So I was SUPER happy yesterday when the surgeon cleared me to start back to running. For those of you that don’t know my history…I was hit by a car three years ago while riding/training on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. While initially my concussion and eye injury seemed the main concern, it has been the blow to my left knee that has caused lingering problems. The surgery eight weeks ago was to clean-up some of the mess left behind. My doctor has been great so far, and he has been super pleased with my progress (shout out to Druvy at Rose PT!). He originally estimated a return to running twelve weeks post surgery, so it was a pleasant surprise when he green-lighted my return two days before my Birthday :-)
Today’s run was ten minutes long and VERY revealing. First, NO PAIN! YEA! I have to admit, I was scared to death that I’d be limping or calling him back in tears having to report problems. But I’m relieved to say, there were no issues with the knee. Second, my heart rate was pretty high considering how slowly I was running. I felt okay but was so focused on my knee that I didn’t notice being in Zone 3 at a 12min/mile pace. I’m going to chalk that up to nerves AND to being away from running for eight weeks. Third, this is going to be a test in my ability to be patient. It was warm and humid today and I didn’t feel like going further. But the weather is scheduled to break in a few days. I LOVE Fall running. But I need to ease back into my return or risk damaging the fragile knee. Now, I go about my day to see if there are any lingering side effects from the run (and rest tomorrow). If not, I head back out on Friday for a second run (fingers crossed).
When the doctor okayed my return, I immediately set a goal in mind for my return. I’ll talk more about that on Friday post-run.