Good morning Bone Smart Friends!
I am so sorry I have not commented on this forum since the beginning of April! Oh my, where does the time go??
Events at home have kept me mentally occupied: My sister, who I am going to Norway with at the end of July, found out she has breast cancer. It was caught very early, thank god! She had a lumpectomy and is currently finishing up with radiation. My husband had to have a biopsy on his prostate, which showed he has cancer. He recently had a PET scan that showed that he does NOT have cancer in his lymph nodes or bones. Again, thank god! Next week we find out what the treatment plan will be. And finally, my 16 year old cat, who also had a biopsy, was diagnosed with Squamous cell carcinoma in his mouth that traveled into his jaw bone.
We kept him on palliative care for about a month when we finally had to let him go. It has been a horrible few weeks.
As for my new knee: I am now 7 months post surgery and doing great. On May 7th I went for my 6 month check up and the doctor said I was doing awesome! He did measure me (because I asked) and said my extension was 0 and my flex was 135! I could NOT believe it. He told me that I have no restrictions & I can do whatever I want. He said I can not hurt my knee at this point. (doing normal exercises....) My knee feels good almost every day. I am pretty much back to doing everything I want. Since then, I have done palates, spin, core, and silver sneaker classes every week. I have been outside weeding and planting my flowers and veggies. I really have not limited myself to anything.
(I am still a bit leery to do our normal bike rides because there are some pretty big hills. I am not sure my quads are strong enough to conquer them right now. I want to wait a few more weeks before attempting them.) In fact, I am leaving for Florida on Thursday to help my mom and sister move into their new home. I feel so good, that I believe the plane ride, running through the airport, riding 90 minutes in a cab, packing boxes, and moving lighter items will all be just fine.
I want to thank all of you who have listened to my complaining about this new knee, for being so patient with me. You all said that it was a year long journey and I would feel good about this new knee after I totally recovered. I didn't believe that I would get there.....but I did. I can honestly say that I am loving life right now. I now know that I will continue to get better. I actually see it occurring in my classes each week. My first spin class I could not get out of the saddle at all (nor did I really try), after 3 weeks, I was able to ride out of the saddle for a few minutes. (I know that doesn't seem like a lot, but it was an awesome achievement for me!) I love seeing my improvements week after week.
The Bone Smart community was a real life saver for me. I spent hours on the forum not only posting my recovery, but reading everyone's recovery too. You all really helped my sanity and gave me the mental strength to get through this extremely tough recovery. I cannot thank you all enough.
I try to tell people who are going through this recovery to join the forum. (I guess I was not a very persuasive messenger, because the women I told, did not join!
)
For those of you new to recovery, trust the Bone Smart community. Their infinite wisdom, compassion, and kindness will help you navigate this long, twisty, journey.
Forever Grateful ~ Renee (Nay Nay)
United States
Hi Renee!
) But, I am really excited to try a silver sneakers class with a friend. I have never done this class, but it seems to be a class that I could take it easy in. I am taking it easy today to rest my knee from yesterdays gym workout. ( my knee is a bit sore & right) Besides walking in the neighborhood, I only did ADLs today. ( I live in a 2 story house w/ a finished basement, so I am constantly going up and down stairs all day!). I will let you know how I do in the silver sneakers class tomorrow!
It was a lot of fun and I was able to do everything without modification. It was nice being in a class where you could do whatever your ability is. Some people stayed in a chair the whole time modifying the exercises, and others used the chair as support for standing. (Which is what I did) Some of the people didn't need the chair to hold onto. You are able to choose the amount of weight for the upper body, along with bands sizes. The instructor often explained how to modify the exercise for each section AND she helped people who needed it. (For example, one woman sitting in a chair, could not reach or bend to put the band around her feet. The instructor came and did it for her.
In fact, she helped that same woman a few times during the class & offered her services to others!) I am planning on doing the class again on Monday with a different instructor, so we will see how that goes. I think Silver Sneakers is a good class to get back into working your whole body and just moving. I love classes, so for me, it was great. The music is also so much fun & made the 45 minutes fly by. I also liked that everyone in the class was just so nice & helpful. Until I am able to do more advance classes, I am planning on staying in this one. Even though in the other classes, like Pilates or Spin, you can modify what or how much you do, the participants are usually younger and go all out. I am very competitive, so I would definitely be urged on to do what they are doing. (It is just my personality.) In the Silver Sneakers class, there were people of all ages, but I would say the majority is over 60.
I am on the ODIC bench today! It is not terrible though. Since it is a rainy, yucky day today in NY, it is the perfect excuse to sit on the couch (after food shopping) and watch a movie. 
I am, however, shocked at how weak my muscles are & how awful my stamina is. When everyone says that this is a year long recovery, you guys weren't kidding!! It is hard work to get back to my previous fitness level. 
