Does slow progress = the ability to head out with my bike for a late October tour?
Progress on the biking front seems to be at a standstill. Right now I seem to be stuck at rides between 20 and 25 miles, and I've pretty much been able to ride only on the weekends. So what does that mean for my planned last week of October trip to Hawaii? I have to admit, at this point I really don't know. When I look back on last year's trip, there are a few long riding days - two days of 55 to 60 miles that both include some signifcant stretches of uphill riding, and one day of 42 miles that is all uphill heading from sea level to the rim of the crater in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. I'm still working toward being able to take the trip as planned - as a tour of the Big Island by bicycle. I know at this point that the trip is really a big reach, but I'm not ready to give up yet. I think I can wait until the end of August to see where I'm at then from a biking standpoint - but that's probably going to be decision time for me. If I haven't made significant progress toward increasing my biking mileage by then, I think the trip may morph into a hiking and resting trip, and I'll change my reservations accordingly. I'm still hoping...
Right now I'm trying to deal with the continued dizziness problem. I went to see an otolaryngologist to see if he could help. He's a biker too - and he told me that he thinks October is probably really pushing it and that it may be more reasonable to plan a mid-winter trip. I finally realized that I should probably keep track of those bad days... I have some dizziness every day - it's the days that I have nothing but dizziness that concern me. Having one of those in the middle of a trip would not be a good thing since on those days I try to stay away from my bike. To attempt to ride a bike while feeling dizzy doesn't sound like a good idea to me, although so far I haven't had even an occasional dizzy spell hit while I was riding. I think I said this before, but I'll ask it again - do you think that means I should spend more time on my bicycle?
To be honest, I do want to spend more time on my bicycle, but there are only a limited number hours in the day. I could use a longer day to accommodate my need for an extended number of hours of sleep along with all of the normal activities that need to be included in my waking hours. I've been working much closer to full-time, which unfortunately doesn't leave me with much time for riding during the week. I've managed to continue walking every day - split into a walk before work and a walk after dinner. While I can happily walk for a half of an hour, the same length bike ride just doesn't work for me. (Tell me, am I being too fussy?) With two shorter walks I'm managing between an hour and an hour and a half of walking on the days that I don't ride. For now my riding has been mainly limited to the weekends, but I really need to figure out how to fit in a few rides on weekdays too. After close to a full day at work, I don't have the energy for a ride after I get home. So rides during the week (fow now, anyhow) need to be in the morning before work. The problem is I that need to wake up earlier... and that doesn't seem to be possible right now. Sleep is good, and I think I need more sleep than I'm getting. I continue to have problems falling asleep, with occasional nights where I wake up in the middle of the night and am unable to fall asleep again for several hours.
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
Sunday, July 25, 2004
Recovery is a slow process
...even though I want it to be fast
It was another week full of walking, with no biking until the weekend. While I'd like to ride during the week too, I'm getting closer to putting in full days at work, and I haven't yet figured out how to fit both in with the extended amount of sleep that my body seems to require! What - you think my priority should be biking? You're probably right, but I am being paid to work, so I really have to balance things!
Tuesday I had an appointment with my doc Laurie to try to get to the bottom of my dizziness. I know, I know, I'm just a dizzy person. No, not really! Besides the dizziness, I talked to her about my planned biking trip to Hawaii at the end of October. She may be being conservative, but when I told her the distances and terrain of a couple of my planned days, she thought I might be over-reaching my capabilities and reminded me that it could take between 6 and 12 months for me to fully recover. Hmmm... Do I need to think about alternative vacation plans? I think I can wait to see my progress at the end of August. If I can comfortably increase my biking mileage between now and then I think (or is it that I want to think) that Hawaii will work out OK as a biking trip. If I'm stuck - as far as progress is concerned - I may need to rethink the trip. Options: to switch to a fossil-fuel-based vehicle as my transportation and to still take a bike to do day trips, or to not take a bike and turn it into a hiking and relaxing vacation. Or to push it out to a timeframe when biking will be reasonable (like the spring). If I push the biking trip into next year I think I need to find somewhere else to visit in the October timeframe. In spite of my being missing in action for a while at work - that wasn't a vacation, and I think I'll need one by then! On the dizziness front - she referred me to an otolarygologist to see if he can help, and I set up an appointment for next week. In the meantime I guess I'll just have to put up with the dizziness when it occurs, and I'll continue to hope that I don't have too many of those really bad dizzy days.
When the weekend rolled around, I was a bit short on sleep. I thought I was getting over my sleeping problems, but apparently I was wrong. Friday night, I fell asleep right away. End of problem, right? Not really - unfortunately I woke up at 2am and stayed awake until 5. Someone (something?) is trying to make me nuts! I watched the time trial in the Tour de France in morning then took a 1-hour nap since 5 hours of sleep just wasn't going to work for me. I grabbed some lunch and headed off for a ride. It was too wet to ride in the morning anyway - there was a very big rain storm overnight with rainfall ranging from 2 to 3 inches around here! It was dry by the time I wandered out on my bike though... It was a short ride day - only 17 miles - of wandering through the area near my house. I was still tired when I headed out, so I continued my current habit of doing some small loops that don't venture too far from home. That way if I feel the need to head home in the middle of my ride, I'm don't have too far to ride.
On Sunday I managed a 24-mile ride. I can't seem to break through the mid-20-mile ride length. An artificial barrier? I don't think so - it's likely related to the stage I'm at in my recovery.
It was another week full of walking, with no biking until the weekend. While I'd like to ride during the week too, I'm getting closer to putting in full days at work, and I haven't yet figured out how to fit both in with the extended amount of sleep that my body seems to require! What - you think my priority should be biking? You're probably right, but I am being paid to work, so I really have to balance things!
Tuesday I had an appointment with my doc Laurie to try to get to the bottom of my dizziness. I know, I know, I'm just a dizzy person. No, not really! Besides the dizziness, I talked to her about my planned biking trip to Hawaii at the end of October. She may be being conservative, but when I told her the distances and terrain of a couple of my planned days, she thought I might be over-reaching my capabilities and reminded me that it could take between 6 and 12 months for me to fully recover. Hmmm... Do I need to think about alternative vacation plans? I think I can wait to see my progress at the end of August. If I can comfortably increase my biking mileage between now and then I think (or is it that I want to think) that Hawaii will work out OK as a biking trip. If I'm stuck - as far as progress is concerned - I may need to rethink the trip. Options: to switch to a fossil-fuel-based vehicle as my transportation and to still take a bike to do day trips, or to not take a bike and turn it into a hiking and relaxing vacation. Or to push it out to a timeframe when biking will be reasonable (like the spring). If I push the biking trip into next year I think I need to find somewhere else to visit in the October timeframe. In spite of my being missing in action for a while at work - that wasn't a vacation, and I think I'll need one by then! On the dizziness front - she referred me to an otolarygologist to see if he can help, and I set up an appointment for next week. In the meantime I guess I'll just have to put up with the dizziness when it occurs, and I'll continue to hope that I don't have too many of those really bad dizzy days.
When the weekend rolled around, I was a bit short on sleep. I thought I was getting over my sleeping problems, but apparently I was wrong. Friday night, I fell asleep right away. End of problem, right? Not really - unfortunately I woke up at 2am and stayed awake until 5. Someone (something?) is trying to make me nuts! I watched the time trial in the Tour de France in morning then took a 1-hour nap since 5 hours of sleep just wasn't going to work for me. I grabbed some lunch and headed off for a ride. It was too wet to ride in the morning anyway - there was a very big rain storm overnight with rainfall ranging from 2 to 3 inches around here! It was dry by the time I wandered out on my bike though... It was a short ride day - only 17 miles - of wandering through the area near my house. I was still tired when I headed out, so I continued my current habit of doing some small loops that don't venture too far from home. That way if I feel the need to head home in the middle of my ride, I'm don't have too far to ride.
On Sunday I managed a 24-mile ride. I can't seem to break through the mid-20-mile ride length. An artificial barrier? I don't think so - it's likely related to the stage I'm at in my recovery.
Sunday, July 18, 2004
A step backward, a step forward
...and a weekend made for riding
I guess I knew there would be ups and downs to this recovery exercise...
It was an interesting week. Weatherwise it was very wet, which may have been a good thing because it forced me to take a break. Maybe I'm being too hard on myself.
Monday and Tuesday were pretty good days. My days were spent working, splitting the time between the office and working at home. My exercise for both days - walking. While I don't mind walking in the rain, I'm still not too excited about riding in the rain, and since I have an option because I'm not traveling, I opted for foot travel as my exercise.
Wednesday was a bad day overall. I woke up feeling extremely dizzy, and because of that feeling I didn't feel capable of driving anywhere. I did very little work, all of it from home. At one point I thought I should take a walk, so I headed outside. I didn't get too far from my front door when I realized that there was probably a fairly good chance that I was going to fall and hit the ground. Not a good idea, so I headed back inside. No walk today...
Thursday was the day of the doctor's appointment from hell. OK, OK, I know that's probably not totally fair. It was my long-awaited followup appointment with the neurosurgeon - the one that was delayed for two weeks. Mass General is a teaching hospital, and I expected the visit to be with a resident. But it turned out to be with a more junior doc than I expected. I believe that the appointment was just a means of closing out the hospital visit, but of course I was also trying to get a clue to my continued dizziness. I'd like to figure out how not to have more days like Wednesday. When I mentioned my dizziness, the doc suggested that I make an appointment with my primary care physician to have my blood pressure checked. Hmmm... Couldn't he have checked it for me? He pointed out to me that they wouldn't do surgery for light-headedness. Silly me, I thought that a neurosurgeon could help me understand a condition left by my brain injury. Of course I found it interesting that when he came back from consulting with the doc whose name was on my appointment, he told me that the condition was probably a "concussive effect" from the accident. I already knew it was related to my injuries! Needless to say, I wasn't happy with his non-answers. And I'm well aware that there might not be any answers and that this may be something I have to live with for a while. But in the meantime I did make an appointment for next week to see my own doctor, who is an absolute gem. Maybe she can give me some tips on how to deal with (improve?) my continued dizziness.
On Friday I was pretty much back to my current version of normal. I headed into the office for a part of the day, then came home and finished my work day here. It was another walking day...
Wait, isn't biking the point of this journal? Of course it is!
The weekend finally rolled around with a wonderful, sunny Saturday morning. But it's a mountain stage in the Tour de France, and somehow I've managed to get hooked on watching the race. If I was at my normal energy level - before accident, that is - I would have headed out for a long ride early this morning and I would have watched the race replay at night. Since I'm not up to a long ride at this point I chose to watch the race as it unfolded. Then it was time for some food - got to keep those calories coming in - and time to head out on my bike. I ran out of energy after only 12 miles - a first for me - so I stopped to pick up another bottle of Gatorade and an ice cream sandwich. I have a habit of taking 2 water bottles with me when I ride around home - one filled with water and one filled with Gatorade. On short rides, it seems like water should be sufficient, but that's not working for me right now. And on Saturday it appeared that I needed two bottles of Gatorade, not one! The total mileage for my Saturday ride was 24 miles - a short ride in the overall scheme of things, but a long ride at this stage of my recovery.
I had a very strange wildlife encounter on my Saturday ride. There was a groundhog sitting in the middle of the driving lane on one of the quiet back roads. I didn't even realize what it was until I was pretty close, and I was close to the right edge of the road. The groundhog was definitely in the middle of the driving lane. As I rode by it started making what I assume were groundhog noises, and also started moving towards me. I was glad I was on the bike and above the level of its teeth! The bike probably scared him, but I definitely wasn't ready for an animal encounter!
Ah, Sunday, another biking day... I managed a 22 mile ride, not spectacular from a distance standpoint - but I did say that I would work up to distance slowly. And my body seems to be forcing that issue. 22 miles was more than enough today. Bummer.
On the one hand I got two good rides in over the weekend. On the other, I really wanted to do more. I know I have to accept what I'm managing as progress, but my impatience is definitely bubbling over!
I guess I knew there would be ups and downs to this recovery exercise...
It was an interesting week. Weatherwise it was very wet, which may have been a good thing because it forced me to take a break. Maybe I'm being too hard on myself.
Monday and Tuesday were pretty good days. My days were spent working, splitting the time between the office and working at home. My exercise for both days - walking. While I don't mind walking in the rain, I'm still not too excited about riding in the rain, and since I have an option because I'm not traveling, I opted for foot travel as my exercise.
Wednesday was a bad day overall. I woke up feeling extremely dizzy, and because of that feeling I didn't feel capable of driving anywhere. I did very little work, all of it from home. At one point I thought I should take a walk, so I headed outside. I didn't get too far from my front door when I realized that there was probably a fairly good chance that I was going to fall and hit the ground. Not a good idea, so I headed back inside. No walk today...
Thursday was the day of the doctor's appointment from hell. OK, OK, I know that's probably not totally fair. It was my long-awaited followup appointment with the neurosurgeon - the one that was delayed for two weeks. Mass General is a teaching hospital, and I expected the visit to be with a resident. But it turned out to be with a more junior doc than I expected. I believe that the appointment was just a means of closing out the hospital visit, but of course I was also trying to get a clue to my continued dizziness. I'd like to figure out how not to have more days like Wednesday. When I mentioned my dizziness, the doc suggested that I make an appointment with my primary care physician to have my blood pressure checked. Hmmm... Couldn't he have checked it for me? He pointed out to me that they wouldn't do surgery for light-headedness. Silly me, I thought that a neurosurgeon could help me understand a condition left by my brain injury. Of course I found it interesting that when he came back from consulting with the doc whose name was on my appointment, he told me that the condition was probably a "concussive effect" from the accident. I already knew it was related to my injuries! Needless to say, I wasn't happy with his non-answers. And I'm well aware that there might not be any answers and that this may be something I have to live with for a while. But in the meantime I did make an appointment for next week to see my own doctor, who is an absolute gem. Maybe she can give me some tips on how to deal with (improve?) my continued dizziness.
On Friday I was pretty much back to my current version of normal. I headed into the office for a part of the day, then came home and finished my work day here. It was another walking day...
Wait, isn't biking the point of this journal? Of course it is!
The weekend finally rolled around with a wonderful, sunny Saturday morning. But it's a mountain stage in the Tour de France, and somehow I've managed to get hooked on watching the race. If I was at my normal energy level - before accident, that is - I would have headed out for a long ride early this morning and I would have watched the race replay at night. Since I'm not up to a long ride at this point I chose to watch the race as it unfolded. Then it was time for some food - got to keep those calories coming in - and time to head out on my bike. I ran out of energy after only 12 miles - a first for me - so I stopped to pick up another bottle of Gatorade and an ice cream sandwich. I have a habit of taking 2 water bottles with me when I ride around home - one filled with water and one filled with Gatorade. On short rides, it seems like water should be sufficient, but that's not working for me right now. And on Saturday it appeared that I needed two bottles of Gatorade, not one! The total mileage for my Saturday ride was 24 miles - a short ride in the overall scheme of things, but a long ride at this stage of my recovery.
I had a very strange wildlife encounter on my Saturday ride. There was a groundhog sitting in the middle of the driving lane on one of the quiet back roads. I didn't even realize what it was until I was pretty close, and I was close to the right edge of the road. The groundhog was definitely in the middle of the driving lane. As I rode by it started making what I assume were groundhog noises, and also started moving towards me. I was glad I was on the bike and above the level of its teeth! The bike probably scared him, but I definitely wasn't ready for an animal encounter!
Ah, Sunday, another biking day... I managed a 22 mile ride, not spectacular from a distance standpoint - but I did say that I would work up to distance slowly. And my body seems to be forcing that issue. 22 miles was more than enough today. Bummer.
On the one hand I got two good rides in over the weekend. On the other, I really wanted to do more. I know I have to accept what I'm managing as progress, but my impatience is definitely bubbling over!
Monday, July 12, 2004
Time to figure it out
...balancing healing, work, and bicycling
It's been seven and a half weeks since my crash, and that's really hard for me to believe. I'm trying hard to get back to normal as soon as possible, and everyone - family, friends, and co-workers - is telling me that I'm too hard on myself. Maybe, but maybe not. After all, how will I improve and get back to normal without pushing myself? And remember, for me normal includes biking - it's an important part of my life! I'm still trying to figure out what to do to help myself become closer to the Denise that I'm used to. Maybe writing down what I did from an exercise standpoint for the past week will help me to figure out how to help myself improve.
So what did I learn?
It's becoming clear to me that I expect more of myself than is reasonable at this stage of my recovery. Luckily, no one else expects the same. No, I'm not back at work full-time yet. And I'm not in the kind of cycling shape I expect to be in by this point in the summer. I want to be back, and I don't know how long it will take to get there. I hope that my body is ready for my planned end-of-October trip to Hawaii. (Oops, I keep saying that, don't I?) There are certainly worse places to go for a non-biking vacation, but I have my heart set on biking it again.
I have to admit I'm beginning to come to the conclusion that being somewhat dizzy is a fact of life for me right now. But it's funny - I don't feel dizzy on the bike. I wonder if that's related to the fact that I don't attempt to start a ride if I'm already feeling dizzy. But the fact remains that I usually have absolutely no warning before the dizziness starts, and I have yet to find a pattern of behavior that causes the problem. I do feel somewhat dizzy within a short period of time after I get off of the bike, but so far no problems when I'm riding. I guess that's a good thing. And hey - maybe that means I should spend more time on the bike. (I know, I know - that's not smart, and I'm not going to try it. My plan is to continue to work up to longer rides. Just a thought...)
I seem to have lost the concept of a rest day - at this point I don't think walking for an hour really designates a rest. I feel like I need to walk (rather than have an absolute rest day) to help maintain my sanity. But I probably really do need real rest days every so often. I think about driving to the coast and sitting in the shade reading and watching the waves. But - that's a drive, and I'm trying not to do any extensive driving either. Wait - something's got to give here!
I'm starting to look pretty normal - if you don't look too closely, that is! There are still some red patches on my face, and there's still swelling above my right eye, but at this point that swelling is more evident to me than it is to anyone else.
It's been seven and a half weeks since my crash, and that's really hard for me to believe. I'm trying hard to get back to normal as soon as possible, and everyone - family, friends, and co-workers - is telling me that I'm too hard on myself. Maybe, but maybe not. After all, how will I improve and get back to normal without pushing myself? And remember, for me normal includes biking - it's an important part of my life! I'm still trying to figure out what to do to help myself become closer to the Denise that I'm used to. Maybe writing down what I did from an exercise standpoint for the past week will help me to figure out how to help myself improve.
- Monday, July 5th --- no biking, walk: 75 minutes
Monday was a tired day for me. I clearly overdid the biking over the weekend, and luckily it was a somewhat wet weather day on Monday so I wasn't tempted to overdo it again. - Tuesday, July 6th --- Bike: 16 miles, walk: 50 minutes
In addition to getting back to biking, I'm also getting back to work. I spent 3 hours in the office and worked at home for probably the same amount of time. My walks today were a short walk in the morning, and another short walk after dinner with a stop at Starbucks for my evening decaf iced Americano. I took a bike ride at the end of my work day - a total of 16 miles, still at a very slow pace, so I'll count it at an hour and 15 minutes. Ouch! I've always been a relatively slow rider - but I've always been able to ride as far as I wanted. I wonder if my current slow speed will improve? To be honest, the time isn't what I'm working on - it's the endurance. - Wednesday, July 7th --- Bike: 15 miles, walk: 30 minutes
I was tired this morning, had trouble falling asleep last night. So what else is new? (OK, OK, it's new since the accident!) I turned the light out at 11, but the last time I looked at the clock it was about 12:30. I set the alarm for 7:30 and actually got up at 8. The alarm? I'm trying to retrain my body to sleep somewhat normal hours (for me that is). If I had been able to sleep from 11 to 7:30, that's 8 1/2 hours. My healing body appears to need between 9 and 10 hours of sleep, but I'm not OK with sleeping until 10AM to make up for not falling asleep at night. I'm hoping that if I continue to get up at a somewhat normal hour that my brain will get the hint that it's supposed to sleep at night. And I say somewhat because 7:30 just doesn't cut it if I want to exercise before work - or ride my bike to work! Because I woke up feeling tired, I opted to work at home today. I did manage to get in a late afternoon bike ride. I was still tired, but I felt like I needed to get moving. My ride was on neighborhood streets, not too far from home. It consisted of lots of small loops so I could get home easily if I misjudged myself and was really tired. Not so! - Thursday, July 8th --- No biking, walk: 70 minutes
I went to sleep last night at 10:30 - after the telecast of the Tour de France time trial - and set the alarm for 7:30 this morning. I headed into the office after breakfast and a 30-minute walk. I worked at my office today from 9:30 to 2:15, which is an improvement in time, but I knew it was time to head home when I started feeling dizzy. I drove home in an absolute downpour so today for a change I was glad I hadn't ridden my bike to work. I managed to spend some more time working once I got home, but I didn't ride today. It was time for a much-needed rest! - Friday, July 9th --- Bike: 16 miles, walk: 65 minutes
I had every intention of going to the office again today, but I was tired and a bit dizzy when I woke up so it turned into a work at home day. I guess I'm going to have to get used to being dizzy because it seems to be a relatively common condition for me lately. My morning dizziness did seem to abate by mid-afternoon and I didn't feel like I was risking falling, so I headed out for a 16-mile bike ride. - Saturday, July 10th --- Bike: 26 miles, walk: 40 minutes
Today was a day devoted to bicycles. I picked up my repaired and tuned up Pocket Rocket at the bike shop this morning. It was actually ready on Tuesday, but I didn't manage to drive over there before today... all better. I did a 26 mile ride this afternoon. It felt good, but I was definitely tired toward the end. I had no pain until I got off the bike - then I noticed soreness in my pelvis when I was walking. Funny - is that bone soreness, or are the muscles somehow involved? Time for a snack and a shower. Afterwards, as I sat watching a late broadcast of today's Tour de France I started feeling dizzy - or maybe I should say off balance. That feeling persisted for the rest of the day. It's a feeling I think I have to get used to. Not terrible, just not normal. I wonder if my body is trying to tell me I did too much today? - Sunday, July 11th --- Bike: 24 miles, walk: 45 minutes
I started today by watching the live coverage of the Tour de France. Then it was time for some more food before I headed out on my bike. It was a good ride although I started to feel tired at around 20 miles. At that point I had to ride another four miles to get home. After a shower and a snack - yes, eating again - I started to feel dizzy. I wonder why I don't feel that way on my bike... maybe I should ride further! Seriously though, that's probably not a great idea. I think continuing to increase my time on the bike slowly is the right idea.
So what did I learn?
It's becoming clear to me that I expect more of myself than is reasonable at this stage of my recovery. Luckily, no one else expects the same. No, I'm not back at work full-time yet. And I'm not in the kind of cycling shape I expect to be in by this point in the summer. I want to be back, and I don't know how long it will take to get there. I hope that my body is ready for my planned end-of-October trip to Hawaii. (Oops, I keep saying that, don't I?) There are certainly worse places to go for a non-biking vacation, but I have my heart set on biking it again.
I have to admit I'm beginning to come to the conclusion that being somewhat dizzy is a fact of life for me right now. But it's funny - I don't feel dizzy on the bike. I wonder if that's related to the fact that I don't attempt to start a ride if I'm already feeling dizzy. But the fact remains that I usually have absolutely no warning before the dizziness starts, and I have yet to find a pattern of behavior that causes the problem. I do feel somewhat dizzy within a short period of time after I get off of the bike, but so far no problems when I'm riding. I guess that's a good thing. And hey - maybe that means I should spend more time on the bike. (I know, I know - that's not smart, and I'm not going to try it. My plan is to continue to work up to longer rides. Just a thought...)
I seem to have lost the concept of a rest day - at this point I don't think walking for an hour really designates a rest. I feel like I need to walk (rather than have an absolute rest day) to help maintain my sanity. But I probably really do need real rest days every so often. I think about driving to the coast and sitting in the shade reading and watching the waves. But - that's a drive, and I'm trying not to do any extensive driving either. Wait - something's got to give here!
I'm starting to look pretty normal - if you don't look too closely, that is! There are still some red patches on my face, and there's still swelling above my right eye, but at this point that swelling is more evident to me than it is to anyone else.
Monday, July 5, 2004
A welcome rainy day
...means somewhat of a rest for my tired body
My start back to cycling on July 3rd was followed by another busy day on the 4th.
My friends Barb & Harvey came over with their dog Daphne and we headed out for an hour and a half hike through Harold Parker State Forest. We walked mostly on what was once a dirt road, but is now much narrower than a road and a is bit more like a wide trail. On the way back Harvey detoured onto a side path to avoid totally repeating the trail we'd already walked, but after a few minutes I decided that the narrow path was too uneven for me and headed back the way we came in. After all, I figured I didn't want to risk a fall and injuries of any kind at this stage in my recovery. We finished our hike with a nice lunch at The Vineyard , a wine store and deli within walking distance of my house. No wine - just food!
Home again in the early afternoon... and here I go again! I took a shower to wash off the bug stuff from our hike, and finally took the time to read the Sunday paper - I didn't read it at my usual time in the morning since I was too caught up watching the Tour de France. It was a beautiful day - sunny, a bit windy, decent temperatures.
OK, OK, my bike was calling me again! I headed out on my bike again, and this time managed a ride of 19 miles. It was a slow riding day, and I honestly don't know if my slow speed was due to the wind, or due to the fact that I was probably reaching out past the edge of what I should be doing. I suspect that it was an edge condition... The thing is, the only way I know to improve is to do a bit more every day. For the past two weeks I've been walking an hour to an hour and a half a day. On Saturday, I walked an hour and a half and I rode my bike for an hour. On Sunday, I walked an hour and a half and given my slow riding speed I also rode my bike for close to an hour and a half. Oh wait - that's not doing a bit more day by day - that's doubling the amount of exercise my poor body is currently accustomed to!
Maybe I'm lucky today is an overcast and rainy day... I woke up this morning still feeling tired, and that's in spite of sleeping for ten hours last night. I have to admit that sleeping is still an issue for me right now. My body seems to need more than eight hours of sleep right now, with nine to ten hours appearing to be the magic numbers. Unfortunately I rarely get more than eight hours of sleep since I'm having problems falling asleep at night. So I either really wore myself out over the past couple of days or my body was finally reacting to a couple of nights short of sleep. In either case, I think a day of relative rest is probably a good idea. I'll get out and walk even if it keeps raining - after all that's what umbrellas are meant for. But I think I'll give the bike a rest for the day. I don't especially like riding in the rain, so I'm not likely to go out right now, and even if the pavement dries out it's probably a good idea to exercise some control and not ride today.
The rest of the week? Well I think and hope that's a different story. I plan to continue to do some walking each day, and I plan to also try to do some riding each day. I need to figure out how to balance everything and still improve my fitness level without totally tiring myself out, which could prove to be a step backwards. And of course add to that the fact that I'm still working up to working full-time! I need to be moving in a forward direction, improving every day as much as possible - even if it's a little bit. After all, I still have a vacation goal of riding my bike around the Big Island of Hawaii at the end of October.
Late in the day... I had a much quieter day today, but I still managed to walk for an hour plus. It was the right decision not to ride today, even if the weather had been more tempting. I have a feeling that working up to my normal riding capacity will take quite a while, and my hopes yesterday of working up to commuting to work by bike by the end of July were probably quite unrealistic. That is only four weeks away after all! If I was starting from a normal beginning of season state that would likely be reasonable, but I suspect that with having to work out the after effects of an injured brain (and not just bones and muscle) that it may take longer to get back to normal. I still hope and believe that I have the time to recover a reasonable state of fitness well before my planned departure to Hawaii. Here's hoping that's not just an idle dream!
My start back to cycling on July 3rd was followed by another busy day on the 4th.
My friends Barb & Harvey came over with their dog Daphne and we headed out for an hour and a half hike through Harold Parker State Forest. We walked mostly on what was once a dirt road, but is now much narrower than a road and a is bit more like a wide trail. On the way back Harvey detoured onto a side path to avoid totally repeating the trail we'd already walked, but after a few minutes I decided that the narrow path was too uneven for me and headed back the way we came in. After all, I figured I didn't want to risk a fall and injuries of any kind at this stage in my recovery. We finished our hike with a nice lunch at The Vineyard , a wine store and deli within walking distance of my house. No wine - just food!
Home again in the early afternoon... and here I go again! I took a shower to wash off the bug stuff from our hike, and finally took the time to read the Sunday paper - I didn't read it at my usual time in the morning since I was too caught up watching the Tour de France. It was a beautiful day - sunny, a bit windy, decent temperatures.
OK, OK, my bike was calling me again! I headed out on my bike again, and this time managed a ride of 19 miles. It was a slow riding day, and I honestly don't know if my slow speed was due to the wind, or due to the fact that I was probably reaching out past the edge of what I should be doing. I suspect that it was an edge condition... The thing is, the only way I know to improve is to do a bit more every day. For the past two weeks I've been walking an hour to an hour and a half a day. On Saturday, I walked an hour and a half and I rode my bike for an hour. On Sunday, I walked an hour and a half and given my slow riding speed I also rode my bike for close to an hour and a half. Oh wait - that's not doing a bit more day by day - that's doubling the amount of exercise my poor body is currently accustomed to!
Maybe I'm lucky today is an overcast and rainy day... I woke up this morning still feeling tired, and that's in spite of sleeping for ten hours last night. I have to admit that sleeping is still an issue for me right now. My body seems to need more than eight hours of sleep right now, with nine to ten hours appearing to be the magic numbers. Unfortunately I rarely get more than eight hours of sleep since I'm having problems falling asleep at night. So I either really wore myself out over the past couple of days or my body was finally reacting to a couple of nights short of sleep. In either case, I think a day of relative rest is probably a good idea. I'll get out and walk even if it keeps raining - after all that's what umbrellas are meant for. But I think I'll give the bike a rest for the day. I don't especially like riding in the rain, so I'm not likely to go out right now, and even if the pavement dries out it's probably a good idea to exercise some control and not ride today.
The rest of the week? Well I think and hope that's a different story. I plan to continue to do some walking each day, and I plan to also try to do some riding each day. I need to figure out how to balance everything and still improve my fitness level without totally tiring myself out, which could prove to be a step backwards. And of course add to that the fact that I'm still working up to working full-time! I need to be moving in a forward direction, improving every day as much as possible - even if it's a little bit. After all, I still have a vacation goal of riding my bike around the Big Island of Hawaii at the end of October.
Late in the day... I had a much quieter day today, but I still managed to walk for an hour plus. It was the right decision not to ride today, even if the weather had been more tempting. I have a feeling that working up to my normal riding capacity will take quite a while, and my hopes yesterday of working up to commuting to work by bike by the end of July were probably quite unrealistic. That is only four weeks away after all! If I was starting from a normal beginning of season state that would likely be reasonable, but I suspect that with having to work out the after effects of an injured brain (and not just bones and muscle) that it may take longer to get back to normal. I still hope and believe that I have the time to recover a reasonable state of fitness well before my planned departure to Hawaii. Here's hoping that's not just an idle dream!
Saturday, July 3, 2004
My bike is calling, and
I know I should wait for the doc's OK, but... OK, OK, I'm listening to my bike!
Yes, you're right - this journal entry really is from the same day as the last one was...
And really - you can believe me - I had good intentions, and I was going to wait for an OK to ride from the neurosurgeon. But then my appointment was moved out two weeks. And I went to the bike shop and bought a new helmet. And I have bikes sitting in the garage just waiting to be ridden. And it's been just over six weeks since I was on a bike and I can't stand not riding any more!
My first ride was an after-dinner jaunt. I'm still eating very early because I'm trying to pay attention to my body. When it says eat, I eat. Very simple. So there was plenty of daylight left.
The puzzle of the day was to remember how to open the clips on my Sidi riding shoes. (You are laughing about that, right?) I have to admit it took me a minute - and now I think I know why the paramedics just pulled my shoes off without loosening them! No problem, the buckles are released, shoes on, buckles tightened, helmet on, ready to go...
It was a 13 mile ride at just under 13 miles an hour. And who said that 13 isn't a lucky number? By my mind it is very lucky! The fact that I haven't been riding was definitely noticeable on uphills, but I wasn't trying to break any speed records, just to have a nice casual ride. Amazingly enough, I didn't feel any pain at all from that previously broken pelvic bone. I notice it when I do a long walk, but I didn't notice anything while I was biking. There was a little twinge afterward, but nothing bad.
I started out by riding the same road that I rode the fateful morning of May 20th. And I have to tell you, I didn't see anything wrong with the road surface. That is, nothing other than is normally wrong. There are cracks in the road surface, and there's an occasional bump, but nothing that stood out. I guess I'll just have to believe that it was bad luck and that there was something in the road that I hit or that I somehow got my front tire caught in a crack unexpectedly. I'll never know - so maybe it's time to make something up! Not really - I'll just accept that I don't know the cause of my stellar crash, and I'll trust that it won't happen again.
A very happy cyclist after my first ride in just over six weeks! Yes, there are still red spots on my face that have nothing to do with sweat and exercise. And yes, this is my new helmet, and yes, I did adjust the strap near my ear and there is not a gap there anymore!
Yes, you're right - this journal entry really is from the same day as the last one was...
And really - you can believe me - I had good intentions, and I was going to wait for an OK to ride from the neurosurgeon. But then my appointment was moved out two weeks. And I went to the bike shop and bought a new helmet. And I have bikes sitting in the garage just waiting to be ridden. And it's been just over six weeks since I was on a bike and I can't stand not riding any more!
My first ride was an after-dinner jaunt. I'm still eating very early because I'm trying to pay attention to my body. When it says eat, I eat. Very simple. So there was plenty of daylight left.
The puzzle of the day was to remember how to open the clips on my Sidi riding shoes. (You are laughing about that, right?) I have to admit it took me a minute - and now I think I know why the paramedics just pulled my shoes off without loosening them! No problem, the buckles are released, shoes on, buckles tightened, helmet on, ready to go...
It was a 13 mile ride at just under 13 miles an hour. And who said that 13 isn't a lucky number? By my mind it is very lucky! The fact that I haven't been riding was definitely noticeable on uphills, but I wasn't trying to break any speed records, just to have a nice casual ride. Amazingly enough, I didn't feel any pain at all from that previously broken pelvic bone. I notice it when I do a long walk, but I didn't notice anything while I was biking. There was a little twinge afterward, but nothing bad.
I started out by riding the same road that I rode the fateful morning of May 20th. And I have to tell you, I didn't see anything wrong with the road surface. That is, nothing other than is normally wrong. There are cracks in the road surface, and there's an occasional bump, but nothing that stood out. I guess I'll just have to believe that it was bad luck and that there was something in the road that I hit or that I somehow got my front tire caught in a crack unexpectedly. I'll never know - so maybe it's time to make something up! Not really - I'll just accept that I don't know the cause of my stellar crash, and I'll trust that it won't happen again.
A very happy cyclist after my first ride in just over six weeks! Yes, there are still red spots on my face that have nothing to do with sweat and exercise. And yes, this is my new helmet, and yes, I did adjust the strap near my ear and there is not a gap there anymore!
The real state of my bike
And a new helmet (uh oh, I'm ready to go!)
Today was the day for taking my bike to my favorite bike shop. And guess what - it's in better shape than I thought. When I looked at the bike, I saw shift/brake levers that weren't quite where they were supposed to be (especially the left lever) and that had pieces missing (actually shaved or knocked off the top). The front tire was flat, and the wheel appeared to be no where near true. Luckily for my wallet, the bike is pretty much OK. The mechanic simply pushed the levers back where they belonged and then ran through the shifting. He said he could replace the missing and displaced pieces on the top of the levers, and recommended continuing to use the levers that are on the bike until they stop working. Both appear to be good right now. And the wheel? Well it turns out that was an optical illusion because the tire is flat, and in fact the wheel is still round. Amazing. I guess I already knew this - I did a lot more damage to my body than to my bike! But since I was already there, and since I had been about to take my bike in for a tune-up before May 20th happened, I left the bike at the shop for a tune-up and to have them replace the missing lever pieces and to fix the flat. (OK, you're right - I could have changed the tire myself... but sometimes it's good to be lazy and to let someone else deal with it!)
After my conversation with the mechanic, I headed over to the helmet display. I can't get back on my bike until I have a new helmet - so it was time for a purchase. As usual I was looking for something lightweight with lots of air flow. I bought a Giro Pneumo, which is actually the same helmet that saved me in my crash.
So - I'm ready to go. Yes, I won't get my Pocket Rocket back until Tuesday, but I do have two other bikes to ride. And yes, I know I'm supposed to wait for an OK from the neurosurgeon - but I have to tell you that it's getting harder every day to stay off of my bike. Right now I'm sitting in my living room with my computer on my lap and with the television on so I can watch the prologue of the Tour de France. When that's over, I'm going to repeat that walk into Andover Center that tired me out last Saturday. I'm hoping that a week's improvement (and continued exercise via walking) will allow me to feel closer to normal when I get home this time.
Late afternoon: Home again... I did walk into Andover and back home again, I'd guess about four miles total given the roads that I took. It was a huge improvement from last week. My leg - specifically the area of the pelvic bone fracture - was complaining some by the time I arrived home, but I felt like I was able to maintain the same pace for the entire walk. That's much better than last week's effort!
The problem now? Well, I knew it would be a problem as soon as I had a helmet to wear, no surprises here. (And you probably knew it was a problem too after reading the entry I wrote before I took my walk!) I really want to try riding. Really, really, really... And yes, I do know that it's quite possible that riding might feel just awful. I was planning to wait until after the visit with the neurosurgeon - the appointment that I was supposed to have two days ago until his office canceled due to emergencies, and the appointment that is now another two weeks in the future. It's late in the day on the Saturday of a three-day weekend, so there really isn't a chance that I'll go out today. Tomorrow or the next day? Only time will tell!
Today was the day for taking my bike to my favorite bike shop. And guess what - it's in better shape than I thought. When I looked at the bike, I saw shift/brake levers that weren't quite where they were supposed to be (especially the left lever) and that had pieces missing (actually shaved or knocked off the top). The front tire was flat, and the wheel appeared to be no where near true. Luckily for my wallet, the bike is pretty much OK. The mechanic simply pushed the levers back where they belonged and then ran through the shifting. He said he could replace the missing and displaced pieces on the top of the levers, and recommended continuing to use the levers that are on the bike until they stop working. Both appear to be good right now. And the wheel? Well it turns out that was an optical illusion because the tire is flat, and in fact the wheel is still round. Amazing. I guess I already knew this - I did a lot more damage to my body than to my bike! But since I was already there, and since I had been about to take my bike in for a tune-up before May 20th happened, I left the bike at the shop for a tune-up and to have them replace the missing lever pieces and to fix the flat. (OK, you're right - I could have changed the tire myself... but sometimes it's good to be lazy and to let someone else deal with it!)
After my conversation with the mechanic, I headed over to the helmet display. I can't get back on my bike until I have a new helmet - so it was time for a purchase. As usual I was looking for something lightweight with lots of air flow. I bought a Giro Pneumo, which is actually the same helmet that saved me in my crash.
So - I'm ready to go. Yes, I won't get my Pocket Rocket back until Tuesday, but I do have two other bikes to ride. And yes, I know I'm supposed to wait for an OK from the neurosurgeon - but I have to tell you that it's getting harder every day to stay off of my bike. Right now I'm sitting in my living room with my computer on my lap and with the television on so I can watch the prologue of the Tour de France. When that's over, I'm going to repeat that walk into Andover Center that tired me out last Saturday. I'm hoping that a week's improvement (and continued exercise via walking) will allow me to feel closer to normal when I get home this time.
Late afternoon: Home again... I did walk into Andover and back home again, I'd guess about four miles total given the roads that I took. It was a huge improvement from last week. My leg - specifically the area of the pelvic bone fracture - was complaining some by the time I arrived home, but I felt like I was able to maintain the same pace for the entire walk. That's much better than last week's effort!
The problem now? Well, I knew it would be a problem as soon as I had a helmet to wear, no surprises here. (And you probably knew it was a problem too after reading the entry I wrote before I took my walk!) I really want to try riding. Really, really, really... And yes, I do know that it's quite possible that riding might feel just awful. I was planning to wait until after the visit with the neurosurgeon - the appointment that I was supposed to have two days ago until his office canceled due to emergencies, and the appointment that is now another two weeks in the future. It's late in the day on the Saturday of a three-day weekend, so there really isn't a chance that I'll go out today. Tomorrow or the next day? Only time will tell!
Thursday, July 1, 2004
I was hoping for permission to ride
What do you mean my appointment is canceled?
I was supposed to have an appointment with a neurosurgeon at Mass General this morning. It's quite possible I met him while I was in the hospital but there's no memory of our meeting. I say supposed to because his office called - luckily before I set out for Boston - to cancel the appointment. Multiple emergency surgeries. OK, that's probably the right priority, but at the time of the cancellation the admin told me she'd call back later to reschedule because she had to do all of the cancellations first. Wait - isn't it the same appointment system to cancel one appointment and schedule another? Or do they have one damned silly computer system down there?
When the admin told me the new appointment would probably be in 2 to 3 weeks, I asked her if there was anything she could do about that. Because I was civil and polite and didn't (really) give her a hard time, she said she'd try for an earlier appointment. I'm still waiting to hear... and I'm getting impatient. This is the doc I need to talk with about starting to ride again. I'm walking, but I want to be riding. If that appointment is another 3 weeks out - well do you want to take bets on whether I'll be attempting to ride before getting the official OK?
Update on July 2nd: The doc's admin just called and told me my new appointment is on July 15th. Two weeks out. That's not unexpected, but it is disappointing. The big question in my mind still remains - will I have enough control to wait for the doc's OK before attempting to ride my bike?
I do have at least one important thing (on my own list, that is - who knows what the doc will want?) to do before I hop back on a bike, and that is to buy a new helmet. That's on my weekend list of things to do, along with dropping my poor injured bike off at the bike shop for the much awaited repairs.
I was supposed to have an appointment with a neurosurgeon at Mass General this morning. It's quite possible I met him while I was in the hospital but there's no memory of our meeting. I say supposed to because his office called - luckily before I set out for Boston - to cancel the appointment. Multiple emergency surgeries. OK, that's probably the right priority, but at the time of the cancellation the admin told me she'd call back later to reschedule because she had to do all of the cancellations first. Wait - isn't it the same appointment system to cancel one appointment and schedule another? Or do they have one damned silly computer system down there?
When the admin told me the new appointment would probably be in 2 to 3 weeks, I asked her if there was anything she could do about that. Because I was civil and polite and didn't (really) give her a hard time, she said she'd try for an earlier appointment. I'm still waiting to hear... and I'm getting impatient. This is the doc I need to talk with about starting to ride again. I'm walking, but I want to be riding. If that appointment is another 3 weeks out - well do you want to take bets on whether I'll be attempting to ride before getting the official OK?
Update on July 2nd: The doc's admin just called and told me my new appointment is on July 15th. Two weeks out. That's not unexpected, but it is disappointing. The big question in my mind still remains - will I have enough control to wait for the doc's OK before attempting to ride my bike?
I do have at least one important thing (on my own list, that is - who knows what the doc will want?) to do before I hop back on a bike, and that is to buy a new helmet. That's on my weekend list of things to do, along with dropping my poor injured bike off at the bike shop for the much awaited repairs.
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