Groundhog Day

I'm stuck in a Groundhog Day scenario. Every day, I follow the same limited routine to fill my days. I'm speaking about my recovery from total knee replacement surgery six weeks ago. I should be getting on with my regular routine by now, filling my winter afternoons with stained glass projects, workouts, pup walks, fat bike rides along the river trails (that one may be a bit too ambitious for six weeks), or even driving myself to the store, but none of those things are happening because my recovery has not gone to plan. 

We met with my doctor last Monday to discuss the minimal range of motion I'm left with after my surgery–about 65° of flexion. I've been stuck at this point for at least two weeks, and I should have re-established nearly my full range of motion by now. I need 90° of flexion before I can begin to ride my indoor bike trainer, and I need 90-120° to climb stairs comfortably. The 65° I'm left with is woefully inadequate for much other than limping around the house and sitting with my leg elevated and occasionally iced while I still work to reduce swelling in my knee. 

Doctor Johnson said he does about 200 total knee replacement surgeries like mine yearly. Of those 200, approximately 2 patients need to have a manual manipulation done under sedation to force their knee to break through the scar tissue that's developed and is impeding their ability to bend their knee. I've been trying so hard to push through the pain at the limit of my knee's ability to bend further, but no matter how much force I use, my efforts are futile. It's been frustrating for me because my recovery is essentially on hold until I have more flexibility to work with. That's not to say I've not made progress because I have. I walked 1.5 miles outdoors using my cane a few days ago, but it took me an hour. Still, it's progress. And my knee isn't nearly as sore or swollen as it had been. Today is the first day I've not used any pain meds since my surgery. 

Dr. Johnson said the problems I'm experiencing are most likely associated with the blood thinner I'm on. (I wrote in my last blog entry about excessive bleeding in my knee due to the blood thinner I'm taking.) He talked to us about how the drug I take for anticoagulation, Coumadin, is nearly always involved in difficult rehabs such as mine. 

I'm looking forward to having the procedure done ten days from now, but not the procedure itself. It sounds a little barbaric (but not nearly as traumatic to my knee as the surgery). I'll be under for 15-20 minutes, but the manipulation only takes less than a minute to perform. My physical therapist mentioned to me that she's never observed a manipulation of the kind I'll be getting, but she would like to. I called her office this morning to leave her a message that if she would like to observe my procedure, I wouldn't mind (provided she can arrange it).

Something important that I'm taking away from this experience is how easily an injury can leave someone dependent on others. I don't know what I would do without Tammy's help, and I prefer not to put her in this position again anytime soon. As I reflect on that, I realize that I may have reached the point in my life (I've pondered for years when it might come) where I need to remind myself that I'm no longer the invincible 30, 40, or even 60-year-old I once was. As much as I used to enjoy riding the mountain bike trails at Murphy or Lebanon mountain bike parks, it may be time to limit myself to the Minnesota River trails, aka the river bottoms, where there's less risk of crashing and injury. That is all assuming I get the flexion back in my knee because I'll need it to be able to ride again. That said, I see more golf in my future—something less risky.

Also, with this new mindset, forty+ years of logging my workout activities in spiral binders of log books have ended. Recording my workouts was something I began doing in 1984 when I took up running. Even with the advent of online platforms such as Strava and Garmin to record such data, I was reluctant to give up my log books until now. It's time to move on.

My iPad and YouTube have been instrumental in filling my days lately. First, it was reruns of Shark Tank, and then it was all 28 episodes of season 16 of Married at First Sight on Netflix (as a favor to Tammy). But I've recently discovered something much better than either of those two to occupy my time: YouTube Golf. I stumbled onto Rick Shiels's channel a while ago but didn't dive too deeply into it. My YouTube algorithm teased me with a link to Grant Hovart's channel, and I bit. From Grant's channel, I was eventually directed back to Rick's channel as they're both major players in the world of YouTube golf influencers who play matches against one another. I'm following at least a half dozen golf channels that cross-pollinate with one another. The filming is done with cellphones, GoPros, and some nicer gear. The videos have an amateurish, relatable quality that just works for me. 

In addition to the various golfers he plays against, Grant has also been playing matches against some more notable professional PGA Tour players. They spot him with a 5-stroke lead, and he tries to hang on to beat them—players such as Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm, Collin Morikawa, Tony Finau, Bryson Dechambeau, and Sergio Garcia. But I probably enjoy matches between other amateur golf influencers the most. The trash-talking never gets old among friends.

Here's a short tease from Grant's channel.

That's all I've got.