As the rain returned this week, I found myself longing for clear days, open road and the wind in my face. It is amazing how much you learn about your body when you really focus on recovery. When you get to a certain point it is so easy to take your foot off the gas and start to coast. The pain is there but it is manageable and whilst things are not firing properly you can get through the day. So much so that most people would not even know there was an issue.
It is even harder when you fall into the pattern of responding to work and life demands all the while telling yourself, things will improve. Well if you have followed along with my recovery you will know that I am not someone to settle for mediocrity especially after training so hard to get fit last year. But that said I totally see the trap and how easy it is to put up with things, well just not working quite right.
I have been amazed at how my body has responded to recovery, that is amazed in a what the hell kind or way rather than an in a that's really cool kind of way, and how there is no one thing to fix it all, or was that one ring to find them all? sorry that just slipped out. The body does an amazing job of protecting itself and adjusting to situations on its own, but for whatever reason it does not do such a good job of figuring out how to re-adjust . I have found myself ponding more than once how unfair and down right flawed the system is. Maybe back in the dim and distant past we had the innate ability to tune into the needs of the body as we recovered from a hunting injury, or maybe we just got eaten by a dinosaur as part of natures natural selection.
Regardless, today as I am finding out in abundance it takes active participation. I have had to spend time thinking, yup thinking about what I can and can't do. For example I could not tighten my butt muscles and it took me focusing and thinking about it before finally I could turn them on.
Lets talk cycling. So I am determined to get back to riding and getting in the wind, but last month I just could not wrap my head around how to do it. Every time I got on the bike I would end up with back pain or glute pain. That was when I made the decision to change to a cycling specific PT. We dialed in my bike fit and dialed down my bike time to 30 minute sessions at a cadence of around 80 - 90 rpm with low resistance, every other day. The days in between I do specific exercises and every day I do some Foundation Training. I have found out that one side of my body from the waist down is weak and overworked because the other side of the body is just not pulling its weight. Ironically the side that is overworked is lit up and really grumpy and the other side is like Meh. So now my focus has switched to the lazy side.
Above the waist things are still solid and not in a muscular toned way but rather in a wooden board way. Even focusing on laying flat without my ribs popping off the floor is a challenge. But the good news is that progress is being made. Nights are still not what you would call restful but this week I have ridden the most since the accident and still feel like I could ride this weekend.
I have a cunning backup plan and it is called an electric bike. I signed up for a couple of Sondors eBikes (http://igg.me/at/storm-ebike/x). I have to say it is the cheapest bike I have been the most excited to receive. I really can't wait to go riding with Sarah and have her pace me. But wait I must as they are not going to be hear until May at the earliest.
Whatever you do this weekend - Max Life Out (it truly is a gift).
No comments:
Post a Comment