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Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill
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 2004-01-12 8:09 PM |
Veteran  319  Illinois |  Subject: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrillHey all, I'm trying to return to the training regimen of triathlons after a 17 month 'rest' caused by a mt. biking neck/back injury. I'm finding the return to be SO difficult- not only because i feel unmotivated, but because I have to really watch how much and what I do. I'm hoping that by putting this messege out to strangers, I'll find once again my motivation. I apologize for the lengthiness of this- but this is "in brief" my back ground- not truly a beginner, but then again- maybe I am. I first got hooked to triathlons 4 years ago rehabing a torn meniscus. One pool session after another eventually landed me in the Galena, Il triathlon. [One I wouldn't really recommend to newbies- but fun none the less.] After a good clean 2 years of injury free training/competition- I found myself to be very much hooked and spreading the word. Thus, I cannot understand now my lack of motivation to once again get started. THE INJURY: Happened in the Southern Unit of Kettle Morraine, Wisconsin .... fast down hill, sharp right turn- followed by a fast left. Unable to cut the left, I landed full impact on the left side of my body- cracking my helmet and knocking myself out. Being so confused, I continued to ride. More unfortunate stuff- it took me three weeks before I got myself to get x-rays- only to learn that the majority of my neck vertebra, some thoracic and some lumbar vertebra were subluxated. [My very last race- I did very well on time, but ended up with a high fever right afterwards- a little too strange thus the visit to DR]. The doctor then told me to go to a chiropractor or PT... I started months of therapy. During this time I was experiencing anything from pain, tingling, numbness to discomfort, and from depression to eventual disillusionment... I plateud with therapy at month # 8- stopped therapy for a while [PT's recommendation]. The good thing about it though is that my PT is a masters swimmer and worked with me on form for a little bit of this time. I eventually gave up the only form of cardio/training regimen [swimming] because that too would cause excruciating headaches, numbness, tingling on my hands. The last thing that got me back to PT was the continual rotation of my discs- which for now have stopped. I would keep on with my story, but I'm cutting it short... it's gotten long enough as it is. So, here I am, 17 months later- having lost motivation or maybe having gained extreme fear- I have been given the green light to go. Who knows, what ever it is- I hope to get my butt going again. I really like the way this site is laid out and will spread the word about it to my friends who've now become interested in doing their first tri. Thanks again for reading. If there is anybody out there who's gone/going through something similar please let me know... I'd like to know that I'm not alone. |
| 2004-01-12 9:23 PM in reply to: #3714 |
| Member 15 Milwaukee, WI | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Hey there, Sorry to hear about your accident....the Kettle Moraine is a great place to ride and I've had my spills there too but not to the extent of your injuries. Anyways, I got hooked on duathlons last year and I'm going to begin training for my first tri this summer but I've also been struggling with motivating myself too. I just had knee surgery this past September to repair a torn ACL. This is my 5th knee surgery (3 torn ACL's) and trying to get back into a training program has been challenging. All I can suggest is that you take it nice and slow to begin with. Lay out a detailed program that's not too challenging to begin with otherwise you're setting yourself up for failure. Once you get going and start to see improvement in your cardio and strength you'll want to continue to keep going. For me personally, I have to set a goal for myself otherwise I won't see myself through. So, maybe pick a race to train for and use that as your focus to keep you going. Hang in there and keep working hard! |
| 2004-01-13 4:13 AM in reply to: #3714 |
Resident Matriarch N 43° 32.927 W 071° 24.431 | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill welcome to the world of tri. It sounds like you're on the road to recovery from your injuries as am I. You know, reading your story reminds me of why I gave up mt biking. I only had one trip to the ER for stitches, but that was enough! Anyhow, people posted lots of motivating posts on my intro thread, stuff that I keep rereading. I find that it helps just knowing that others are so supportive. Good luck to you! Ellen |
| 2004-01-13 8:36 AM in reply to: #3714 |
Champion 13323    Gold member | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill yes, similiar though not as drastic injury...achilles tendinitis...running on a rutted trail at dusk...muddy. down for a year...would have been less if i went to the doc earlier...got derpressed, demotivated BUT turned a corner mentally and got some NEW running shoes which forced myself back out even though i was only doing short sessions and wanted to do more and not feeeling like i did anything. hang in there. |
| 2004-01-13 4:31 PM in reply to: #3714 |
Veteran 319 Illinois | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Thank you all for your encouraging thoughts and stories. It helps tremendously to read that I'm not at all a dork or abnormal for having gone through a series of 'down times'. I went swimming yesterday- very minor good aches... so am going to step two: biking. Slow and steady does win the race. I'm just so afraid to get myself re-injured- it's very difficult for me to pick out a goal that i might not be able to do when the time comes. There's one way to find out. :-O |
| 2004-01-13 4:40 PM in reply to: #3716 |
Veteran 319 Illinois | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill You're right to keep it slow- i have a tendancy to over do things... i will stick to the schedule [which in my mind, having been through intense training previously, feels like torchure]. But seeing my bike hung up in the garage for so long kills me- i really do hope to get back. y'ouch, that's very rough.... 5 surgeries. I hope you hang in there yourself... i can empathize just a little bit with the whole knee injury bit. With the meniscal tear, i went through 2 months of PT and then was able to very slowly start an exercise reginmen. Good luck with everything, and hope to hear soon about your knee rehab. |
| 2004-01-13 5:13 PM in reply to: #3714 |
Extreme Veteran 465 Epworth. Iowa | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Sorry about the injuries. I'm many years out of running - gave it up at doc's urging after a couple of back injuries. I've assumed until lately that running would be out of the question - but - training slow, staying off concrete and paved roads and lots of strength training for quads, hamstring and claves has helped a lot and the running/jogging is coming along well. AND - I was way too impatient for stretching a couple of decades ago - bad move. I've also had a completely evulsed rotator cuff repaied about 6 1/2 years ago - now after lots of shoulder and upper body work - I'm ready to get into the pool - but I hear you with the fear of an injury. Right now I find it helpful to not worry about speed or distance with any of the training. I'm trusting the obvious that speed and distance are a function of smart training. Hey - we're here for you! Keep us up to date. You don't need to "be there" tomorrow, you just have to be headed in the direction you want to be when it's good for you to be there. BTW - I'm thinking Galena for my first event - any particular reason for pointing first timers away? (I know there are lots of hills and probably really cold water.) Any training hints for Galena? |
| 2004-01-14 9:35 PM in reply to: #3714 |
Veteran 319 Illinois | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Malvey, Thanks so much for your words of encouragement. It sounds like i'm not the only accident prone one out there.... I was beggining to think myself a little too 'lucky'. "you just have to be headed in the direction you want to be when it's good for you to be there." I really like what you said here- it's hit home.... and you are so right. Galena- yes the hills are killer, the water is cold. It seems like the swim portion of the race is always up in the air- and lots of prayers can be heard the day before to increase the water temperature one degree higher. [Luckily, the year i did it, the water was a warm 68 degrees]. I did it as my first trithalon coming off a meniscal tear as a proof to myself. Now, it sounds like you're willing to put in the time and the preparation- so disregard what I said..... it'll be the greatest rush of your life. Just watch out for the killer hill coming off the bike- they even have a nasty nickname for it. Just in general, I just talked to a lot of newbies after the race, that didn't prepare themselves well enough for Galena [by the sounds and looks of them]- that ended up turning themselves away from this great sport. Because of the odd distances and the terrain [and sometimes the weather condition], I would not recomment it to most newbies. Other than that- I love the Galena tri- it fills up VERY quickly so if you haven't signed up yet go to www.galena.org. If you want to ask anything else about Galena I will be more than happy to share. I even have a very good B& B recommendation [another thing to look into very early on- where you're goign to sleep]. I can go on and on about Galena- but I'll stop. Thanks again for your words of wisdom and encouragement. |
| 2004-01-15 6:33 AM in reply to: #3714 |
Expert 713 Rockledge, Fl | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Welcome Milly! Sorry about all your injuries! Don't think of it as accident prone, think of it as brave enough to do those things :-) |
| 2004-01-19 9:14 AM in reply to: #3714 |
Veteran 319 Illinois | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Thanks Cameron... this is indeed a good way of looking at it. I guess I can choose to play it safe and become more sedentary, OR I can continue to play out my activity level that i'm used to and accept that there is a certain level of risk that keeps me coming back for more. I've decided that no matter what, I want to get back to what I love to do. I've logged in too many hours and miles to let one injury sit me out forever. And this week, as hard as it has been to get myself out the door to do a 'workout'- with the support and motivation that I keep recieving has made it all worth getting back to my passion. Here's to a slow injury free recovery. :-)  |
| 2004-01-19 9:36 AM in reply to: #3714 |
Expert 713 Rockledge, Fl | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Great attitude! What I've found that after a long layoff, at first it is hard to get going, but after a week or two you get the drive back and you start looking forward to workouts again. |
| 2004-01-19 9:50 AM in reply to: #3714 |
Veteran 319 Illinois | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill you are so right- it takes me what seems like 10 million hours to pack my workout bag and kick myself out the door. I have written out all my excuses on a piece of paper- and they are all lame [it's too cold out to get to my car, pool might be crowded or cold, etc].... so slowly i force myself out. I'm hoping that by week three, it'll be like old times- zipping out the door, looking forward to working out. Thanks again for sharing Cam. |
| 2004-01-19 10:53 AM in reply to: #3714 |
Extreme Veteran 465 Epworth. Iowa | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Hey Milly - couple of things and a Galena question. I was using the "wanna be" lingo up 'til a few eeks ago. Now I use "gonna be!" - It may take longer than I would like,and it may encounter a few bumps in the road - but come 'h or high water, I'm "gonna" do it. ('less of course they bury me in the meanwhile Another clue - when you tear up the excuse sheet - a day at a time dragging, scolding, crying - whatever - the research says that whne you reach six weeks you will have "habituated" the workout process and there is a flip (You probably remember). Instead of dragging yourself to the workout, you get crabby if you don't get the workout. (At least the people I live with say that - - I tell 'em it's way better than, "Honey - is that pizza ready? And could you get me a beer - and oh, could you bring the remote - it's right over there on the coffee table!") About Galena - it's 15 minutes from where I live in Dubuque. If I do it - I will be adding a wet suit to my list. (I'm up to Christmas 2007 so far What do they do if the water is too cold - turn the whole thing into a Duathlon? Courage! |
| 2004-01-19 12:18 PM in reply to: #4241 |
Expert 713 Rockledge, Fl | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill sure thing Milly! At first make it like a dr appt that you have to go to no matter what. One thing I do on early mornings ais just tell myself to get up as soon as alarm goes off. I tell myself that before I go to bed and when the alarm goes off I'm not there arguing with myself :-) |
| 2004-01-19 1:47 PM in reply to: #4241 |
Resident Matriarch N 43° 32.927 W 071° 24.431 | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill it is Milly. By the 3rd week I can hardly wait for the next workout. Just a month ago I could barely get out of bed. Hang in there, you'll be back. |
| 2004-01-19 1:57 PM in reply to: #3714 |
| New user 33 Rome, GA | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Lots of fun riding at in the Kettle Morane. I used to live up there an enjoyed the riding, thankfully I was never injured and am sorry to hear about your bad luck. I would suggest that you just get out and try it you have nothing to lose. If it hurts stop if it doesn't keep on trucking. |
| 2004-01-19 5:39 PM in reply to: #3714 |
| Regular 91 South Suburbs of Chicago | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Sorry to hear about your injuries, very glad to hear about the come back. :-) Hopefully you'll be back into the habit of wanting your workouts soon. Keep up the good fight for yourself. |
| 2004-01-20 10:11 PM in reply to: #3714 |
Veteran 319 Illinois | Subject: RE: Injured wanna-be trying to return to the thrill Hey all! Each time i have the chance, i drop by to check in and I find all new words of encouragement. It's great having this unknown, tremendous group of support and encouragement. All of your words really make sense to me- thank you. I find myself getting back into the addiction of training, but i have to do is hold back some... to go slow and steady- I keep wanting to do more than I should. You know, the memory of where i once was able to do- haunts/taunts me... butin a weird way it motivating me to keep going. I just wish, things were different- can't change the past! I think I will be a lot more cautious when doing sports in Wis. now... as all the big accidents have happened there... no superstitioun here or anything. Galena... if the water temp is too cold- then they turn it into a duathlon. so make sure that you have brick workouts that included a run-bike-run session to prepare for the worst case scenario. It's a bit disappointing- but be prepared... was it 15 minutes or 15 miles from Galena....- are you staying in town over night? If you're setting up in the morning- have a list ready of what you need... pack your bags the night before. IF, you are setting up the day before- take garbage bags to cover your gear iin the transition areas- the dew will really make everything wet! Have an extra black permanent marker at hand- you never know when you'll have to remark yourself. Keep me updated with your training or questions... i love this stuff! |
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