Bliss

I made it through a warm-up on the elliptical machine yesterday. Some of you other ACL rehabbers may be thinking "so what?" But, I have always had elliptical issues much preferring jogging on treadmills or outside. It felt so good to be moving my whole body not just sitting on an exercise bike. And, obviously I've let go of some of the inhibitions of my awkwardness on the machine since this whole past six months has been physically awkward to be kind.

Speaking of six months, Thursday marks six months post accident and four months post surgery. Things are going well and I often forget about the knee. Pain and just feeling the knee ebb and flow as I walk. But, I feel that I'm turning a corner. I'll be celebrating the "anniversary" at a conference in Chicago...hopefully lots of city walking without pain will be the reward.

New Torture

Today I got to try a new torture machine. It's called the Extensionater and is a replacement for the torture chair. My impression was that it was less painful - good. Maybe not quite as straight - not so good. It felt like having a blood pressure band around your leg, because it essentially blows up a balloon that holds your leg down. Variety is good - I think I will switch off between the torture chair and the extensionater as I go along.

3 Months, 2 Weeks, 2 Days: MILESTONE!

Okay, if you haven't been around me in the last six months or suffered a severe knee injury you may not understand how excited I am. BUT, I'll tell you anyway. Last night I tried walking down the stairs in my house like a normal person. Not one step at a time, but one leg in front of the other. I did it! I do have to hold onto the wall for balance, and definitely need to work on control, but it worked, and it worked again this morning.


I've added a picture of the day before the injury, Christmas day last year. It's funny to think back to my mindset then. I can't even imagine attempting to go down a snow-covered ungroomed staircase like that. Hopefully I will be up to such an attempt next winter.

I've hated stairs for many reasons during this journey. More recently, the thing about them is that they're a constant reminder of my injury. When I'm around people I don't know, I feel I need to explain myself and my injury so they know why I'm so slow. Hopefully now I'm one step closer to a less visible impairment!

San Francisco

Twin Peaks, originally uploaded by MWOOD19.

I just got back from a business trip and weekend in San Francisco. It was a great trip...no major incidents. I got a lot of practice walking. I could definitely feel my knee and especially my hamstring and calf muscles since I was moving aroudn so much. The thing I kept thinking about was how lucky I've been that I lived in a city where you don't have to walk to get everywhere. Not in general, but when it comes to someone requiring knee surgery, the ability to drive park close, etc., is critical!

When I'm Back Playing Soccer

BlackBeltBlues shared an excellent article regarding ACL injuries and warm-up routines for girls playing soccer. It's an important reminder for women young and old and something I will definitely incorporate into my routine if I get a chance to get back on the field.

A Question of Perspective?

I wanted to focus on the positive this weekend. It became easier for a variety of reasons...

1) Jeff's house sale became final on Friday which means we only own one house and not two. It had been on the market for over a year since six months before our wedding.
2) We saw friends we hadn't seen since before the surgery. Since they haven't seen the day-to-day recovery process, my knee wasn't on their mind. It was great to have conversations that rarely strayed into that territory. Making the weekend a real break from the weekdays and the focus that PT seems to create.
3) The weather was beautiful and we got to attend a lake party - how can you beat that?

I had a conversation over the weekend that really made me think. One of our friends was discussing his ACL surgery which happened eight years ago. I haven't seen him since I was hurt since they live out of town. But his conversation was similar to many of the soccer girls I know.

They talked about their knee in generalities and even when you asked for specifics, there weren't many. I guess I think that maybe once you get farther out, like many things, you block it out! I think that's a good thing. I'll still have this as a record of my feelings, but if I had to think about this year as negatively as I've felt from time to time, it would be rough!

This is one of the things that drove me nuts when I was preparing for surgery. I knew all these people who had surgery, but couldn't get a lot of specifics about anything. It's part of what prompted me to start this journal. But, I think (given that all of my friends returned to competitive sports) that perhaps it's part of the coping mechanism. I can't wait to join their club with vague memories of a crummy year but a new perspective of normal along with it.