Sitting here at my kitchen counter with not a lot to do. The weathers windy and cold outside and i've done all the things i set out to do today, so i thought i'd update my blog a bit...
I finally joined the gym about a month ago, and threw sum leg training into the rest of my workout session.
The leg raises are still only with the minimum 5kg weight the machine allows, but i can almost lift it entirely with my left leg now. My right leg is for support just in case. 10 reps and 3 sets each trip to the gym, which at the moment is twice a week.
I'm also doing calf stretches and calf raises on the machine which is helping stretch out my achilles and making walking up hills a lot easier.
I've also started playing golf again, a love of mine since i was around 6 years old, which is a huge positive in my life!
I didn't think i would be able to swing a club again as your left knee needs to rotate out of the shot, and this would cause me a lot of discomfort.
But as i am getting stronger, my knee is able to withstand more of the rigours of everyday life and i am noticing it is slowly becoming a bit more flexible like it used to be before the accident.
I have just this week started back on the exercise bicycle again 20min a session 3 times a week to help build a bit more strength and also to get a bit of cardio into my gym routine, so i am sure that this will help as well with strength and flexibility.
Summer is fast approaching here in South Africa, and i am looking forward to getting back in the water again once the sea warms up a bit.
Both for my diving and also for a bit of bodyboarding.
I am going to go and see a specialist about building up my shoes, in the next month as well, because i want him to check my spine and see how much damage i am doing to it with the difference in leg length, and what his thoughts are on the long term prognosis of my situation with regards alignment.
I'll pop back and update everything in a month or so's time.
Until then, stay positive and appreciate every day.
Peace
Saturday, November 1, 2014
Sunday, August 17, 2014
A sunny winters day
Its been quite a warm winter this year.
And today didn't disappoint either. 28C and not a breath of wind.
It was an afternoon made for fishing, with an incoming tide late in the afternoon.
The last time i went fishing off of Central Beach, i only made it half way to the river mouth. Its a fairly long walk of about 300m from the car park to the seaside across the sand, and then around another 1km to the river mouth along the beach. If you keep going, you double back on yourself on the river side of the beach, and thats another good 1-1.5km stretch again, back to the car park.
Last time had been about 3 months ago.
I'd made it over the sand and about another 150m down the beach and my leg had said no further unless i preferred to hop home!
I'd made it back to the car afterwards, but it really took it out of me.
Today was perfect for a fish from the river mouth and i decided i would make the mission, both for the enjoyment sake, and also to see where i was at with my strength and stamina.
I think its these little missions you make that are the away-from-the-daily-routine kind of exercise sessions that really enable you to see how far you've come.
I made it across the sand and all the way to the mouth. I fished there for an hour and then walked around the point to the river side of the beach. I fished there for another couple of hours, and made my way back as the sun was setting, all the way to the carpark.
I stopped twice, as much to soak up the last of the sun and to appreciate the beautiful river reflecting like glass in front of me, as to take a break.
I was very impressed with the trip. No fish were caught, but it was a great day out and i was very happy with how quickly my leg is getting stronger now that i am using it every day.
I am set to join the gym in the next week or so, and then i will take things up another notch.
Apart from the difference in length, i feel that i will make a close to full recovery in the coming months and years.
I will wait and see how my back and my knee hold up over time, but i am doing a lot of core strength work, which is very important in a strong body.
Just thought i'd share my little good news story.
Dont ever look back and regret. Look around you and appreciate. Look ahead of you and be excited.
Your future is yours to create.
Peace
And today didn't disappoint either. 28C and not a breath of wind.
It was an afternoon made for fishing, with an incoming tide late in the afternoon.
The last time i went fishing off of Central Beach, i only made it half way to the river mouth. Its a fairly long walk of about 300m from the car park to the seaside across the sand, and then around another 1km to the river mouth along the beach. If you keep going, you double back on yourself on the river side of the beach, and thats another good 1-1.5km stretch again, back to the car park.
Last time had been about 3 months ago.
I'd made it over the sand and about another 150m down the beach and my leg had said no further unless i preferred to hop home!
I'd made it back to the car afterwards, but it really took it out of me.
Today was perfect for a fish from the river mouth and i decided i would make the mission, both for the enjoyment sake, and also to see where i was at with my strength and stamina.
I think its these little missions you make that are the away-from-the-daily-routine kind of exercise sessions that really enable you to see how far you've come.
I made it across the sand and all the way to the mouth. I fished there for an hour and then walked around the point to the river side of the beach. I fished there for another couple of hours, and made my way back as the sun was setting, all the way to the carpark.
I stopped twice, as much to soak up the last of the sun and to appreciate the beautiful river reflecting like glass in front of me, as to take a break.
I was very impressed with the trip. No fish were caught, but it was a great day out and i was very happy with how quickly my leg is getting stronger now that i am using it every day.
I am set to join the gym in the next week or so, and then i will take things up another notch.
Apart from the difference in length, i feel that i will make a close to full recovery in the coming months and years.
I will wait and see how my back and my knee hold up over time, but i am doing a lot of core strength work, which is very important in a strong body.
Just thought i'd share my little good news story.
Dont ever look back and regret. Look around you and appreciate. Look ahead of you and be excited.
Your future is yours to create.
Peace
Thursday, August 7, 2014
"Walking" the winding road of life...
I cant believe another 3 months has flown by so quickly!
It seems like just yesterday i was writing my last entry!
Well, the last 3 months has seen me move from every now and again relying on 1 crutch, to being totally crutch free!
I have visited the hospital for 1 final (hopefully) time, and they have basically said to me that i just need to exercise myself back to full fitness now. There is not much more that they can do for me.
They were very happy with my progress and have recommended that i get my shoes built up to help my back.
In the last 3 months i have had pretty bad DOMS in my left quad from overuse, but, unfortunately, this cannot be helped, as i need to lead a pretty energetic daily routine what with work and the rest.
I have not found any further problems related to my lower back, and have been in no pain at all, so this is only a good thing.
I have had my left shoes built up at the local shoe repair guy, which has added about 5cm in height to them.
This, i'm sure, has helped a lot.
I have not been able to get into the gym again as yet, but it is on the cards for the near future.
My daily life is not really affected at the moment, and long may this continue.
My knee has not given me a seconds pain either. The only pain that i have had is my quad, but i expect this to be intermittent as my muscle slowly gets stronger.
As of now, i can feel the muscle is stronger, but still no definition above the knee, as with my good leg. But this will come with time and exercise.
Overall, i am very happy with my progress, and take each and every day as a blessing, especially looking back over this whole ordeal.
I dont think that breaking a leg and damaging ligaments can ever be a good thing, but certainly it is even more difficult when you need to be active, like for work reasons, etc.
I have been to the driving range to hit some golf balls recently, as i am a keen golfer, and am optimistic i will be back on the golf course before the end of the year!
There's always something to be thankful for, and always something to smile about...sometimes you just have to look a little harder to find it...
Peace
Simon
:)
It seems like just yesterday i was writing my last entry!
Well, the last 3 months has seen me move from every now and again relying on 1 crutch, to being totally crutch free!
I have visited the hospital for 1 final (hopefully) time, and they have basically said to me that i just need to exercise myself back to full fitness now. There is not much more that they can do for me.
They were very happy with my progress and have recommended that i get my shoes built up to help my back.
In the last 3 months i have had pretty bad DOMS in my left quad from overuse, but, unfortunately, this cannot be helped, as i need to lead a pretty energetic daily routine what with work and the rest.
I have not found any further problems related to my lower back, and have been in no pain at all, so this is only a good thing.
I have had my left shoes built up at the local shoe repair guy, which has added about 5cm in height to them.
This, i'm sure, has helped a lot.
I have not been able to get into the gym again as yet, but it is on the cards for the near future.
My daily life is not really affected at the moment, and long may this continue.
My knee has not given me a seconds pain either. The only pain that i have had is my quad, but i expect this to be intermittent as my muscle slowly gets stronger.
As of now, i can feel the muscle is stronger, but still no definition above the knee, as with my good leg. But this will come with time and exercise.
Overall, i am very happy with my progress, and take each and every day as a blessing, especially looking back over this whole ordeal.
I dont think that breaking a leg and damaging ligaments can ever be a good thing, but certainly it is even more difficult when you need to be active, like for work reasons, etc.
I have been to the driving range to hit some golf balls recently, as i am a keen golfer, and am optimistic i will be back on the golf course before the end of the year!
There's always something to be thankful for, and always something to smile about...sometimes you just have to look a little harder to find it...
Peace
Simon
:)
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Crutch Free!!!
Happy Easter everyone!
Its been a good few months since i last updated my blog.
I am now walking around crutch free most of the time! In the evenings and first thing in the morning i stll use the 1 crutch so that i can give my leg a break (excuse the pun), but other than that i am pretty mobile.
At work i am up and down ladders, carrying scaffolding around, etc, and seem to be managing ok!
I had pretty severe DOMS (muscle pain) last weekend, after a particularly physical week at work, but luckily these only lasted for half a day and when i woke up the next morning i felt fine again.
I can feel that my knee is pretty strong, and the muscles are certainly helping as they get stronger.
My quad is still a fair way from being as strong as i would like it, but i can feel that every week there are strength improvements.
I would say that at the moment i am around 40% of where i would like to be to be back to as close a normal lifestyle as possible, but i am already walking, so this can only be a good thing right?
I dont think i will be having the rod removed when i go back for a check-up in June.
The pain i have felt in my knee for most of the last 3 years, is seldom a problem now, and only after a lot of physical exertion do i feel it anymore.
The only thing that i am noticing now, is a bit of lower back pain.
I suppose this is to be expected when 1 leg is almost 10cm shorter than the other!
Now that i am walking it is putting a lot more stress on my lower back, and this is a little worrying for the long term prognosis.
I have looked online and found that the human body can compensate for around 2cm of difference, and anything over 5cm, the specialists recommend surgery.
The options are not great though....
1. Lengthen the shorter leg, whcih involves removal of the nail, a bre-break, external fixation, and then every 34 days they pull the bone apart a cm so that it can regrow the space and lengthen the leg. This process for my difference in length, would take around 8-10 months, and then another 6-8 months after that to fully heal after the metal is removed!
2. Shorten the good leg! Basically, they surgically cut the femur, remove 8cm of bone, and then put you back together like they would a broken leg! Possibly a nail in the femur as well! At least this would balance me up though! The recovery is around 3 months on crutches again, and 8 months to fully recover.
Option 2 is certainly the preferred method for me, but i would need to be strong enough to walk and rest and stand on only my left leg for almost the entire period of my recovery, so that is still a fair way off!
I think that when the time is right, i will enquire about having this operation done.
It in't the most pleasant thing making the decision to cut a piece out of a perfectly good leg, but i think that this is certainly the better of the 2 options.
If i were to leave it, i would end up with serious back problems in the not too distant future.
But, for the moment, i am very happy with just walking, and enjoying not having to use the crutches all the time.
As soon as i can find the time, i think i would like to join the gym again and start doing sum serious strengthening exercises, as what i am capable of doing at home is very little compared to a gym with all its equipment.
Here's to the next 3 months being as rewarding as the last 3.
Til next time, chin up and keep positive...
8)
Its been a good few months since i last updated my blog.
I am now walking around crutch free most of the time! In the evenings and first thing in the morning i stll use the 1 crutch so that i can give my leg a break (excuse the pun), but other than that i am pretty mobile.
At work i am up and down ladders, carrying scaffolding around, etc, and seem to be managing ok!
I had pretty severe DOMS (muscle pain) last weekend, after a particularly physical week at work, but luckily these only lasted for half a day and when i woke up the next morning i felt fine again.
I can feel that my knee is pretty strong, and the muscles are certainly helping as they get stronger.
My quad is still a fair way from being as strong as i would like it, but i can feel that every week there are strength improvements.
I would say that at the moment i am around 40% of where i would like to be to be back to as close a normal lifestyle as possible, but i am already walking, so this can only be a good thing right?
I dont think i will be having the rod removed when i go back for a check-up in June.
The pain i have felt in my knee for most of the last 3 years, is seldom a problem now, and only after a lot of physical exertion do i feel it anymore.
The only thing that i am noticing now, is a bit of lower back pain.
I suppose this is to be expected when 1 leg is almost 10cm shorter than the other!
Now that i am walking it is putting a lot more stress on my lower back, and this is a little worrying for the long term prognosis.
I have looked online and found that the human body can compensate for around 2cm of difference, and anything over 5cm, the specialists recommend surgery.
The options are not great though....
1. Lengthen the shorter leg, whcih involves removal of the nail, a bre-break, external fixation, and then every 34 days they pull the bone apart a cm so that it can regrow the space and lengthen the leg. This process for my difference in length, would take around 8-10 months, and then another 6-8 months after that to fully heal after the metal is removed!
2. Shorten the good leg! Basically, they surgically cut the femur, remove 8cm of bone, and then put you back together like they would a broken leg! Possibly a nail in the femur as well! At least this would balance me up though! The recovery is around 3 months on crutches again, and 8 months to fully recover.
Option 2 is certainly the preferred method for me, but i would need to be strong enough to walk and rest and stand on only my left leg for almost the entire period of my recovery, so that is still a fair way off!
I think that when the time is right, i will enquire about having this operation done.
It in't the most pleasant thing making the decision to cut a piece out of a perfectly good leg, but i think that this is certainly the better of the 2 options.
If i were to leave it, i would end up with serious back problems in the not too distant future.
But, for the moment, i am very happy with just walking, and enjoying not having to use the crutches all the time.
As soon as i can find the time, i think i would like to join the gym again and start doing sum serious strengthening exercises, as what i am capable of doing at home is very little compared to a gym with all its equipment.
Here's to the next 3 months being as rewarding as the last 3.
Til next time, chin up and keep positive...
8)
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
A change of mind
Well, its now another month or more since i last posted.
Merry Xmas to all my readers, and a very happy 2014 to you all!
This is gonna be a wonderful year. Just believe it, and make it happen!!
On a personal note, i have noticed a marked improvement in my own mobility and strength over the last month and a bit.
I stopped going to the gym shortly after my last post, as work commitments took up most of my time, but have continued to do my straight leg raises every evening to help build strength.
I found that towards the end of December i was able to now stand with my full weight on my left leg fairly easily, although my balance is still really bad on just that leg!
My leg has continued to feel stronger and more stable day by day, and around Xmas time i went down to spend the day on the beach with a friend. I played bat and ball on the sand for about half an hour, and managed to even walk down into the water, have a swim for a good hour or so playing in the waves, and make it back up to where we were lying on the beach, all without the use of my crutches!
On New Years Eve i went to an outdoor party and danced for the first time in over 3 years on the dance floor without any walking aids! I can honestly say that nothing would have wiped the smile off my face!
About 3 days ago now i started walking with just 1 crutch in my right hand, and only to balance myself, as my left leg is a good 8cm shorter than my right leg.
My knee was sore after the beach trip, but only for about 1.5 days. Obviously the muscles in my leg got tired and decided to take a break and this left my knee susceptible to the rigors of moving around. This is what caused the pain.
After my NYE dancing session i was also a little sore, but this only lasted about 1 day and then i seemed back to normal again.
3 days ago, when i started walking with 1 crutch, my knee was sore, and i struggled a bit the following day to use just the 1 crutch, but the last 2 days have been pretty good, and i can feel that the use of just the 1 crutch is really helping me strengthen my leg a lot.
I am feeling very happy about my recovery now, and am pretty positive about the next few months, and losing the crutch altogether!
I have been doing a lot of thinking, and have decided that my best course of action would be to put off my op for another 6 months and wait and see how much more improvement there is, before "risking" the op.
I say "risking", as there is the possibility of the femur refracturing when they remove the IM nail, and also of infection. I have read stories of others on the net of having a bit of pain, and going for the rod removal, only for infection to set in, and they are now in a much worse state than before!
The pain that i have been feeling in the outer part of my knee for much of my recovery time over the last 2 years, is now very much subdued. I still feel it in certain movements, and my leg still has a long way to go yet, but i am sure that strengthening alone will see me right.
For anyone reading this blog and wondering if there will ever be a light at the end of the tunnel, believe that there will be, and believe the doctors when they tell you that muscle strength can fix most of your aches and pains.
I dont think that i will ever stop the strength training program i am working on, but this is a good thing, as i know that the stronger my leg muscles are, the more protection i am affording my knee.
I have a very lax ACL and according to the arthroscopy i need an ACL reconstruction, but i will continue to get stronger, and will prove my doctor right in that muscle strength alone can overcome even this severe knee injury.
Keep positive guys and gals.
Sometimes it is all you have to hold onto on a very dark and long road to recovery. But it is your most powerful weapon in the fight to get back to full health!
I'll continue to post how things are going. Hopefully soon i'll be free of my crutches altogether.
Peace and Love for the coming year...
Merry Xmas to all my readers, and a very happy 2014 to you all!
This is gonna be a wonderful year. Just believe it, and make it happen!!
On a personal note, i have noticed a marked improvement in my own mobility and strength over the last month and a bit.
I stopped going to the gym shortly after my last post, as work commitments took up most of my time, but have continued to do my straight leg raises every evening to help build strength.
I found that towards the end of December i was able to now stand with my full weight on my left leg fairly easily, although my balance is still really bad on just that leg!
My leg has continued to feel stronger and more stable day by day, and around Xmas time i went down to spend the day on the beach with a friend. I played bat and ball on the sand for about half an hour, and managed to even walk down into the water, have a swim for a good hour or so playing in the waves, and make it back up to where we were lying on the beach, all without the use of my crutches!
On New Years Eve i went to an outdoor party and danced for the first time in over 3 years on the dance floor without any walking aids! I can honestly say that nothing would have wiped the smile off my face!
About 3 days ago now i started walking with just 1 crutch in my right hand, and only to balance myself, as my left leg is a good 8cm shorter than my right leg.
My knee was sore after the beach trip, but only for about 1.5 days. Obviously the muscles in my leg got tired and decided to take a break and this left my knee susceptible to the rigors of moving around. This is what caused the pain.
After my NYE dancing session i was also a little sore, but this only lasted about 1 day and then i seemed back to normal again.
3 days ago, when i started walking with 1 crutch, my knee was sore, and i struggled a bit the following day to use just the 1 crutch, but the last 2 days have been pretty good, and i can feel that the use of just the 1 crutch is really helping me strengthen my leg a lot.
I am feeling very happy about my recovery now, and am pretty positive about the next few months, and losing the crutch altogether!
I have been doing a lot of thinking, and have decided that my best course of action would be to put off my op for another 6 months and wait and see how much more improvement there is, before "risking" the op.
I say "risking", as there is the possibility of the femur refracturing when they remove the IM nail, and also of infection. I have read stories of others on the net of having a bit of pain, and going for the rod removal, only for infection to set in, and they are now in a much worse state than before!
The pain that i have been feeling in the outer part of my knee for much of my recovery time over the last 2 years, is now very much subdued. I still feel it in certain movements, and my leg still has a long way to go yet, but i am sure that strengthening alone will see me right.
For anyone reading this blog and wondering if there will ever be a light at the end of the tunnel, believe that there will be, and believe the doctors when they tell you that muscle strength can fix most of your aches and pains.
I dont think that i will ever stop the strength training program i am working on, but this is a good thing, as i know that the stronger my leg muscles are, the more protection i am affording my knee.
I have a very lax ACL and according to the arthroscopy i need an ACL reconstruction, but i will continue to get stronger, and will prove my doctor right in that muscle strength alone can overcome even this severe knee injury.
Keep positive guys and gals.
Sometimes it is all you have to hold onto on a very dark and long road to recovery. But it is your most powerful weapon in the fight to get back to full health!
I'll continue to post how things are going. Hopefully soon i'll be free of my crutches altogether.
Peace and Love for the coming year...
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