Take That, Laziness. I’m Back at the Gym.
I would just like to start by saying … I did it!
Yep, I got my butt (and The Man’s) to the gym last night and broke my stretch of stupidity fast. I think the best way to get over a slump is to just do it. This afternoon, as my legs ached from strength training, I was reminded why I love the gym. And that made me excited to go again tonight.
So, what does a gimp do at the gym after being away for too long? Primarily, I took it slow. As tempted as I was to resume my workouts as I had been doing them before PRP, I decided it would be smarter to ease into physical therapy. Here’s what I did:
Warm up: 10 minutes on the recumbent bike. I was hoping to snag a regular exercise bike but, alas, those were all occupied. I set the level high because my gym’s bikes glide too easy, which—strange as it sounds—hurts my knees even more.
Leg press: I did two sets of 15 on each leg with 40 pounds on the machine. The right leg pressed like a champ, but the left was a wimp.
Semi-squats: I tucked a big exercise ball between my back and the wall, balanced on one leg, and squatted. I did two sets of 15 on each leg, making sure I never squatted so low that my knee went over my toe line. (A major no-no even if your knees aren’t pulverized.)
Bosu steps: I held a 5-pound medicine ball in my hands and stepped up onto the Bosu ball with my right foot. At the same time, I lifted my left leg to my chest and reached the medicine ball to the ceiling. I repeated this 30 times on my right leg then switched. I only made it to 20 with the left before my knee started hurting.
Hip hikes: I did 30 hip hikes on each side. Here’s how: stand with your left foot on a Bosu ball (or step) with your right leg hanging off the side. Use your right hip to lift your right leg so it’s in line with your left. Then slowly release the hip so your leg drops again. Do 15 with this leg, then switch. Repeat twice on each side.
Mini Bosu squats: I do 30 of these mini-squats on each side. I used a Bosu ball, but a step works just as well. First, stand with your left foot in the middle of the ball. Squat a small bit so you engage your quads, then rise. (Hold onto something if you need to. I won’t tell.) Do this 15 times with one leg, then swap. Repeat twice on each side.
Hamstring curls: I usually do three sets of 10—or two sets of 15, depending on how strong and powerful I’m feeling that day. Yesterday, my left leg pooped out on number 15, which is a nice reminder of how muscles do waste when you’re not moving.
By the end of all that, my left knee was red, hot to the touch, and sore. So I called it quits and tried to stay off of it last night. I know I’m going to have a bit of inflammation and pain at the start (at least I hope that’s OK. Anyone know otherwise?), so I plan to build gradually and stop when my knee tells me to.
7 comments
Hi Tracey,
I found your blog just today. I had knee problems – feeling on fire, and sharp pains. I had several knee surgeries (which didn’t help) and a lot of PT where they kept trying to use some tape to force my kneecaps to stay in the tracks. nothing worked. After 5 different surgeons said there was nothing more they could do, I finally found one ( a sports ortho) who said that I had a physical alignment problem and that surgery could fix it. I had the Fulkerson procedure done 10 years ago, and am doing most sports with no additional damage. I cycled over 4200 miles this year, for instance. I was also told I’d be in line for knee replacement, but I no longer need one as my knees aren’t getting worse. I’d be glad to talk with you more about this – its something that apparently a lot of doctors and most PT aren’t aware of, but it certainly changed my life. If I could go back, I’d get the surgery earlier!
Alice
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Tracey Reply:
December 10th, 2009 at 12:35 pm
Alice, thanks for stopping by the blog. First off, congrats on figuring out what was wrong with your knees. Being able to bike a mile is an accomplishment. Over 4,200 is amazing to me. I’m going to do some research on the procedure you mentioned. My doctor never mentioned it, but then again neither did yours. It’s worth the surgery if it could help me be as active as you!
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Congrats for making it back! Looks like you got a good workout, in particular for your legs. I’m a fan of hamstring curls, but definitely a tough one!
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Hi Tracey –
It was very much worth it, – I would definitely suggest finding a doctor who is very familiar with it, though, and does it a lot. Technique is pretty important!
I saw Dr. Arnold Scheller out of Boston – I don’t know where you’re located, but it would be worth traveling to get to someone who is an expert at this.
Alice
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Tracey Reply:
December 10th, 2009 at 2:45 pm
I live in Virginia, but I’m originally from the Boston area and my family still lives up there. So I’ll definitely check out your doctor if the surgery works for me.
As for your knee problem… Did you first have an injury? Or, what made your knee hurt in the first place besides the alignment problem? (For example, patella femoral pain syndrome is why I was in pain, though I learned I have flat feet, slightly bowed legs, maltracking, etc.)
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I didn’t have an injury specifically, just increasing pain. We used to hike a lot, and I noticed it first as a sharp jabbing pain when coming downhill. I went to Lahey – they tried PT – biofeedback, step-ups, taping the knee-cap to try to keep it in place, etc. Nothing worked. A good thing to try: Sit on the edge of a table or something, and feel your kneecap – notice if it’s moving outward as you extend your leg. Then (if it is), try to use your hand to hold your kneecap in place as you use your muscles to extend your leg. If the kneecap pushes out even when you try to make it track correctly it’s possibly the tracking problem.
I was first diagnosed with patella femoral pain syndrome and bad tracking. After the PT failed, I went through several ‘lateral release’ surgeries which did nothing at all to help. The Lahey doctor finally said he couldn’t do anything more, which is when I started going around to different ortho doctors. I still have letters in my file drawer from 10 years ago from several of them, saying I’d just have to adopt a sedentary lifestyle because my knees were ‘bad’. No more cycling, tennis, hiking, etc. Walking was getting painful.
Then I found Dr. Scheller – It’s not too much to say he changed my life.
Alice
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Tracey Reply:
December 10th, 2009 at 9:28 pm
Hm, your problem sounds like mine. My doctor said a lateral release was an option, but he didn’t think it would be successful (and from my research, that seems to be the case more often than not). I’ll definitely have to look into this more and maybe bring it up again when I see him next time. I’m so glad you stopped by to bring up this alternative!
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