I suppose I’m not a great patient. In fact, I’m probably not even a good patient. What I am is...impatient.
My first thought for the morning was a trip to the Metropark and the Survival Workout. I figured I didn’t really use my knee for the workout except to walk around and I was allowed to do that and could do it slowly. When I got out of bed and found that my knee was a little swollen and not that mobile, I actually made a good decision and bagged the workout. Holly was going there to walk with Dakota, which again sounded doable, but she does walk reasonably fast and I don’t think that would be the best thing in the world at this point.
So...I got my ice pack, brought a book and the remote controls for the TV, propped my leg up on the coffee stand in front of the sofa, and nestled in for a long, slow day. I watched a three-hour documentary about two 9th grade boys from Chicago’s inner city and the story of their quest to make it to a big Division I college basketball program and ultimately, the NBA. It was quite good and kept me sedated for the entire time. I followed that with a viewing of the 70’s movie ‘The Network’, a classic I’d somehow overlooked through the years, then some time with a book and a nap. In between, I reapplied my ice pack to keep the swelling to a minimum.
Marie came over for a late afternoon visit and to do some work on her summer training program from Purdue University. She suffered from a femur stress fracture during cross country season and has been having some hip pain recently. We were looking for ways to mitigate it and decided on taking out one running day and adding in a cycling/hill repeat day, which should strengthen the muscles in the area causing her pain while providing some relief from the pounding on the joint. She’s a good cyclist and will enjoy the repeats I’ve laid out for her on Old Mill Road...one of the toughest climbs in the area. I made her a smoothie to accompany the discussion and then sent her out for an 11-mile run in the afternoon heat. Like me though, she does all such runs in the shade of the North Chagrin Reservation.
Inactivity is my curse. I don’t mind it when I choose it...I love sitting down and reading or watching a good movie...but when you have to and it just goes on and on...it’s just holy hell. I can’t imagine what my friend John must be feeling, having been forced to the sidelines since last fall. He probably hasn’t had a workout pain-free in over a year and the doc’s are still trying to figure out what’s wrong with his neck. I suppose a lot of folks don’t want to do activity at our level and it’s not as big a deal, but when your recreational time revolves around long bouts of cardiovascular exercise and you can’t do it, you tend to get goofy. He certainly is...and I’m getting there quickly. I know I only have to wait until Saturday before I’m officially allowed back on the bike for a short ride and you can bet I’ll do it that morning...knee permitting.
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