This blog started out as my way to document my journey for my own purposes as I progressed from a fat farm lady back into an athlete. Along the way, I lost almost 30 lbs, became a runner, learned to swim again and fell in love with triathlon. I also changed from a traditional diet to a paleo lifestyle. In fact, as I began documenting that journey, I quickly found that I didn't have much to write about. I didn't really struggle. I embraced it and haven't looked back.
A week ago Saturday, I was carrying a bin of hay (heavy!) out to our goats when two of our three dogs ran into me causing me to lose my balance. I tried to recover while still holding on to the hay but my right foot slipped in the mud and somehow ended up underneath me, twisted upside down. I felt a snap. I screamed in pain. I laid in the mud while the dogs tried to lick my face, crying. I had worst-case scenarios running through my pain-addled brain..."I'll never run again!". Unfortunately, I was closer to correct than I'd like to admit.
That morning, my husband was not home. I didn't expect him back for about 4 hours, so I knew I had to figure out a way to at least get back in the house. Turns out, I could move my toes and put some weight on my heel. That was good enough for me...I finished my chores (the goats still needed water!) by limping my way around and got back inside. Right then, my husband called asking me to pick him up because he had to leave the truck for work. I didn't think I could drive (this was my right foot!) but when I tried, it was ok. I picked him up, we ran some errands and by the time we were done, the truck was done and I drove the car home. By mid-afternoon, the swelling and pain was too much to bear and we went to the ER. X-rays ensued and they said I'd broken my 4th metatarsal.
I did a bunch of reading online but it seemed to be pretty rare where someone broke the 4th metatarsal only. Usually it was the fifth one or multiple ones. From all the reading I did, I'd convinced myself that my recovery would be simple and short and that I'd only miss a race or two. In fact, I was so convinced that it would be fine that I walked into the orthopedic surgeon's office wearing a tight pair of jeans because I figured I'd be getting a walking boot that I could remove. I was wrong.
He had a different story for me. Yes, 4th metatarsal was broken, but that wasn't the worst of my troubles. I also damaged my Lisfranc joint and will need surgery. He couldn't give me all the details because he won't know how bad it is until he goes in there. The x-ray with me barely putting any pressure on the foot, showed a 3 mm difference between my good joint and my bad joint. 2 mm usually requires surgery. My separation is probably significant if I could put real pressure on the foot to show it! They have to essentially put my joint back together and hope it heals properly. If it doesn't arthritis will ensue and probably necessitate fusing the joint. If that happens, I will never run again. BUT, that's getting a little ahead of things. I have surgery scheduled for Thursday (3/15). We'll just worry about that for now.
All my runs, triathlons, bike events and hiking trips for the summer have been cancelled. The sale of our home will have to wait another year. We have too much to do and there is no way only one person could do it...never mind the actual moving process itself.
The road to recovery will be long. I will walk it (or crutch my way down it) as best I can. I will document the journey here. My goals are to maintain as much of my strength as I can, keep my weight in check (thank heaven for paleo!) and have a quick recovery. I know my tri season is over. I assume most of my races are a no go and only expect that *maybe* I'll get to run in the Girlfriends Half Marathon next October. Again, we'll see.
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