Jul 11 2012
5 months
It has been 5 months since I tore my Achilles. I wouldn’t say I am at the home stretch yet, but I am confident I will be there soon. Here is what I have been up to the past couple of weeks:
About a week and a half ago, I went to the Stawamus Chief for a hike. The Chief is the second largest granite monolith in the world and offers spectacular scenery of the town of Squamish and the waters of the Howe Sound. It is not a strenuous hike, but still a good workout. I really enjoy hiking so I was happy and surprised to see that my Achilles wasn’t causing any problems at the pace I was going.
Leg strength and balance is recovering nicely. My squat numbers are increasing steadily and I can do single leg (pistol) squats on the bad leg now. No explosive movements yet, and I know it will be a long, long time before I can do some cleans and snatches.
I haven’t been seeing the Physio often (with my income, I can be quite frugal). Luckily I actually bumped into him at the gym last week and he basically gave me a free session. I told him I had been jogging on the treadmill for a couple of weeks so he decided to show me some light agility and jumping exercises. When I tried to jump onto and off a tiny step, I was actually really hesitant at first. But after doing it the first few times, the mental roadblock cleared and it’s been progressing well since.
Vancouver has been having absolutely gorgeous weather these past 2 weeks. I went for my first outside 5km (3.1 miles) jog last week. The 1st km is the toughest cause the Achilles feels so tight and stiff. My times so far have been 25:57, 24:33, and 23:57 (today). I still have quite a ways to go before I am back to my pre-injury times. Sprinting still seems so far away…
A few days ago, I went down to Mount Baker in Washington for a day hike. Again no real problems but I did bias using my good leg coming down the slopes of snow. It just feels good to be back hiking; I love the breathtaking views and the company of good friends. I am really looking forward to doing more this summer.
"You know what I’d really like to do the most right now? Climb up to the top of some high place like the pyramids. The highest place I can find. Where you can see forever. Stand on the very top, look all around the world, see all the scenery, and see with my own eyes what’s been lost from the world."
- Haruki Murakami, Sputnik Sweetheart
Wow - I’d love to be able to hike again. Beautiful pics - and hoping the same here for 5 months! Love these down the road updates! I missed our annual Maine hike this year on Tumbledown Mountain.
Those hikes look amazing! Looks like we are close to the same timeline…I am into my 5.5 month since my Achilles rupture & am doing very well also. I am finally able to balance while out on the boat without much of an issue in rough sea’s. There is still stiffness but once I stretch it for a few it loosens up nicely. I never could have seen myself at this point at the 4 month post op mark. Good luck..
Amazing progress, sometimes reading these fantastic achievements puts my own exercise regime to real shame. I won’t embarrass myself by saying anything about it only to mention that I had to Google ‘what is a pistol squat’ to see what it was and I don’t think I have ever tried to do one of those before.
These injuries are such a humbling experience I really want to up my general fitness when I start my post ate regime.
For now I will enjoy your success and say congratulations and thanks for sharing the experience.