Rehabilitation

It is exactly 33 days since I crashed and almost all of the pain associated with my collarbone break has gone. Each day it gets easier to do day-to-day activities. It is amazing how much joy I get from being able to do movements that I always took for granted.

Kerryn Charman and I in Palo Alto, California – 7 August, 2008

One of the most painful movements was crossing my arms to lift off a t-shirt, jumper, etc. Until yesterday I had to bend forward from the waist and wiggle out of tshirts in a contorted manner. Now I can lift my arms above my head and undress ‘normally’. I can also touch my head and I don’t have to shampoo my hair with one hand. My latest achievement yesterday was being able to put my hair in a ponytail. It was too painful until now to bend my arm behind my head.

I have had trouble sleeping at night and finding a comfortable position has been difficult. Bob had to help arrange pillows around me and also pull me upright if I needed to go to the bathroom during the night. I was unable to sit up without his assistance as it hurt so much through the shoulder. I have had to sleep on my back but had road rash on my glut and elbow so lying on it wasn’t pleasant but I wasn’t healed enough to lie on my side. Last week I started sleeping on my side, with a pillow stuffed under my arm to take the pressure off the collarbone, and another pillow along my stomach so I couldn’t roll onto my stomach.

After 3 weeks I decided I was mended enough to start riding a trainer. Luckily, the VIS had one of their unsold 2008 Bianchi 928 road bikes, so I was able to take it home and set it up on the ergo. I have been on this ergo for 2 weeks now – JOY! I am convinced the time on my heartrate monitor goes into “some warped slow mode”, whenever I get on this ergo. I try to focus on my cadence, power, heartrate or a song and not look at how many minutes have passed by. Last week, I had to sit upright with no hands as it hurt too much to put any weight through my arm. I have really improved in a week and can now ride out of the seat and with my arms holding the bars when seated, and don’t have any pain.

One of the VIS’s Bianchi road bikes

I had more x-rays taken earlier this week and today I saw the VIS doctor who said I can now go out on the road again. Yippee – those ergo sessions were so monotonous to try and duplicate long training rides. Of course, I usually do ergo sessions to do strength endurance and threshold intervals but for long steady km’s, I really prefer to head out into the hills of Kinglake, rather than to stare at a wall.

I am back in the gym Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays, focusing on strength and power work as well as specific shoulder exercises as directed by my physio. Dee Jennings (VIS Core Stability coach) has given me a challenging gym program, specifically targeting my new goal – endurance track racing. I look forward to focusing on track racing now and seeing what I can achieve.

Stay tuned for more news and thanks for reading.