In the Fashion Belt

Getting out of bed in the hospital is no easy feat. Moving at all is very difficult. I am on so many drugs that I can barely focus. And it doesn't help that my legs aren't cooperating. But then again, two major muscles were detached and my pelvis was fractured in three places. No big deal.

Every day there is a new PT who comes to rouse me out of bed and 'help' me walk. They have a large belt that they tie around my waist which is meant to be a safety so in case I fall or start to, they can catch me. It really adds a special something to the green paisley (?) decorated gown the hospital provides.

So let's recount: no make up, hair in six day old braids, heavy on the meds, attractive patient gown, TED hose, purple patient socks with floor treads, and - the FASHION belt. It's actually like a leash. Woof.

Hand and Footwork. A Pictorial.

Apparently this is the direction my feet go when I'm not looking.

Trainer Larry's torture machine.
I mean, crutches strengthening machine.

I had a choice of ellipticals. It was overwhelming.

Pulling my weight. Well, hopefully not MY weight. 

So Hip it Hurts

This doesn't work.

This helps, temporarily.

One minute I'm scowling and grunting as I do the exercises Larry instructs me to do. The next minute I'm limping. One day I'm on the elliptical, burning calories away (I hope), then next minute I cannot find a comfortable way to sit, stand or sleep.

I push myself harder on most everything I do. So it's no surprise to me that I do that at the gym. I've been focusing on the 'game day' (surgery) and trying to meet goals. Like losing weight (not happening). Like getting stronger (I'm getting more sore). But I know crutches are looming ahead, and I really have no idea how the pain level will be. I have heard recovery from this surgery is horrible. but it is short-lived. So I have that going for me.

This machine like it will chew me up for breakfast.
Fortunately the exercise was to pull away from it.  

Werk It.

After several weeks of 'Oh my god, is this real?' and 'This can't possibly be my only option",  I decided to hit the whole thing head on. With five year old triplets about to enter kindergarten, I needed to act fast. I scheduled surgery for mid September, figuring that would give them time to adjust to new classes, teachers and friends. Then I'd be down for the count. Once I had their schedules set up and rides to and from activities arranged, I panicked about me.

I approached the gym tentatively at first. I had gone through a period of time where one isle in the market would do me in. Then, all of a sudden, the pain got better. I figured if it was going to hurt anyway, and the surgery would ultimately eliminate or reduce what I am dealing with and working around now, I might as well work out.

I called the owner of my gym and explained the situation. I asked for his guidance in working out and in meeting with a trainer. He pointed me in the right direction and I got going. It hurt, I won't lie. But after one week, I decided instead of thinking of it as 'I-must-get-in-shape-I'm-having-surgery-SIGH', I would do what I did when preparing for a skating competition. I have a deadline date and goals in mind.

Here's what I did:

1) Signed up for and pain in advance for private training (just like skating lessons)
2) Scheduled in gym time on my daily calendar (just like skating time)
3) Paid for the bulk child care option for one month so my son could come along (instead of the excuse that I can't go to the gym because he's with me)
4) Began using my fitness/weight loss app again (I hate seeing how much I have gained), but eventually it will be better
5) Enlisted two gym friends to do the app too so we can encourage each other (regardless of weight loss/fitness goals - they don't have to be the same)
6) Started thinking about my gym sessions and plans as I would with skating. Practice, practice, practice makes perfect, perfect, perfect.

I realized i had been searching for a way to think about all of this that would make sense to me. Equating it to something I know well did the trick. The process is really the same no matter what the details. And I've been doing this most of my life. So why not now? I felt relieved.

Here I was only being relieved of my comfort zone by trainer Larry. 

I also felt sore. The first session with trainer Larry was not painful, and was sort of easy. The next two? Not so much. The difference is the pain from injury or deformity is so very different from that of exercise and feeling the 'burn'.  I kind of like the latter. It's been awhile since I felt it. Hurts so good and all that. I look at the limping and pain tolerance building  as training too. I'll have plenty of it after surgery, I might as well get used to it. I've spent years working through the pain to 'werk' it in front of an audience. This time my audience is my family. I need to be in top shape to perform well. My short term goal is this surgery. My long term goal is to be able to lift my children. If I can't, who will show them who to 'werk' it in life?