My trip to the Carolina Medical Center on Ul. Pory (78) today was to speak to the surgeon about the results of my MRI scan on my left knee. The problem is identified and ringed in white in the MRI scan below: a lesion on the cartilage caused by overuse. When I think about some of the things I used to do in 2009 it does sort of make sense. For example, I would regularly run two stairs at a time up the Angel Tube station escalator (which at 60 metres is the longest escalator on the Underground and apparently in Europe. See this video for what it’s like to ski down) the whole way up. I could do 15 squats with two men on my back or 10 squats standing only on one leg with one guy on my back. I would train kickboxing and Muay Thai 4 times a week and then run 20-30+ miles a week on top.
Looking back, this was all a bit silly. Although I’d been kickboxing and running more on than off for some time, I over trained too quickly and I didn’t stretch my muscles nearly enough before or after. But at the time I was training for a boxing match with a friend (something I’ve always wanted to do, the logical conclusion to any martial arts training) and also for a half marathon for charity. I ran through the injury to complete the half marathon because I didn't want to let people down but from then on I was in constant pain, unable to do any kind of sports at all. It’s been frustrating and painful.
In addition, because I was training so hard at the time I had upped the calorie count considerably. I was having two breakfasts (porridge and banana at 07.30 and a sandwich around 11) and then two lunches as well, before a full on supsy (dinner, tea, what have you). I couldn’t stop this pattern even after I was injured (I believe the term is comfort eating!) and this meant that I went from about 65kgs to 83KGs in less than 10 months. I would show you the photo of me at my corpulent worst but it would scare your children, frighten dogs and make Gillian McKeith faint.
But now the problem has been identified and the cure is clear: at least one hour’s physio a day for the next three months, a course of drugs to improve the sinovial fluid, and in the surgeon’s opinion I should show significant improvement. Money problems means that the close supervision of a physiotherapist is going to be impossible: my recovery rests entirely on me.
And physio is boring. Boring! Boring! Let me ask you to do a simple, non demanding stretch repetitively for an hour a day. After 20 minutes, you will be bored. Try this for months on end, with no discernable progress, and you will consider stretching yourself over the balcony and becoming a shrubbery drape.
Nevertheless, the solution is clear and I repeat: my recovery now rests entirely on me.
So in a toast to the carboholic old days tonight’s dinner is a vegetable pasta bake, drenched in Emmental in the absence of a decent cheddar (ex-pat subtext “in this God forsaken country”) and wholly unhealthy. But this is as decadent as my Fridays now get.
For an update on the Polish political scene click here. I wish all my faithful PzU readers a good weekend with family or friends.
Paddy
As someone who also suffers from a knee injury (I have a hole in my patella from damage), I can empathise. I shied away from the constant boring exercises when I should have been doing them in the early days of my injury, so it made it worse, of course. Nowadays, it's not as bad as it was, but of course could be better.
ReplyDeleteWhen speaking of new boots, I hope you have a good grip-factor on them - they will be required with all this snow, especially if it starts to melt at all and then re-freeze. It's something I think about when walking and feel my knee start to 'complain' a bit.
As someone who also suffers from a knee complaint (I have a hole in my patella from damage), I can empathise.
ReplyDeleteI just hope your new boots have a good strong grip for the snow/ice. It's something I keep in my when out walking, in case my knee starts to 'complain'!
That sounds familiar....I am trying to be disciplined with my physiotherapy but it's hard to fit into an already packed day...
ReplyDeleteNow that you mention it, I've realised that although the boots do have a good tread, the grip factor isn't great. I have just heard today about yaktraxs (http://www.yaktrax.co.uk/) which you can fit on your boots for extra grip. They're about £20.00 a pair but I don't know if there are any Polish stockists. Even after two days I can feel the knees starting to "give me some gyp" already....
Apologies for the double 'post' - blogger is giving me messages about not being able to post my comments, so tried again
ReplyDelete