It's been so long... because I haven't been thinking about my foot!

Who has time to blog when you're out there hitting the trails and playing in the fresh air?

Yup, I started hiking in May and haven't looked back... until now, when the weather is going down the gutter (literally) and the days are really short.

I did my first race in mid-May (Beat the Bridge) and was pleased with the results. I started doing track workouts around that time. In June I raced at the Fremont 5k, which didn't go too badly, but I still wasn't near peak form. And here I am in November and I'd have to say that I'm STILL not. I'd say I'm in decent shape. I've been placing consistently in the top 4 of the women's B division for the local cyclocross series. I was 2nd at a trail race in August (about 75 women?). I was 4th at a smallish cross-country race last weekend, where I ran just under 19 minutes for 5k. Which isn't too fast, but considering it was a bit muddy and I haven't done a track workout in a couple of months, I'll take it.

So enough about fitness level. In the summer there was a good deal of hiking, three backpacking trips, a bike tour through Colorado with my new friend Will, all in all a great summer. The foot has held up well. I won't say that it's absolutely perfect. And I'd say that after about 2 hours of running the foot (or the other foot) will be hurting. If I ride more than 3 hours, that happens too. In general, the left foot is still a bit more swollen at the end of the day than my right. (Most noticeable if I take off bike socks at the end of the bike commute home).

But on the whole it's great. I hardly think about my foot when I'm running and biking. I'd say I'm running about 30-40 miles a week and riding about 7-10 hours a week. It will be interesting to see what happens over the next 6 months or so!

The screw is out!

The good news is that the screw came out just fine last Monday while I was under general anesthesia.

The bad news is that about a week afterwards my foot started hurting more and the swelling was increasing. (2 days after the screw removal I ran a track workout; it didn't hurt much after the minor surgery at all). So on Thursday, 10 days after the removal, I went back to the doctor who prescribed antibiotics for the infection. I won't post a picture of the infected area, but there was indeed some "leakage" in the area.

After 24 hours of antibiotics I haven't seen any improvement (it actually looks worse than yesterday), but it's supposed to take a few days to kick in.

Keeping my fingers crossed for a speedy recovery...

Almost 4 months post-op

It's already May 3rd. I've been running for 3 weeks already... but I haven't been running every day (for a variety of reasons), so I haven't been running enough to get into good shape yet.

Last night I ran the usual "lunch run" route that starts at MS main campus; when I'm in good shape it should take 32-34 minutes. Last night it took about 36. That's not too bad, considering. That run is a nice loop and I know it quite well after several years of running it twice a week!

I saw the doc today and we talked about the screw removal scheduled for May 16th. The good news: I get to keep the screw! I get to choose which kind of anesthesia I want: local or general. I think it would be interesting to watch, but I'm not sure if I want to go that route yet.

It's been an even longer while...

A lot has happened in the last 5 weeks.

• I started walking
• I started biking
• I went to New England and did a little snowshoeing and x-c skiing.
• I caught a cold at the end of my stay in New England (which has been hanging out for about 4 weeks and is almost completely gone)
• I tried running for 10 minutes about 10 weeks post-op. It hurt a bit, and since the doc hadn't approved it anyway, I decided to wait until I would see him next.
• I went on my first group ride (50 miles)
• I went to the doctor (yesterday), 13 weeks post-op. He said that I could start running! We scheduled surgery for May 16 to have the screw in my foot removed.
• I went for a 30-minute run in the Redmond Watershed Preserve (yesterday). It felt good! I'm still a bit concerned about the right foot, but the left one is holding up well.
• I went for another 30-minute run today, this time at the bridle trails park near the Pro Club (where I go to physical therapy).

I can't wait to be able to run fast again! The doctor didn't say anything about how fast I'm allowed to run... and the distance seemed to be dictated by my own comfort level, so we shall see what I can do in the next few weeks.

It's been a while

A quick update:

• On Wednesday, March 2, I decided to try wearing a shoe for a couple of hours, so I did.
• On Thursday morning (March 3) I decided to try wearing a real shoe for a couple more hours. I haven't worn the boot since.
• On Friday I was on the elliptical trainer for 45 minutes and my left foot didn't bother me. My right foot's usual problem (pain under the 2nd IMPJ) did crop up, however. I must say that it's very frustrating to trade one pain for another. After Friday evening's workout I was limping on both feet, which was upsetting.
• On Saturday I did some walking on the beaches of the Washington coast.
• On Sunday I did some kayaking on Green Lake (Seattle).

Today at Physical Therapy, Andy asked when I can try running. He was surprised that I was supposed to wait until May. So he's going to call the doctor to see if we can do that earlier. That's some pretty good news.

Soreness

Yesterday I spent a lot of time on my feet. I worked at the NWAC (Northwest Aviator's conference) from 8:30-1, on my feet most of the time, and then at Performance from 1:30-7:30, again, on my feet most of the time. By the time I got on the stationary bike at the end of the day, my foot was feeling pretty sore. But more around the outside of my foot than anywhere else. Wearing a boot that has a perfectly flat sole might have something to do with it.

In the last couple of days I've been puttering about the house barefoot a bit. It doesn't hurt, but I find myself going very slowly for some reason.

One small step for a woman...

... yesterday in physical therapy I walked with crutches, barefoot, across the floor a few times. But I was really using both feet - maybe 70% of my weight was on my feet, the rest on the crutches. It was really exciting. I also did calf raises (with both feet and left foot solo) and squats... both on a machine with very little weight. The calf raise was very difficult for my left foot. We also worked on balance by standing on a foam mat - first with both feet, then alternating feet. I was amazed that I could stand on my left foot all by itself!

While wearing the boot, I pretty much abandoned the crutches today. Walking in the boot is awkward and slow but SO wonderful compared to using crutches. For 2.5 hours this morning I cleaned up the house because I could finally do it - all by myself. I took out the trash and recycling, did laundry (I carried a basketfull of clothes up the stairs). I can even walk up and down stairs putting each foot on a different step - almost as fast as a normal person.

This morning when I woke up something behind my knees (both knees) was sore. I don't know what kind of exercise caused it, but it was pretty exciting to have sore legs - I haven't had that feeling in a long time!!

For now, at least, I'm not taking my newfound freedom for granted. I'm really satisfied and happy and content with my new abilities. Although, knowing myself as well as I do, I doubt that will last for long!