Tag Archives: physical therapy

It’s Been A Long Time

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Thinking about the upcoming hike.

It’s a great day!!! After 148 long days, many of them siting on my ass, along with hours upon hours of PT, I was actually able to head out into Ward Pound Ridge Reservation for a hike. True, it was only 2.6 miles, but it was a hike nonetheless and I didn’t have any ankle pain. Sure, my legs hurt like hell and I sure could tell I haven’t been hiking, but it felt good to be out in the woods.

I’ll keep the tale of woe short, but if you follow this blog, you know that on 6/28, I took a spill, fractured my ankle, was in renal failure, had surgery to repair the ankle, was confined to my house, had tons of PT and worked my ass off to get back hiking.

At 33 degrees with no wind or sun (tons of rain later), I knew the loop that I would be taking for my test run would be a good one. Most of the trail was flat with a couple of very short and easy hills put in just to irritate me and to test the ankle. Even as easy as it was, I was very careful to keep my eyes on the ground in front of me to look out for rocks rocks, roots and ice.

Having learned my lesson in June, I made sure that I had more than enough water with me and had consumed just about 64 ounces before leaving the house ensuring that I wouldn’t run into any dehydration issues. Yes, at this point I am that paranoid about having enough water with me even when it is a degree above freezing! I’ll have more on that in my next post.

So if I’m going to give this hike a rating, I’m going with a straight up A+.

HAPPY HIKING!!!

Hike #22-2.6-120.45

One Small Slip For Man…

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I have mentioned in previous posts that the one thing the last two months has given me is a chance to think. And since I have been doing a lot of thinking, I find it kind of funny how one small and seemingly insignificant event can change plans, goals etc. For the longest time I have wanted to hike the Appalachian Trail. My original plan was to retire and then soon after that start the trail on Springer Mountain in Georgia. That has changed just a wee bit since the end of June.

As I leaned against the slab of rock in Harriman waiting for the park rangers to carry me out, I knew that I was in for some time off from hiking. What I didn’t know at the time was the extent of how dehydrated I was and how that could possibly have an effect on future hiking. The ankle I can deal with. The surgery repaired it and the PT will help me get back on the trail.

The dehydration thing is a whole other story. After spending four days getting bags and bags of fluids pumped into me, I also knew that I was going to have to make some changes in regards to a thru hike.

After much deliberation, I don’t think that a thru hike is possible. Why you might ask? Even though the AT crosses many roads and you do have access to towns, the amount of time that you can be isolated in the woods is somewhat daunting. If something happens or access to water is limited, that could spell trouble.

Am I making to much of this? I don’t think so. At my tender age of 53, I have developed a healthy respect for staying alive. Watching videos of folks who have vlogged their thru hikes, although water is plentiful at times, at others it can be scarce. My doctor has said that I can not afford to have another episode of dehydration like this one.

So what to do? With all of the time to think and ponder that I have had, I believe that I have found a suitable alternative. One that makes me happy and one that makes my family happy (and less worried!)

Stay tuned!

 

Don’t Let Them Fool You, PT Is No Joke!

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'Shall we start with some stretching exercises?'

My first PT session.

Yesterday I started PT. My daughter, who is 17 and has had the “pleasure” of participating in some quality PT told me that I would be in some pain after the first session. She was right. She was also quick to remind me of the time when she complained about the pain after a PT session and was told to, “suck it up.” So when she asked how my ankle felt when I got home, I told her. Her response??? You guessed it-“Suck it up dad.”

Since it was an initial visit, I spent about twenty minutes being questioned, then another thirty having my ankle twisted, turned, bent and pulled. This, I am told, will bring me closer to getting me back to where I want, no, need to be.

The need to be back in the woods hiking is a strong one. It has been two months to the day since I slid, fell and fractured my ankle on that fateful backpacking trip. Two months of sitting around recuperating isn’t as much fun as it sounds! Obviously it is sitting around time that is necessary, and that is what makes it somewhat bearable.

But as uncomfortable as it has been and will continue to be for a while longer, it also means that I am healing, and that is a good thing. The bottom line is this-You have to be positive. Life is way too short to set sucked into the negative. It will most certainly kill you.

My goal? I want to be back on the trails no later than October 1st!!