Encouraging Progress Continues....

Biked 5 miles yesterday and had absolutely no pain in the legs - Also, after identifying that I had almost completely lost all glute/hip activation while doing day-to-day activities, I have started to do certain strengthening exercises, such as X-band walking and the first two exercises detailed in this video, and my back pain has been gradually subsiding, which is awesome.

Some Good Signs

Biked on Friday for 10 minutes - No issues, but still haven't ramped it up yet - Either way, it's progress.... Start Elliptical in a week, and running in two...I'll keep everyone posted

Recovery Behind Schedule - Some Frustration

Went to Physical Therapy yesterday, but unfortunately had a 24 hour bug of some kind and it was mutually agreed upon that we'd wait until Friday to start the bike - Which will be about 5 weeks after surgery, when I thought it'd be 4. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood because I also felt a little burning sensation while doing some rehab exercises yesterday that eerily reminded me of the CS symptoms. I was told that this was due to intense muscle fatigue, but I'm still worried. They also began to massage the hell out of my legs - and wow! It was very close to being as painful as rolfing - a good pain, but still, excruciating... Hopefully it will start to get rid of some of the scar tissue and be able to increase my range of motion in the muscles - I'll keep you posted Friday on how the long awaited bike trial finally goes.....

In terms of every day activities though, there are absolutely no issues

Updates - Recovery and Physical Therapy

Hey all, just a quick update - Have progressed to doing squats (extremely sore! In a good way though) and heel raises throughout the day pain free which is awesome - Pre-surgery those could simply not be done without the compartment syndrome high pressures stopping me ... tightness in the calf is abating more and more every day - This Monday I start bike and massage and I'll post how it feels....

Three Weeks Out - Physical Therapy, Recovery, and Questions

Hey all, sorry it's been a while - things have been busy. Last post explained my first post-op visit and left off with me excited for my first PT appointment. I went to a nice place in the Longwood Medical Area (for non-bostonians, that probably won't resonate) where they were recommended by my surgeon due to the volume of compartment syndrome afflicted patients they receive. I was still somewhat apprehensive that I might be assigned to a physical therapist that would not have significant experience with CS, but those worries were quickly placated when I met Jerry, who seemed to know his stuff.

He explained that for another week and a half, calf/ankle stretching and some very simple calf/ankle strengthening exercises would really be the only PT I would be doing, as the legs are still healing from the trauma of surgery. At about 4 weeks post-op, he explained, is when the real physical therapy would begin, with some bicycling, and, in his words, "massaging the hell" out of my legs (I assume that, among other things, it goes to break up scar tissue).

Interestingly, a reader of this blog named Tom has mentioned that his doctor advised that he should start running as soon as he could in order to break up the scar tissue. This seems to be in direct conflict with what both my surgeon and physical therapists have advised - Namely, to absolutely not run at least for the first 6 weeks, and to err on the side of not pushing it in any activity one might find themselves in. It seems that there is obviously two things that need to happen post-op - your legs need to heal, and scar tissue needs to be broken up (obviously there are additional factors, such as strengthening, but these two seem to be the crux of this conflict) - Now I would assume there would be an optimal time where the healing of the legs would reach a point that increased efforts to break up scar tissue would not compromise the recovery - the question is when that point is. So if anyone else who has been advised by a doctor as to what point they should begin running activities (and keep in mind that in both cases 4 compartments were released on both legs) then please speak up!

As for general updates on leg ability, I now can be on my feet all day with barely any pain, although I sometimes encounter swelling late in the day, however it is not too significant. Yesterday I walked all over the city, probably a combined two or three miles, with minimal discomfort. Stairs pose no issue. My right leg is still a little behind my left leg, in that the calf is tighter and flexibility is just not as far along. But overall they are still gradually improving. Next physical therapy appointment is Wednesday, so I'll keep you guys posted.....