I’m borrowing the title from Monte Python, I hope they forgive me. Sometimes it seems that my own training consists of recovery from one injury or another. …and thus, sarcastically, the title for this blog.
Saturday, following a 2.5 hour drive up to Clear Lake through Suisun Valley, 121, and the Chiles and Pope Valley, roads I’ve never been on, and oh so beautiful, I arrived at the Six Sigma Ranch for the NorCal High School Mountain Bike Conference Championship race.
I’m an assistant coach of Oakland Composite, and work with all the teams in what we call the OC Federation. I arrived in time to take a couple of our racers out for a single lap of the dry and dusty course. I then took my dog for a long walk/romp in the high meadow beyond the campground before dinner. After dinner some of the kids and parents were playing Frisbee, so I joined in. After a bit there were just two of us left playing (queue ominous music).
I hadn’t tossed around a Frisbee in a while, but had played Ultimate, and loved to chase the disc much like an Aussie Shepherd would (using my hands, not mouth to catch). Well, the final toss was high and long. I turned and gave chase, loaded my legs to leap up to snatch the disc just as it would pass me. I lept, and was (it felt) hit in the back of my left calf by a large branch or maybe a small caliber bullet.
My left calf instantly hurt, I was a bit nauseas, and worst of all I flubbed the catch. I looked down, no stick, no blood, but instant swelling. I knew I’d torn a muscle, so I then went through this progression in my head…can I point my toes (yes), dorsiflex my foot (yes to a point), rotate the ankle (again, yes to a point). I was pretty certain I’d torn my medial (inside) gastrocnemius (calf muscle) on my left leg. Thankfully, it was not a complete rupture of it, or worse of the Achilles/Soleus which would’ve required surgery. I immediately kinesio taped it for some support and to control any edema (bruising), put on a compression wrap, and an ice pack. My friends then helped get me to a chair where my very concerned dog glued herself to my right leg. Meanwhile one of the kid’s dad’s fashioned a cane for me out of a modular canoe paddle (a real life saver!).
The following morning, getting dressed was interesting, if a bit painful. My friends at the Standford Sports Medicine tent came by, and agreed on the assessment: a grade2/3 tear. It’s going to be at least 6 to 8 weeks recovery. I’m currently walking as little as possible (or as much as possible depending on how you look at it), and doing nothing to insight pain in the area of the tear. So far, so good with that…it only hurts when I laugh. I’m using ice on the area 3x/day, a compression wrap all the time, and keeping the leg elevated when I can. In truth it doesn’t really “hurt” so much as it’s very tight and makes walking a really weird short-stepped shuffle. The dog is not amused, as this limits walks/hikes and ball chasing time.
For week 1 rehabilitation, I am doing Range of Motion (ROM) exercises for a couple of minutes after each icing. Starting next week I’ll add in some light work on the spin bike (no resistance, and only if no pain). I am currently able to do much of my usual core and mobility workouts, and upper-body workouts too. I’m not sure how I’ll get any real cardio in, although the pool might be an option in a couple of weeks. I will be important for me to not lose focus on my recovery, nor to get down on myself about the injury itself. I am bummed to be missing out on some premium riding weather, but there will be more.
I plan on doing weekly updates, and perhaps adding a video or two of the rehabilitation exercises. If you read this far, THANK YOU! I you haven’t, I’ll be more brief…not that you’ll know that <grin>.
Functionally Fit 