How to Make Rehab Sound Cool, If Not Totally Awesome

I thought I was dumbbell curl-to-pressing padded orange weights, until I realized that I was performing an Upper Extremity Workout on an Unstable Surface!

This past week I got on a plane and headed to Vail to see Dr. Millet for my 6-week post-op checkup. It was a bit of a pain as a) I am currently in Boston b) the trip isn't cheap, and c) regardless of money, Vail is kind of a haul just to be making 48-hour trips to slap hands with a doc and do some physical therapy. On the other hand, the cost is (almost) a drop in the bucket when factoring in the other surgery expenses, and both the doctor and the adjoining rehab department, Howard Head, really are that good.

First things first, my knee is doing great. I had some swelling fluid aspirated from the knee, but the analysis came back negative and it was only a product of not getting quite enough ice on it in the summer heat. The mobility and strength of the leg are sound. Second, I can finally engage in activities that activate my quad, such as biking with two legs, walking up and down stairs normally, and everything else that people (myself included) take for granted when they are healthy. I was so happy to be biking on the stationary bike and get my first real aerobic exercise in 4 months that almost got something in both my eyes and started misting up. I also broke out into a huge sweat and needed a towel to wipe down myself and the equipment after 20 minutes. Awesome!

But the really special part of the trip was leveraging my iPad's picture and video capabilities to record the next 6 weeks of my rehab exercises, narrated by Howard Head's Super Rehabilitator Thomas Olson. Thomas has seen me through some if not most of my rehab since the NASTAR Nosedive, and we have developed a good repoire. It so happened that I was showing him a picture from my photo gallery when we were planning the next 6 weeks of therapy, when we realized it would probably be best to capture the exercises on picture and video instead of typing out an explanation.

Thomas is very technical, which is great when I am so limited in mobility because it makes everything I do sound really intense. Here's a clip to show you what I'm talking about. This hurt like hell by the way!

I would have totally butchered doing this drill correctly in about 2 weeks time, and definitely wouldn't have felt as cool if I couldn't remember that not only was I lifting a 6 lb medicine ball above my head, I was doing a progression of an isometric lunge hold. All kidding aside, the 20 or so videos I have with me now are hugely helpful. I'm looking forward to working on these progressions until I head back to Vail for my 12-week checkup...who knows what kind of crazy stuff I'll be into by then!

Until then I'm gonna get stronger and watch the Summer Olympics and follow the training/racing in New Zealand. Go USA! GO ITA!!!

Cannonball!

You know that scene in Caddyshack when the caddies storm the gates of the swimming pool at the Bushwood Country Club for their 30 minutes per week of open swim? Almost every weekday afternoon at around 3pm you can watch it played out in real life at the community pool in Cambridge, Mass. About a 15 minute walk from the youth center, the Veterans Memorial Wading and Swimming Pool is constantly overrun by the 30 kids attending the Willis Moore Youth Center summer sports camp. While things usually settle down after about 15 minutes, no trip is truly complete without an exhaustive attempt at the perfect cannonball. As someone who is (supposedly) responsible for the kids I used to try to make sure that the other pool users were forewarned, but it's a lot funnier to watch the bystander's expressions the exact moment when he or she realizes their goal of wading in the pool without getting their hair wet is nothing but a pipe dream.

With this in mind, I'd like to present a formal analysis from last Friday's highlight reel showcasing a range of techniques that have been championed thus far:



Exhibit A: The Butt Drop

Maximum radial coverage, effective with more mass.

Exhibit B: The Face Plant

May induce temporary discomfort, but allows for permanent bragging rights

Exhibit C: The 80lb Cannonball

Showing classic form with knees up to one's neck, this method is especially effective in stealth mode

Exhibit D: The Tag Team

Brutally devastating, requires a high degree of coordination and used only in extreme circumstances. Bystanders truly have no defense.

Exhibit E: The Backscratcher

Because somewhere out there it's snowing, and it never hurts to practice!

I'm heading to the doctor in a little over a week for my 6 week checkup. So far things have been progressing very well, and I'm looking forward to graduating to a more intense rehab after getting my clean bill of health. Until then I'll be critiquing the many types of cannonballs performed by the able-bodied. Here's to summer weather and glacier skiing!

Sports Camp

Team Flash

While healing up from knee surgery, sitting around and staring at my knee was not an option. Last week I hooked up with the Willis Moore Youth Center and began volunteering at their summer sports camp. Armed with a coaches whistle and a set of crutches, I went Patches O'Houlihan on the 30 middle school kids, coaching them in my disabled state from the sidelines.

Each week the camp focusses on a new sport. Last week was basketball, next is football, and then we move to 4 other sports before moving back to football and basketball. It's clear that we started off with the group's most popular sport. On Friday I found myself way over my head talking with a thirteen year-old about the NBA draft the night before, specifically why Jared Sullinger may or may not be a good fit for the Celtics next year, and how far the Pistons are going to go with their new influx of talent.

Game Time!

Simon, an on-duty local police officer on a community engagement assignment, and I were paired together to coach one of the three teams. We are in charge of running practices and scrimmages against the other two teams each day, with everything building up to championship game on Fridays. This week we had a great group of 10 quick but undersized (save for about 3 kids, just about anyone can be considered undersized) kids who were excited to take home the title. Named Team Flash, we had moments of brilliance throughout the week but came in ranked the 3rd seed (out of 3 teams) for Championship Friday. This meant we had to win the play-in game versus Black Magic in order to play the super favorites The Rejects. After being down only two points at halftime, we let the game get away from us and Black Magic proved too much for Team Flash. In some form of consolation, Black Magic was able to upset The Rejects in the title game, proving that their black magic was too much for anyone that day. The Rejects were also missing their "big" man due to a family road trip....ah, the drama of middle school competition.

Simon and I blame ourselves for not advancing Team Flash further in the title bracket. While the loss was tough to stomach for everyone (some kids got a little emotional after the games) next week brings new promise with a different pairing of coaches and a shuffled set of kids. If you have any ideas feel free to send them in!

Instituting the triangle office

We need you to be BIG inside the paint!

Refusing to cry, even in defeat

Surgery Update: Success

Double peace signs pre-sugery, post-drugs

First, and most importantly: congrats to all the ITA baller athletes who are qualifying for London. We get internal emails within the group about milestone accomplishments, and they are coming fast and furious at the moment. The newest Olympic entry goes to Lea Davison, WOOHOO!!!! It's pretty sweet and very motivating to read about the success ITA athletes are having. Keep it up!

Now, for the update.

I'm getting good at surgery. This being my fourth trip under the knife and second in three months, I had few questions heading into Wednesday's procedure. I got into DEN 12:30 the night before, and arrived at the Vail Valley Surgery Center at 8am on a little more than 4 hours of sleep. I was first up on doctor's surgery to-do list, and by 8:24am I was in a gown, my leg was shaved, and I had an IV in. My only issue was that I was insanely hungry. Flight delays and pre-surgery food restrictions after midnight meant that I hadn't eaten anything substantial since 2pm the day before, so I was happy to see the process moving along so quickly.

Things continued to go quickly, efficiently, and without much ceremony. Each doctor/nurse/hospital person I dealt with would begin with "I see that you've done this plenty of times before so you know what's going to happen. Any questions?" I even knew some of the people from last time! I'm still a huge chicken shit about needles, but even that wasn't too bad. The IV was almost worse than the enormous needle that went into my hip for the nerve block (I was already half under at that time, otherwise I would have fainted. Again.). By 11:30 the surgery was complete, I was back in reality, and spent the rest of the day eating, resting, and taking a ride on the Grade A IV-induced no pain train.

Post-op, things have been great. The team at Howard Head Physical Therapy has done an amazing job getting the swelling out of the knee in a short time, allowing me to regain control of my quad muscle and limit the amount of atrophy. I think the relaxed and positive attitude that I took toward this procedure has contributed to the progress as well. I didn't dwell on the fact that I was getting operated on in June, and instead just went in, got fixed, and am continuing to heal. My rehab schedule is still unbelievably slow (not much for the first 6 weeks), but I've never had such high range of motion without pain before. Things are definitely going in the right direction and it's great to be on the road to a full recovery.

I'm looking towards a productive and fun summer, even if I won't be in Zermatt, Chile, New Zealand, or anywhere else my summer schedule usually takes me. The prep nurse shaving my leg recommended shaving both legs for the whole summer "so I won't look so funny", but we'll see. Thanks for all the support from everyone, so far so good!

Bring on the Next One!

FIS forms and rehab schedules...all part of the road to recovery

I finally have a date set for my (hopefully) last surgery. Dr. Millett remarked in my meeting last week that the bone tunnels have filled in quicker than expected and that I am recovery ahead of schedule. I had hoped that my extensive experience in the post-surgery healing department might speed up the process, and he confirmed this by saying my diet and rest schedule probably had a lot to do with my recovery....well aren't I a model patient!

This next/last surgery, scheduled for June 13th, will give me an ACL. I have been without one the past 10 weeks and would very much like to have back in my life. Looking at my leg right now, the quad muscle has stayed relatively strong, I'm walking around and biking like a normal person, even the hairs on my legs have grown back from the first surgery leg shave. It's a little bit of a bummer that I'll be going under the knife so deep into shorts season, but I couldn't be happier to know the date of this procedure as it provides a much better view of my healing schedule going forward.

Hoping for a good surgery and a fast recovery!

Racer Chicks

As it has been hopefully well documented, competing at the highest level in ski racing without the support of the national governing body can be challenging. Athletes put in this position compete not only on the slopes but off, as they are forced to raise funds, budget, schedule effective training blocks, prepare physically, manage a race schedule and coordinate intents with the USST, and of course perform on the race hill, all on their own.

Last week newly crowned ex-US Teamers Hailey Duke, Megan McJames, and NCAA standout Katie Hartman joined forces to create an elite female training group with Aspen Valley Ski Club. Hailey and Megan competed on the World Cup circuit last season while Katie finished up her collegiate career with CU. I spoke with Katie a little bit between runs at US Nationals about her decision to dive in headfirst to the world of post-collegiate skiing, and while she didn’t have all of the details worked out at the time she was certainly sure about wanting to build off of her collegiate career and continue racing. Hailey also mentioned at the Mammoth Invitation that something like this might be in the works, and while she and Megan are coming from the other end of spectrum of being told ‘no’ by the Ski Team after so many years of ‘yes’, I was impressed that her passion to compete was still as high as ever.

From someone already camped out in the trenches, I hope their group kicks ass this year and wish them the best of luck. I am willing to bet that their view of ski racing will be a little different by the end of the season, for better or worse. I can promise logistical issues and hopefully not too many funding problems, but all these issues pale in comparison to the goal. As in the rest of life, the journey is just as important as the destination. Like when someone borrows your car, treats it like a rally mobile, blogs about it, and even when you think everything has been put back it turns out the car needs its second alignment in 5,000 miles (yes Warner, that just happened). So much to look forward to!

 You can “Like” their Facebook page here.

POC does OBX

POC has a great trip each spring to Outer Banks for a little sun, surf, and sail. The guest list is a wide group of those from the ski and action sports community, from POC athletes to regional and national reps of various companies to the director and instructors from the Aspen ski school. Some of the world's best kitesurfers were on hand as well, probably to make sure that none of the winter athletes in the group actually thought they were good at getting out on the surf. A couple of base jumpers were on hand well, rounding out the motley crew. I was lucky enough to get down there for a couple of days, and although the knee prevented me getting onto any kiteboards, I was able to do a bunch of swimming and some saltwater rehab. This is the last of my end-of-season trips, but maybe the best. Thanks to Willie Ford and Jarka Duba for making this happen, I now have another reason to rehab so I can get out on a kite!

Day at the beach

GoPro/POC skydiving event at REAL Watersports

A little live blues at REAL Watersports pre-skydivers

Pro Snowboarder and his one-year old Bali, rocking outfits at the "8 bucks or less from the souvenir store" costume party

Pic with Erin Sullivan, former POC rep and the woman behind this trip

Another sunset kite session