Milking it...

Saturday, June 16, 2012
When I’d talked to the surgeon and discussed how many minutes I should go on my first ride, we’d never got around to the second.  I figured I should add 30 minutes a ride until something broke and left my driveway thinking I’d go easier, but for 90 minutes.  I picked a course on which I’d only have to climb a couple of medium-sized hills and determined that I’d keep it to easier gears and not try to set any speed records.  I really did want to get better and was willing to make some concessions.

Things were going famously as I approached Squire’s Castle on River Road and my one-hour mark.  And then there was this pain in the inside of my knee…right where the medical meniscus had been trimmed.  I immediately cut back on my gears and speed and gave quick consideration to pulling over and calling Holly for a ride home.  All this thinking was happening while I continued to ride and after about 10 revolutions, the pain was gone.  I rode reasonably easy for the remainder of the ride, but the pain never returned.

I took a cleansing dip in the neighbor’s pool…it needed some more salt and road grime…before heading inside and packing my knee in ice.  There was a little noticeable swelling, though no different than what has been there since the surgery.  And not that I really need one, but it was a great excuse to prop up my leg while sitting in front of the TV for some sports and maybe a movie.  Holly doesn’t read the blog and I’m milking this thing for all that I can.  At some point, she’ll figure out that if I can ride two hours, I can probably stand in front of the sink long enough to resume kitchen clean-up duties.  Until then…

Bike Duration: One hour and 25 minutes.
Training Heart Rate: 120 bpm.
Calories burned during workout: 1200.