This week was full of mixed blessings. Work was exceptionally busy, thus hampering my at-home rehab (and, more importantly, my blogging). I didn’t make it to the gym, rode the exercise bike the bare minimum, and generally neglected my assortment of leg lifts and squats at home. Despite my inattentiveness, however, I made significant progress this week at PT. Shocking, huh?
At Monday’s session, my flexion improved slightly to 126 degrees. I also increased the number of reps for heel touches and single-leg squats. And I did them without the brace for the first time. Even better, my knee didn’t ache afterwards. I also began using Judy’s antiquated stair stepper, basically pumping away but never letting my knee bend further than 30 degrees. (That’s generally the point when the patella begins to bear weight, which I’m trying to minimize). This machine is straight out of a Suzanne Summers infomercial.
On Friday, I reached a new milestone – 130 degrees! Crossed a new threshold. Full flexion ranges from 135-150; it depends on your size and generally flexibility. My good knee can bend 145 degrees. I’ll gladly accept 140. Interestingly, I reached 130 without much assistance from Judy. Usually, she contorts my leg repeatedly, reducing me to tears, before she takes her measurement. This time, my knee “popped” during an abduction movement – from a seated position with my legs straight, I push outward and pull inward against Judy’s pressure. It sounded like somebody’s knuckle cracked. Although this loud sound freaked the bejesus outta Judy, it was only some excess scar tissue breaking apart. It didn’t hurt, and actually provided some relief. Somehow my knee was ready for Cirque du Soleil. Ok, that’s exaggerating things a bit, but you get the idea. Judy was surprised to see how much flexion my knee improved after the popping. Man, 130! And with no tears!
Reaching this target, of course, means karmas gonna demand some sort of setback. That’s how life works, right? Hopefully I won't get kicked by some angry 7-year old this weekend.
Finally, as my regular blog readers realized, this was the longest gap between posts – 8 days. My bad. That’s what happens when work gets in the way. Hopefully this was just an aberration. Another observation: it’s much harder now that it was 3 months ago to write funny material. Back in January when I was pissing in a urinal bottle? And pooping on a raised toilet seat? Like Frank Caliendo says, funny. Very funny. But increasing the number of reps on heel touches? Um, not so much. I never thought I'd be disappointed to leave behind a series of personal humiliations. To counter-balance the lack of embarrassing moments now I’m ambulatory again, I’ll try to weave in random, funny stuff from my world, even if it’s not directly related to my rehab. Hopefully it works. Definitely let me know.
Showing posts with label flexion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label flexion. Show all posts
Friday, April 3, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
12-Week Update
Almost 3 months have passed. Lots of ups and downs. Lots of changes. Reminds me of that Beatles’ song, A Long and Winding Road. Anyway, it appears I’ve reached that point in my recovery where progress happens glacially. Instead of celebrating accomplishments like driving a car or ditching my crutches, I have to be content with 2 degree increases in my flexion. That’s like winning the World Series one week, and then trying to get excited about playing in the old man softball league.
The other downside, of course, is that material for my blog is diminishing. It’s tough to fill an entire post about graduating to 4-inch step-ups from 2-inch ones. But I’ll keep trying. I’ll probably transition to brief, bullet-point updates like this one. As always, I’m playing these developments by ear.
• The knee generally feels ok. People keep asking me if it “hurts.” Not really, though the knee gets tired and achy if I don’t rest or ice it regularly. The osteotomy, however, bothers me. The two screws in the tibia are visible when I wear shorts. Seriously, you can see slight bulges, like speed-bumps, on my shin. I don’t expect people to stare at my legs, but they kinda stand out like a third eye. The lateral side (ie, the outside part of my knee, not to be confused with the medial, or inside, part of my knee) sometimes feels like it’s stretched so tight that it’s gonna pop through the skin. I hope that doesn’t happen. It would be really weird if metal screws burst from my leg in the middle of the grocery store aisle. Clean-up in aisle four might be a bit embarrassing.
• 1-legged step-ups and 1-legged mini-squats (no deeper than 45 degrees) are killing me. It’s as much mental as physical. I’m convinced my knee will shatter if I bend any further. But I also have to remember not to push it. The knee is still healing.
• You know how your body twitches slightly during a morning yawn? Well, my gimpy leg convulses like it went into epileptic shock. Very freaky, and not in a good, freaky way like an insane stripper.
• My flexion continues to increase slowly. It reached 125 degrees on Wednesday. I hit 121-122 degrees with no problem, but Judy crunched my leg another 3 degrees. One of these days I’m gonna start crying. Or punch Judy in the face really hard. Not sure which.
The other downside, of course, is that material for my blog is diminishing. It’s tough to fill an entire post about graduating to 4-inch step-ups from 2-inch ones. But I’ll keep trying. I’ll probably transition to brief, bullet-point updates like this one. As always, I’m playing these developments by ear.
• The knee generally feels ok. People keep asking me if it “hurts.” Not really, though the knee gets tired and achy if I don’t rest or ice it regularly. The osteotomy, however, bothers me. The two screws in the tibia are visible when I wear shorts. Seriously, you can see slight bulges, like speed-bumps, on my shin. I don’t expect people to stare at my legs, but they kinda stand out like a third eye. The lateral side (ie, the outside part of my knee, not to be confused with the medial, or inside, part of my knee) sometimes feels like it’s stretched so tight that it’s gonna pop through the skin. I hope that doesn’t happen. It would be really weird if metal screws burst from my leg in the middle of the grocery store aisle. Clean-up in aisle four might be a bit embarrassing.
• 1-legged step-ups and 1-legged mini-squats (no deeper than 45 degrees) are killing me. It’s as much mental as physical. I’m convinced my knee will shatter if I bend any further. But I also have to remember not to push it. The knee is still healing.
• You know how your body twitches slightly during a morning yawn? Well, my gimpy leg convulses like it went into epileptic shock. Very freaky, and not in a good, freaky way like an insane stripper.
• My flexion continues to increase slowly. It reached 125 degrees on Wednesday. I hit 121-122 degrees with no problem, but Judy crunched my leg another 3 degrees. One of these days I’m gonna start crying. Or punch Judy in the face really hard. Not sure which.
Monday, March 16, 2009
A Quickie -- 10 1/2 Weeks Update
I had planned on doing an update last week – at 9 ½ weeks – but I was busy with Kim Basinger. Buh-dum bum. Also note the double entendre in the title, “Quickie.” Heheheheh…I’m on a roll today.
After my flexion setback at last Monday’s PT session, I rebounded nicely on Friday. I hit 118 degrees with minimal effort. And then today (Monday), I hit 117 degrees completely on my own, and 120 with Judy’s assistance. Trust me -- those extra 3 degrees aren’t worth the agony. Anyway, I’m pretty much back on track, probably 5 or so degrees behind schedule, largely because of my slow-healing osteotomy. I consider myself within the margin of error.
I had stopped doing step-ups for a few days. My knee just didn’t feel right afterwards. No sharp pains, fortunately, and pain is always the guide. That’s gonna be my new bumper sticker – “Pain is my guide.” It’ll go right next to, “My kid beat up your honor roll kid.” I did heel touches today with no issues, so that’s a good sign. For heel touches, my gimpy leg rests atop a low-level aerobics bench (I moved up from the phonebook), and I “squat” 2-3 inches until my left heel touches the ground. Repeat 40x. Real good times.
The knee remains slightly swollen, though I can finally see the contours of the knee cap. The knee no longer looks like a watermelon; it looks more like a grapefruit. The outside part of the knee is still a bit numb. Neither the surgeon or Judy is concerned, however. Apparently some swelling is expected for months afterward. It also feels like there might be some minor fluid build-up below my knee. The surgeon thinks there’s not enough to aspirate, which he’d prefer to avoid under normal circumstances, but will keep an eye on it at future visits. He also said the potential fluid is outside the joint, which is a good thing.
My next appointment with the surgeon, coincidentally, is Wednesday. I’m trying not to get my hopes up, but I’m supposed to get the brace off. Keep your fingers crossed. Man, 11 weeks. That’s ¾ of a football season.
After my flexion setback at last Monday’s PT session, I rebounded nicely on Friday. I hit 118 degrees with minimal effort. And then today (Monday), I hit 117 degrees completely on my own, and 120 with Judy’s assistance. Trust me -- those extra 3 degrees aren’t worth the agony. Anyway, I’m pretty much back on track, probably 5 or so degrees behind schedule, largely because of my slow-healing osteotomy. I consider myself within the margin of error.
I had stopped doing step-ups for a few days. My knee just didn’t feel right afterwards. No sharp pains, fortunately, and pain is always the guide. That’s gonna be my new bumper sticker – “Pain is my guide.” It’ll go right next to, “My kid beat up your honor roll kid.” I did heel touches today with no issues, so that’s a good sign. For heel touches, my gimpy leg rests atop a low-level aerobics bench (I moved up from the phonebook), and I “squat” 2-3 inches until my left heel touches the ground. Repeat 40x. Real good times.
The knee remains slightly swollen, though I can finally see the contours of the knee cap. The knee no longer looks like a watermelon; it looks more like a grapefruit. The outside part of the knee is still a bit numb. Neither the surgeon or Judy is concerned, however. Apparently some swelling is expected for months afterward. It also feels like there might be some minor fluid build-up below my knee. The surgeon thinks there’s not enough to aspirate, which he’d prefer to avoid under normal circumstances, but will keep an eye on it at future visits. He also said the potential fluid is outside the joint, which is a good thing.
My next appointment with the surgeon, coincidentally, is Wednesday. I’m trying not to get my hopes up, but I’m supposed to get the brace off. Keep your fingers crossed. Man, 11 weeks. That’s ¾ of a football season.
Friday, January 23, 2009
PT Session Recap
I recently completed the equivalent of two-a-days, heading to PT on Wednesday and Thursday. Thursday started poorly, as I felt drained shortly before PT. I’m not sure why. I didn’t do much, other than heading outside for a little sun for the first time in awhile. But basking in 80-degree sunshine in a lounge chair for 10 minutes shouldn’t deplete a person’s energy. Can’t explain that one.
The PT session went well. I graduated to 2lb ankle weights, and the difference is telling. I’m almost embarrassed by my new muscles. Even extra large gym shorts can’t contain my legs.
I improved my free-standing flexion 3 degrees overnight, reaching 80 degrees. My thigh, however, suffered immensely to achieve this small gain. Dayna – one of Judy’s excellent assistants – was tasked with pinning my right thigh to the table while my gimpy knee dangled over the table edge, allowing Judy to slowly raise and lower the leg to measure my flexion. Apparently, my quads like to explode as my leg contracts, requiring Dayna to press down really hard to keep my knee immobile. Dayna might have a future as a grape crusher, as she generated enough pressure with her hands to make at least 4 bottles of wine. Her handprint remained on my thigh 24 hours later. Of course, she rightfully blames me for squirming too much (I did). Besides, the discomfort in my thigh was a welcome distraction from the soreness in my knee.
At the end of PT, I hopped onto the scale to measure how much weight I was placing on my bum wheel. I’m supposed to be at 50% of my body weight, and reach 75% before next week. For the first time since the surgery, I weighed myself. Wearing tennis shoes and workout attire, I was 152 pounds, a 6-10 pound drop from 3 weeks ago. That kind of weight loss probably would’ve kept me above the yellow line on The Biggest Loser. Of course, I also weigh less than most contestants’ elbows. Anyway, after pressing down on the scale with my right leg, I learned that I was averaging between 80-100 pounds of pressure. I need to reach 115 pounds soon. Pressing down that hard with a straight leg, however, feels unnatural. It contradicts everything you’re taught about avoiding knee injuries. Indeed, people frequently blow their knees by awkwardly landing straight-legged, snapping their ligaments like twigs. I realize that can’t (well, shouldn’t; never say can’t) happen with the brace locked, but it’s difficult to overcome those instincts. It’s just counter-intuitive. But that’s my new challenge for the next several days.
The PT session went well. I graduated to 2lb ankle weights, and the difference is telling. I’m almost embarrassed by my new muscles. Even extra large gym shorts can’t contain my legs.
I improved my free-standing flexion 3 degrees overnight, reaching 80 degrees. My thigh, however, suffered immensely to achieve this small gain. Dayna – one of Judy’s excellent assistants – was tasked with pinning my right thigh to the table while my gimpy knee dangled over the table edge, allowing Judy to slowly raise and lower the leg to measure my flexion. Apparently, my quads like to explode as my leg contracts, requiring Dayna to press down really hard to keep my knee immobile. Dayna might have a future as a grape crusher, as she generated enough pressure with her hands to make at least 4 bottles of wine. Her handprint remained on my thigh 24 hours later. Of course, she rightfully blames me for squirming too much (I did). Besides, the discomfort in my thigh was a welcome distraction from the soreness in my knee.
At the end of PT, I hopped onto the scale to measure how much weight I was placing on my bum wheel. I’m supposed to be at 50% of my body weight, and reach 75% before next week. For the first time since the surgery, I weighed myself. Wearing tennis shoes and workout attire, I was 152 pounds, a 6-10 pound drop from 3 weeks ago. That kind of weight loss probably would’ve kept me above the yellow line on The Biggest Loser. Of course, I also weigh less than most contestants’ elbows. Anyway, after pressing down on the scale with my right leg, I learned that I was averaging between 80-100 pounds of pressure. I need to reach 115 pounds soon. Pressing down that hard with a straight leg, however, feels unnatural. It contradicts everything you’re taught about avoiding knee injuries. Indeed, people frequently blow their knees by awkwardly landing straight-legged, snapping their ligaments like twigs. I realize that can’t (well, shouldn’t; never say can’t) happen with the brace locked, but it’s difficult to overcome those instincts. It’s just counter-intuitive. But that’s my new challenge for the next several days.
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