The Recovery Part 2 Squak West Squak Main 4.27.11

Well the rceovery from a torn tendon has been painfully slow. My saving grace has been both the poor weather and unsafe conditions in the mountains. I have been able to keep my spirits up by telling myself that my hobbled foot was saving me from getting myself into some unsafe situation. I also have been able to ride the stationery bike without pain saving to some extent my fitness. I tried 2 weeks ago to put the boots on and was quickly rebuked by my balky foot. The progress has been slow but steady, in fact most times some other portion of my foot was giving me issues. I was able to put my boots on yesterday while working a full day in the yard. At the end of the night my foot was very sore and I was really crestfallen. I did some streching and the pain went away completely. I decided that I would make a try again at a short hike today. The plan was to do some dumpster diving in the Blewett area.


I had to spend some time getting the Subaru up to snuff. Sitting for 6 weeks was enough time to warrant some attention. I also needed to get the car to the shop to get the annoying rock removed from my brake caliper. I hadn't been able to see what the issue without getting underneath the car.  After way too much time trying to get the car started after blowing a fuse, I was off. The annoying screeching was gone so I skipped going to the shop. Too bad for me the car started emitting a burning smell. I pulled off in Issaquah and found that my brake was smoking hot. After waiting for it to cool I made my back to the shop. Thankfully the wheel didn't get too hot as I made my way back. After the tech looked at my car he explained that the front caliper was locked. I corrected him, it was the rear that was the issue.  Finally he showed me the front caliper was indeed locked up. The rear was spinning freely. I am perplexed on why I have a wheel issue going from one wheel to another.


Well at any rate I shelved the idea of getting it fixed and saved that project for another day. I decided that I should just stay close to home and do SQuaK Mt..  The parking lot was mostly empty and I didn't see anyone on the entire trip. I made my way up The South Access Road and then took the trail that leads to the Bullitt Firepit Trail. As I passed by the West Peak I decided to tag that on my way by. Not too long after that I was on the Main Summit. I didn't try for any speed records trying not to push too hard. Overall the foot handled the ups with little issue. I still felt I was walking awkwardly but I am much closer than I have been for some time. I chose to use the South Access Road for the descent which did give my foot some issues but it was very manageable. Hopefully tomorrow I will be without pain.

The Recovery Part 1

The foot has been slowly coming along, I had to temper my aspirations a bit. I had hoped to be back to speed by now but I now realize that when the doctor says 6 weeks it is probably going to be close to that time frame. For the most part I have had a good attitude regarding being unable to pursue my passions. I can't help but think my job has had a negative impact on my recovery. Not wanting to use too much of my hoarded vacation I came back sooner than what was probably best. What also didn't help is that I tried to do the same amount of work.

   I can see steady progress so I decided that tonight was the night to put the boots back on. I know myself well enough to know that once the pain is gone so will my ability to govern my output. I didn't want to be on my first outing and push too hard. I decided in the beginning that the prudent course of action would be to start small and each day add a little more. My schedule doesn't allow for early morning outings, in other words I know I wouldn't consistently get up before work. I decided that the headlamp after work would be more workable. This way I can be there for the kids bedtime and still have some time to get out. I also knew that the dog must be going crazy since his exercise has been cut to just about nil with my injury. To add to this he was laid up two weeks before me because he had a tumor removed from his neck. I wanted to stay close so my choice was my usual Squak Mt. South Access Road. The weather was very wet, very cold and  breezy. I secretly hoped to make the summit so I could enjoy some fresh snow, but realistically I just wanted to see how it would go. I had a hard time getting a comfortable fit on my boot, I am worried that the injury has somehow changed the shape of my foot. Anyway it was apparent I wasn't going too far. I only managed to walk to the access gate before the realization sunk in that I need more time. I am hopeful that tomorrow I will be able to go further and so on.

Injured Reserve Part 2 4.8.11

While for the most part the recovery from the torn tendon in my foot has steadily been improving, my mental state has not. I have surprised myself greatly by maintaining a positive attitude regarding my injury. I am not sure if it was because the sun came out today or if it is just plain getting old being hobbled, but today has been a struggle mentally. I was able to return to work last week and my timing couldn't have been worse. I had inventory which involves me staying to the wee hours of the night and then I had a big weekend where I had to stay a couple hours late each night. By the time Sunday rolled around I was done. Thankfully I was able to sneak out early because I just couldn't take being on my feet any longer. I took it easy on my days off and and can get around fairly well for short periods, but I still have to walk awkwardly to prevent pain. I sometime wonder if I am avoiding true pain or I am just not allowing myself to see if it does truly hurt. The mind is a funny thing, and I know I don't want to subject myself to the amount of discomfort if I don't have to.


   Looking back I think when the doctor said 4 to 6 weeks I heard 3 weeks and I would be 100% which certainly isn't the case. I am most thankful that the weather has been dismal and the conditions in the mountains even worse. I am very fortunate not to have to torture myself reading about the exploits of others and not being able to be there myself. I am trying to be realistic with my expectations and not push too hard and have a setback. I still have some hope to at least put my boots on early next week and start with some short walks and build my way up to where I left off. I know if I just head out the first day I don't feel pain I will most certainly overdo it.

Time will tell.

E