Hi folks, a very happy new year to all…no doubt it will be better than the last!
Well the 1st of January marked the happy day when I could abandon ‘the boot’ and don my trusty Asics trainers. What a feeling! To be honest, on the advice of my physio I had been getting around the house in bare feet for two weeks prior to that, just wearing the boot when I ventured out, but to put a running shoe on left me with a pretty stupid grin I must admit.
And everything is feeling great, I even managed a wee little (and VERY low impact) dance with my friends on NYE! I almost cried, I missed it so…
I have much to thank my physio for, I have been seeing him twice per week since week 2 or 3 (significant that I cannot remember!) post-op, and believe this has been absolutely of the essence to get me to this point in a short time. I am now doing single calf-raises on the reformer (set on the lightest spring and doing 30 reps), as well as squatting as deeply as I can, and balancing on my bad leg…that has gone from about 0.5 sec to easily over 10 seconds in a week. I am also doing 30 second prone planks to strengthen not only my core (which when working properly takes pressure off the AT’s) but also my toes!
The heel does get very sore after 10 or 15 minutes walking on it, and I am really trying to focus on getting the weight more evenly spread across the whole foot, and this is improving as evidenced by my much diminishing limp.
So….getting there.
I have set a goal to climb the cliffs at Kangaroo Point, which is on the Brisbane River right in the centre of the city, it’s very beautiful and they have a range of climbs…I am going to attack AT LEAST the easiest one by my next birthday, which will be exactly 365 days post-rupture. I have not climbed in years so am keen to prove to myself that I can train for that goal, and conquer it.
All the best to you all for your ongoing recoveries!
Yes, am also in trainers again, difference being I can’t walk without the frame. I am stuck between this, which is returning my foot to a proper angle and the boot, which physio says is a retrograde step as it won’t strengthen and is set at the wrong position for now.
Until I have physio Weds, can anyone suggest how to begin walking without support, or should I just wait?
January 3, 2010 @ 3:15 amYours - running shoes but dream on!
hey Linda
Not sure what you mean by ‘..a retrograde step as it won’t strengthen’…but, all I can say is I listen to my physio at every step (no pun intended). Nobody
understands your injury the way you and s/he does.
If you really want to have a go, you could try just stepping your ‘bad’ foot out in front, and bringing the ‘good’ foot up to meet it; meaning you don’t have to go past neutral in the injured foot. Worked for me, but seriously only tried it when I felt really ready.
Sounds like you are really not too far off at all…keep your chin up, hey?
January 3, 2010 @ 4:26 amLinda,
I agree with Ruth. I never had a boot. I went straight to two shoes around three weeks postop by keeping my injured foot out in front and, over a week or so, stepping my good foot more and more forward as my flexibility improved. You don’t even have to bring your good foot up to even with the injured foot at first, if that is too much.
Because the improvement can be broken down into very small steps, I think this way leads to faster progress than the common techniques of removing wedges from a boot or adjusting angles in a boot.
Good luck,
Doug
January 3, 2010 @ 9:21 amLinda, I am now walking full stride with very little limp barefoot after 11 weeks PO. My PT had me keep one hand on the wall and place each foot directly in front of the other (heel to toe) rolling up on my bad foot as I was able, you may need to raise your knee almost waist high with each step in the beginning. This really seem to help me stop walking with a peg leg swing and get back to a even regular walking stride.
January 3, 2010 @ 11:50 amWow…my green eyed monster has come out in full force. I’m 10 weeks post op, and in 2 shoes, but my surgeon won’t consider pt until the last little part of my incision heals completely. I have an incredible limp and have been told to do no stretching or strengthening as that would irritate the spot that isn’t healed. I feel like I’m stuck in a time warp. I’m happy about being in two shoes, but I can’t even put my tennis shoes on (open back only), and I’m walking at half the speed that I did in the boot. I keep trying to tell myself that eventually I will be making strides…but for now it’s wait and see.
January 4, 2010 @ 4:56 pmDeanne (aka Dreams)
Hey Deanne
I really recommend calendula (ointment locally, or tea internally) to promote your skin healing - it’s wonderful stuff.
I am definitely slower than I was in the boot too, but it’s good to get the technique right and take the stress off the rest of the body. It gets frustrating at times for sure. Especially going downstairs - useless!! Slowly slowly, though, inching towards my goals.
Good luck, let us know how you go with the incision etc.
Ruth
January 4, 2010 @ 5:26 pm