CrossFit, Muay Thai, and everything fun.
On Monday, August 24, 2013, I trained in the morning (CrossFit). The particular workout escapes my mind and I did not log it as I normally do. At 7pm that night I stopped at my local muay thai gym for an hour of training. I went through the usual warm up routine: rope jumping for a couple of rounds, shadow boxing for a couple of rounds, then light stretching.
I moved over to the heavy bags where I began to throw light knees into the bag (maybe 75 percent power and speed). At one point, I knee the bag with my left leg and return my left leg to the ground and I feel a “pop”. It felt like someone had stepped on my heel. I assume the guy working the bag next to me has stepped on my foot. I turn to talk to him…and there’s no one there. It felt like a bad cramp but I could sort of walk. I hobble over to a nearby wall and sit down. I feel about the back of my heel and it’s completely mushy. My first thoughts: Dang. This is going to be a long recovery process.
The muay thai gym was half-way between my home and the UCLA emergency room. I figured it be easiest to drive up to the ER and have my wife meet me there. Four hours later, the fine physicians had my leg in a cast and a couple of Vicodans down my throat.
I turned 40 this year. But I don’t consider myself a weekend warrior. I’ve been active most of my adult life. I’ve Crossfit the last seven years or so, muay thai off and on since college. On most days, I train in the morning and then again at night. It’s always been a fun mix or the above plus running, yoga, and occasionally swimming.
So, as I sat in the ER, one thought kept running through my head: How did this happen to me?
September 16th, 2013 at 8:44 pm
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September 17th, 2013 at 4:55 pm
Hi Wess…
Did they do surgery that night?
I turned 41 this year and I did not consider myself a weekend warrior either. Avid water person- SUP, paddling, swimmer and surfer. Low impact. I found out that stuff happens. I popped my achilles avoiding a rattlesnake. I was in denial and waited a week to find my way to the OS in Newport Beach. I am now 5 weeks post surgery to reattach my achilles to the heel. The best advice is elevate. If you can still find your way to the gym for upper body workouts, that will help also. Once PT starts, if sorta becomes a mission. You will get better.
September 17th, 2013 at 5:04 pm
Sorry to hear about your injury and welcome to the club. I’m another one who never thought this would happen–I thought I did everything right. Heck, I even did yoga because it was good for me, not because I liked it! Check out Sallycoella’s page–she rigged up her Crossfit work outs so she could do it in a cast. You might find her blog helpful. Good luck and hang in there!
September 17th, 2013 at 8:42 pm
Steve - They did the surgery four days later. And yes, I totally agree. The reality is exactly as you said: it happens. I hope you’re on the mend!
September 17th, 2013 at 8:44 pm
Hey Kellygirl -
Don’t tell my doctor but I was back in they gym on the third day for some push ups and sit ups. I intended to wait a week but I couldn’t sit around any longer. Thanks for the pointer to Sally’s page. How are you doing?
September 17th, 2013 at 9:39 pm
Sally is a rock star! Hope she can give you some pointers
I’m doing fine–plugging along. I had a rough couple of days last week but I’m back at it now–it’s hard to know when to push and when to coast a bit. Hoping to get a single calf raise one of these days—that will be my next blog post (don’t hold your breath–lol!) Good luck with your recovery. Looking forward to reading about your progress!