Two steps forward, one step back

Injury is part of the game. It’s something almost every athlete has dealt with, and yet, it never gets any easier to deal with. The past twelve days since I hurt myself at Brighton have been a mix between relaxing, reading, physical therapy and getting really, really antsy.
I think it’s easy for me to downplay my injuries. “It’s not that bad”, “I’m making a big deal out of nothing” or “I can push through this” are common thoughts. Last week, I listened to these thoughts and headed up to Alta for the “pre” High Boy party. It was a wake up call. It made me realize what I can push through and what I shouldn’t; when it takes two friends, and 6 shots of whiskey to put my boot on, I probably shouldn’t be pushing through it. This was realized when I had to ski down from the High Boy party. It took me two hours to get down what would normally take me two minutes. With tears, pain, and eventually taking my skis off, I realized that I not only put myself and risk, but also put those who were trying to help. Lesson learned, not everything is worth pushing through.
Since last week, I’ve been on the trainer as much as my calf will allow, started physical therapy, and have been hitting the pool. My regimen right now is less than exciting. When I go to the pool, I strap on the “granny” pool weights and “run” through the deep end. It’s slow, and not too exciting, but it is definitely better than nothing! I have just over four weeks left of “recovery”. After that, I can start getting my strength back and playing as hard as I like!

photo cred Will Huff

I’ll post more photos once I get them from Re! She took some incredible ones of Steph and I hula hooping the parking lot (luckily, the hula hoop wasn’t as dangerous as skiing!)

Tags: Alta High Boy, Athlete, Injury, Physical Therapy, Recovery, Spinning