Still Smokin'

Sorry for the hiatus, folks. Well, things are moving along. As always, not fast enough, but still moving forward. I'm getting in about 10 miles a day on foot and incorporated stair work outs again.  I started swimming as well, or rather splashing around like a kid with ADHD after sucking down a couple Cokes. My freestyle ain't pretty. I manage to get in about 40-50 laps before the back lets me know it's time to stop.

I'm still being taunted by this persistent pressure in my low back. It's a very familiar type of discomfort that I've beed dealing with for about 20 years, but it's not completely limiting me from getting out and living my life. I'm coming up on 5 months now and haven't experienced any sharp pain or numbness and tingling for a while, so I'm hoping that phase is behind me. That 'foreign object' feeling comes and goes. Some moments I feel light and airy, other moments I know it's there. I imagine this will follow me around for a while based on accounts from other ADR patients.

About 6 weeks ago I was able to begin stretching again, starting slowly and inching my way back to yoga shape. My downward dog is starting to look pretty damn good. I can bend at the waist and rest my knuckles on the ground, so the hammies and glutes are starting to respond. I can ease into a spinal twist that really helps stretch out my piriformis. Stretching, more than anything else, seems to really help with my recovery. And it just feels good to know that I can bend and twist without that fear of something 'catching'.

One big change is the work situation. I've been living the lifestyle of the not-so-rich and shameless on the beach for most of this year, and it looks like this extended vacation is coming to an end. I accepted a job that starts on August 25th. I'm not looking forward to sitting for long periods of time, which my job requires, but it will be nice to get back to work and start replenishing those pennies I spent in Germany. I'll be in Santa Monica for a few more weeks, but I'm moving to Santa Cruz for the foreseeable future. The new job allows me the freedom to work remotely, so I'm going to check out a couple other potential locations to lay my head. But for a while at least, I can be found traipsing around the forests in the Santa Cruz mountains searching for Sasquatch.

Peace out!

Good luck, Drew!

During my recovery I've become friends with a fellow spiney who has had a long and arduous road to surgery. Right about now he's moments away from going under the knife in Barcelona to have three discs corrected with a combination fusion and disc replacement.

Good luck, Drew! See you on the other side! Bring me back some paella.

- I

What goes down must come up

I had intended to go out for a light walk and ended up doing some serious climbing. For the first time in a long while I can honestly say my legs are cooked. One trail in particular was about 900 feet of elevation in less than a mile. I've done more on the single speed, but since it's been the better part of a year since I've really exerted myself, that took some effort. As always, the climb up was much easier on the back, but the river at the bottom was worth the descent.

A River Runs Through It

The good news is that my sacrum and hips feel pretty decent while hiking. It's my low and mid back that get cranky. But once I sit or lay down for a moment it seems to settle down for a while. It feels more muscle related than mechanical at this point, which is what concerned me a couple months ago. Muscle tension I can deal with. 

Here Kitty Kitty

I caught a fairly spectacular fireworks show in Scotts Valley with some friends last night. Living in the Bay Area you aren't accustomed to actually seeing fireworks as it's quite common for fog to role in this time of year in the evenings. In the 6 years I lived in San Francisco I never actually 'saw' a fireworks show. More like a cloudy glow. Unfortunately my camera was dead, so no photos of the pyrotechnics. But trust me, it was awesome! But here are some flags for ya!

'Murica! Home of the big gulp and land of the monster truck.

So things are moving in the right direction. Setbacks are fewer and less frequent, and gains seem to be multiplying. Knock on wood. 

I hope everyone had a great fireworks day!

8 Mile

Indeed

More like 8 and a half. I managed to manhandle my biggest workout yesterday. I eeked out an 8.5 mile hike with about 1500 feet of climbing. As expected, walking downhill is the hardest part, but the uphill climbs felt good. I'm very conscious of how I plant my feet and absorb energy on steep descents. Who knew your knees could act like shock absorbers!? I stopped and rested a couple times when my back tightened up, but overall felt pretty decent and was able to push off my feet without any pain. There were numerous short, steep hills and one long climb that forced me to elevate my heart rate. I miss feeling my ticker pump hard. Being winded is a glorious feeling!

Natures lawn mowers

It's a popular loop in the East Bay hills that circles around a huge valley with an intricate network of singletrack trails favored by mountain bike hating hikers. I stuck with the fireroad to play things safe. But I'm building back up towards tackling more technical trails with varied terrain. Inching closer and closer to getting back on the bike!

Room with a view

Overall I'm pretty satisfied with my effort. I was very tight and stiff after the hike, but once I sat down and rested my weary bones I felt OK and was able to enjoy a nice meal with a friend in relative comfort. Exercise itself is less of a concern so much as the recovery, and once my back settled down after the hike I was relieved knowing I can handle such efforts and feel a lot better about slowly increasing my output. Operative word being slowly. Not taking any chances this time! I think that's called growth. Damn, I hate this getting old and patient stuff!

Now where's that Everest mountain place people say is tough?

Back on the Island

I'm back in Alameda. My Island. Yeah, it's mine!

I stopped by Speisekammer with a couple friends. It's a local German spot with a nice selection of brew and some tasty dishes, too! I'm a poet and didn't even know it!

Anna and Tanya getting tipsy

Alameda is a small town in the San Francisco Bay, a quick 20 minute ferry boat ride to Downtown San Francisco, but this might as well be Anytown, USA. It's only been 8 months since I left, but feels like 8 years. Even though it's nice to move on to something new, Alameda will always feel like home.

So, the past few days have been pretty decent. That little backslide I experienced for a couple days last week is in my rearview and I've been getting in some good walks and urban hikes and haven't felt any of that annoying burning lately. I seem to have established this pattern of taking two steps forward and one step back lately, which is a lot better than the opposite. But as long as I'm moving forward it's all good.

Next stop, 40K!

My hamstrings are feeling a lot better lately and I've been able to get into some fairly deep stretches without taxing my back too much. My downward dog is finally starting to return. I'm still reluctant to start pushing it yet and plan to continue this easy climb back. I figure at the rate I'm progressing, by 6 months I will hopefully be ready to start really pushing my rehab. Being cautious has never been my strong suit, so this whole taking it easy business is an entirely new experience. It's taken a while to develop a patient approach, but I'm starting to (reluctantly) settle into this new role.

One nice treat before I left Santa Cruz was the opportunity to hang out with my friend's kid, Benjamin. Bennie is one sweet kid and a blast to hang out with. 

Future heartbreaker

I'll be hanging out in Alameda a little longer than expected before driving up to Oregon, which is fine with me. Gives me a chance to get back to island living.

Aloha!

Cruzin...

I finally escaped Los Angeles for a little Bay Area R and R. I first visited my friend Kim in Truckee and spent a couple days with her and her two future pro athlete sons. We spent an afternoon at the recently built bike park watching kids get airborne. It was brutal watching and not being able to ride, but I got to live vicariously through Jack as he launched off some sick jumps!

Jack going big!

I managed to squeeze in a short hike with Kim, but the terrain was a little more rugged than I was ready for. Lots of steep, rocky sections that required me to go slow. After a couple miles I had to call it a day and cash in my chips. My back just isn't ready for an unbalanced hike yet. Kind of disappointed I'm not further along at this point. I would have hoped by 4 months I'd be traversing rocky trails with relative ease. Patience, grasshopper. 

Kim taking a break from her normal 100 mile bike days to humor me with an easy stroll.

After leaving Truckee I stopped at the home of the one and only Drew, a future disc replacement patient I've been speaking with for the past few months, but haven't yet seen in person. He's scheduled for surgery in Barcelona in a couple weeks and is the most prepared any person could possibly be for a procedure like this. It's been a long time coming, but he's going to come home a new man. I can't wait to see you walking around pain free, Drew!

I'm currently in Santa Cruz staying with my friends Paule and Julie at their chateau in the woods. They live near mountain biking nirvana in the shadow of the Santa Cruz mountains. Paule is a master chef and knows his way around meat. If you don't like meat, this ain't the house for you! After a week at Chez PauleJulie, it's gonna be hard to return to Los Angeles.

It's what's for dinner

I was most concerned about spending hours in the car, and the drive up was a little rough. I stopped a little less than planned mainly because I just wanted to get the drive over as soon as possible. A quick stretch helped settle down my back and I was able to sit in relative comfort for about 30 minutes before the burn started to settle in.

I'm meeting with friends spread out around the Bay Area, so that means a lot more driving. Then on Monday I leave for Bend, Oregon. That's gonna be a tough stretch. My back was feeling somewhat decent until yesterday. I woke up with a deep, penetrating burn in my low back and it got worse with exercise. I attempted a walk in the woods yesterday, but got a couple miles in and felt an all too familiar tingle in my back, so I turned around and came home. I'm still doing my daily rehab, which consists of a series of light stretches and contractions. Otherwise I'm listening to my body and only doing what it tells me I can do. And at the moment that's not much. Dr. Bierstedt told me it's the ligaments and muscles still feeling strained and that I need to continue taking it easy for another month. 

The level of discomfort isn't too intense, but it's a nagging pressure that makes me nervous because it feels like a prelude to something bigger. So I'm going to wait for this to pass until I start pushing it again. It just feels like yet another slight backslide I have to wait out. I keep needing to remind myself that 4 months isn't that long since surgery. I had hoped I'd be one of those lucky few who are back to running marathons by now, but that's just not going to happen.

I had a goal of being on the bike by Summer Solstice. I've now changed my plans for fall. Big picture! Gotta think Big Picture!

Pedi makes it all better

I was a little wound up with my last post. So my cousin and I went and got our pedi on today. Nothing like some proper foot care to soothe your soul.

Guess which is me...

Since I didn't mention how things are going in my previous rant, I figured a quick round up was in order. I've stepped up the exercise a bit. Nothing too crazy, mainly spirited walks. I'm doing about 5 miles each morning with a lot of hill repeats. Short, steep hills where I can drive off the balls of my feet and really engage the old glutes. I push hard enough uphill to break a sweat and actually get my heart rate above 120. My biggest issues right now are being sedentary. Sitting and standing still present the biggest problems, but this area is improving slowly. Some days I can sit down to a good meal in peace, some days not so much.

I spend my rehab doing a combination of postural correction movements and stretching. Honestly, I feel like I could do much more, but I'm playing it safe for now. I learned my lesson the hard way once not to rush things, and will let my body be the judge of when to unleash the hounds. One promising indication that things are improving is that I can easily do 70+ continuous stomach crunches without pain. I'm tight, but when I contract my stomach I experience no sharp pains that prior to surgery would have been impossible to perform. And I can bend at the waist and touch my toes! Next stop, the floor!

I'm planning a road trip to the Bay Area, Tahoe and Oregon and a little concerned about the toll the driving will take on my back, but I'm going to stop at every pie stand along the way to give my spine a break and fill my belly. I've been in LA since last November, away from my peoples up north and it's time I reconnected.

Hey Paule, fire up that grill, heat up the hot tub and get those margaritas ready!