Gmaps Pedometer
Okay, there is a lot of junk out there on the web. Especially when it comes to walking, running, biking, etc. But I have actually found something good. It is called Gmaps Pedometer. What makes it great? First it uses google maps. Second it is simple to use! I mean simple! If you want to know how far you walk, run or bike, use this tool.
How It Works
When you first go to the site, you type in the address of the starting point. where it says "jump to:". you will notice a "Zoom 12" next to it. change it to 17 by pressing the drop down button and selecting "Zoom:17". In my opinion it gives you the best view. Next, hit the "Start Recording" button. Now simply click on points along your route. It will show you mile marks, and calculate how far you would actually go. It is great and fairly accurate.
Points of Confusion
It took me awhile to figure out how to do it, and I don't see any help menu. You must double click to record a point. There are tow options in the center left. One Says "turn off mile marker" and the other says "Turn off calorie counter." If the line says Turn it "off" then it is on. If you click the link, it turns it off and changes to "Turn on mile marker" or "Turn on Calorie Counter". I think it is backwards, but it might make sense to everyone else. Also, where is says "Draw Map" I selected the "automatically (for cyclists)" and would do so even if I were going to walk or run the course. If you don't, you have to add more point or it will having running through houses. If you do use it, it takes fewer point and automatically follows the road. Use manual if you are going off road.
Things I Don't Like - Elevation Feature
If you select "small" or "large" elevation, the map becomes shorter and a graph appears. Unless I were serious about elevation It doesn't add much. If you want this feature, I would plot the map first and print it, then look at the elevation and print it second.
Things I Don't Like - Calorie Counter
When you turn on the calorie counter it will ask you your weight and then calories burned is calculated and appears bellow that. I have no idea where they get that number from or how the number is calculated. Especially since age, sex, and what exercise your doing, and how long it takes you, changes the amount of calories burned. In my case, I mapped out a course of 1.07 miles and the Gmap Pedometer calculated 170 calories burned. I looked up some formulas, and calculated the calories for running the distance in 15 minutes (what I am actually doing it in right now), and it came out with 147 calories. I also calculated the calories for walking and it came out with 123 calories. So It shoots a little high on the calorie burn, but it looks like a pretty good guide.
Over All
this is a really good walking, running, biking map distance calculate. Simply plot your points and print your map. Google Maps is used by the USA Track and Field to assist officials in measuring road races so I am confident in the distance.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
People Were Meant To Walk
Walking and and the Human History
No matter what you believe on the origin of man, one thing is for certain. Until recent history people walked everywhere. Mass migrations across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas have occurred. Towns and cities throughout history have an average distance of five mile. That is what one person can reasonably walk in one day, do work, and walk back. Armies walked to battle, pioneers walk to new homes, workers walked to work, mothers walked to the store, and children walked to school.
Domesticating The Horse
Around 4000 BC humans began to domesticate the horse. Though you could ride a horse, most people used the horse as a work animal. They plowed field, pulled wagons, or moved and lifted heavy objects. Rarely to you ride your horse for transportation.
Mongols Riding the Horse
The great Mongol army of Genghis Khan few road the horse as transportation. The group had soldiers and their families and they walked to combat. Once they arrived near an enemy, the soldiers would mount their horses. As soon as the battle was over, they got off. A few would ride to heard the horses and other farm animals to the next battle.
Hollywood and the Cowboy
In every western I have seen cowboys road horses everywhere. It actually seemed everyone road horses everywhere. Cowboys crossing the plains on unending rides. Horse hitches outside every building. Everyone had a horse.
The Real West and the Horse
Though horses were common, most people walked to town. They would never waste the strength of their horse to go to town. Hitching up a buggy took time also. If you had a buggy, you had a servant that would set it up for you. Even then, you took the buggy to church or to town, and then spent the rest of the day walking around. At the end of the day you took the buggy home. You would still walk to work, to school or to town.
How Far Can A Horse Travel
If you race a horse, it can run almost two miles and then it is to tired to run any farther. If you road a horse at a run, you could reasonably take it 10 miles. This was also the distance used by the pony express to change horses. If you walked a horse it could go 20 to 40 miles. For quick long distance travel the horse was great, but around the home and town. You still walked.
Our Body is Designed to Walk
If you look at the way our bodies are designed you quickly see that walking is the most efficient way for us to travel. You might say "Duh, No Kidding." Though it is obvious, everything behind the design of our body revolves around walking. We burn fat most efficiently when walking. Our legs can take use 10 miles in a day at an easy pace (with a couple of breaks) and you would not feel tired. The way our eyes see allows us focus on an object even when walking at a fast pace.
Why We Don't Walk
Well, someone invented the car and then Ford made them cheep enough for everyone, then the government made roads and freeways every where. Now the store is too far away to walk to. Work is too far away to walk to. School is too far or too dangerous to walk to (though I walked to school, elementary, Junior high, and high school. Even college.) The mall is no longer down the street, the movies are on the other side of town, and we have altered our culture to be about cars. So without a car we are in trouble.
How We can Become A Walking People
First you have to (including me), decide we are going to walk. If it is close enough, walk. My grocery store is a half mile away from my house. Unless I am buying bags of groceries, I walk to the store. Get out your front door and walk with someone. Meet at a park or walkway with friends and walk. When you take kids to the park, don't sit on the benches, walk around the playground. It does all start with deciding to walk.
How Far We Should Walk Every Day
Everything I have read about walking for fitness or walking to loose weight points to one magic number. That number is not a measure of time or miles, but steps. Every person should walk 10,000 steps every day. you are probably thinking "WOW! 10,000 STEPS! ARE YOU HIGH!" Well, I'm not. I put on a pedometer last spring and walked 2000 steps just doing laundry. Walking back and forth between the dirty cloths, the Washer, the dryer, and where I folded cloths, and then putting them away. I walked 2,500 steps just to the store and back. I walked 15,000 steps mowing my lawn (long story).
Here Is The Walking Challenge
I challenge everyone to walk 10,000 steps every day. Even if all you do is walk around the house, walk to the corner and back, or walk around doing house or yard work. You will feel better physically, feel better about yourself, and you will notice that you will loose some weight too. Next post will be about walking and burning calories.
The Prize
Part of the prize is going to be a very nice Omron pedometer. I have one, my wife has one, and they are great. Tell your friends about the contest and have them check out my blog. Post comments about your walking. We want to hear how your doing. Good luck and have fun walking.
No matter what you believe on the origin of man, one thing is for certain. Until recent history people walked everywhere. Mass migrations across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas have occurred. Towns and cities throughout history have an average distance of five mile. That is what one person can reasonably walk in one day, do work, and walk back. Armies walked to battle, pioneers walk to new homes, workers walked to work, mothers walked to the store, and children walked to school.
Domesticating The Horse
Around 4000 BC humans began to domesticate the horse. Though you could ride a horse, most people used the horse as a work animal. They plowed field, pulled wagons, or moved and lifted heavy objects. Rarely to you ride your horse for transportation.
Mongols Riding the Horse
The great Mongol army of Genghis Khan few road the horse as transportation. The group had soldiers and their families and they walked to combat. Once they arrived near an enemy, the soldiers would mount their horses. As soon as the battle was over, they got off. A few would ride to heard the horses and other farm animals to the next battle.
Hollywood and the Cowboy
In every western I have seen cowboys road horses everywhere. It actually seemed everyone road horses everywhere. Cowboys crossing the plains on unending rides. Horse hitches outside every building. Everyone had a horse.
The Real West and the Horse
Though horses were common, most people walked to town. They would never waste the strength of their horse to go to town. Hitching up a buggy took time also. If you had a buggy, you had a servant that would set it up for you. Even then, you took the buggy to church or to town, and then spent the rest of the day walking around. At the end of the day you took the buggy home. You would still walk to work, to school or to town.
How Far Can A Horse Travel
If you race a horse, it can run almost two miles and then it is to tired to run any farther. If you road a horse at a run, you could reasonably take it 10 miles. This was also the distance used by the pony express to change horses. If you walked a horse it could go 20 to 40 miles. For quick long distance travel the horse was great, but around the home and town. You still walked.
Our Body is Designed to Walk
If you look at the way our bodies are designed you quickly see that walking is the most efficient way for us to travel. You might say "Duh, No Kidding." Though it is obvious, everything behind the design of our body revolves around walking. We burn fat most efficiently when walking. Our legs can take use 10 miles in a day at an easy pace (with a couple of breaks) and you would not feel tired. The way our eyes see allows us focus on an object even when walking at a fast pace.
Why We Don't Walk
Well, someone invented the car and then Ford made them cheep enough for everyone, then the government made roads and freeways every where. Now the store is too far away to walk to. Work is too far away to walk to. School is too far or too dangerous to walk to (though I walked to school, elementary, Junior high, and high school. Even college.) The mall is no longer down the street, the movies are on the other side of town, and we have altered our culture to be about cars. So without a car we are in trouble.
How We can Become A Walking People
First you have to (including me), decide we are going to walk. If it is close enough, walk. My grocery store is a half mile away from my house. Unless I am buying bags of groceries, I walk to the store. Get out your front door and walk with someone. Meet at a park or walkway with friends and walk. When you take kids to the park, don't sit on the benches, walk around the playground. It does all start with deciding to walk.
How Far We Should Walk Every Day
Everything I have read about walking for fitness or walking to loose weight points to one magic number. That number is not a measure of time or miles, but steps. Every person should walk 10,000 steps every day. you are probably thinking "WOW! 10,000 STEPS! ARE YOU HIGH!" Well, I'm not. I put on a pedometer last spring and walked 2000 steps just doing laundry. Walking back and forth between the dirty cloths, the Washer, the dryer, and where I folded cloths, and then putting them away. I walked 2,500 steps just to the store and back. I walked 15,000 steps mowing my lawn (long story).
Here Is The Walking Challenge
I challenge everyone to walk 10,000 steps every day. Even if all you do is walk around the house, walk to the corner and back, or walk around doing house or yard work. You will feel better physically, feel better about yourself, and you will notice that you will loose some weight too. Next post will be about walking and burning calories.
The Prize
Part of the prize is going to be a very nice Omron pedometer. I have one, my wife has one, and they are great. Tell your friends about the contest and have them check out my blog. Post comments about your walking. We want to hear how your doing. Good luck and have fun walking.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
The Contest - Win a Prize
More on the Contest
So I had a couple of comments and a few emails telling me that I need a picture. That way everyone can see what I look like and can better guess my weight. So in the next two days, I will have a picture.
Once the picture is up, email your guess to getmyfatbuttinshape@gmail.com
The contest will last until January 15th 2009. All entries must be received before 11:59pm EST of that date, in order to count.
The weight: You must use pounds, also described as lbs, and ounces! You may use decimal points, IE 100.5 pounds.
Who will win? The person that comes closest to the weight wins. If you guess right on, Yeah! If more than one person guesses correct we will have multiple winners. The winners will be contacted by email. Once I get the mailing addresses, I will mail out the prize.
The prize, or prizes, will be announced in the next couple of days.
So I had a couple of comments and a few emails telling me that I need a picture. That way everyone can see what I look like and can better guess my weight. So in the next two days, I will have a picture.
Once the picture is up, email your guess to getmyfatbuttinshape@gmail.com
The contest will last until January 15th 2009. All entries must be received before 11:59pm EST of that date, in order to count.
The weight: You must use pounds, also described as lbs, and ounces! You may use decimal points, IE 100.5 pounds.
Who will win? The person that comes closest to the weight wins. If you guess right on, Yeah! If more than one person guesses correct we will have multiple winners. The winners will be contacted by email. Once I get the mailing addresses, I will mail out the prize.
The prize, or prizes, will be announced in the next couple of days.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Feeling Good Walking and Running
Another Walk and Run
Well, I did it. Another walk and run. I went about 1 mile and a half, in about 18 minutes. It felt really good. Once again I ran 3 minutes and ran 2 1/2 minutes. This will be my additional 10% run and Thursday I will just stick to the 15 minutes. I really don't want to over do it.
Motivation
So many people have email me that they walk or run for fitness, then stop. They just can't seem to keep up with it. then they ask me how I stay motivated. The first part of motivation desire. you have got to want the results more than the inclination to not go out and walk or run. another part is Hope. Do you have the hope that running or walking will actually help you? do you believe it? Well do. when you believe it and want it. you will get it.
Time
Another reason people have told me they don't keep up with running or walking is because they don't have time. These same people have time to read email, surf the net, play on their wii, watch Monday night football, etc. I would suggest 30 minutes a day, and believe me that's not much. It is essentially 2 Saturday morning cartoons. If nothing else 15 minutes a day! That's it. Hope and Desire
While at PT a saw a number of older people that fell down and hurt themselves. Just from falling down. I know of people that just can't do basic physical activity. Walk to the corner, go up stairs, or do house work, because they have slowly become to weak to do them. The lack of exercise could have been from an injury, an illness, or (the most common) time. The older you get the faster time goes by. I don't want to be that guy that is 70 years old and need help getting out of a chair. Well, no matter what your situation is, it is never to late! I know of a women who took up running at 70.
Getting Started
If you have had an illness or injury that has prevented you from exercise of any kind, I suggest you talk to your doctor and get a referral to a Physical Therapist. Physical Therapy will get you on the right path, at the right pace, designed for you. Some long term injuries may require special medical treatment. I would suggest that you get the treatment you need and get on a physical therapy plan. If it has just been a long time since you have done and fitness program, once again consult your doctor first. Once you have been cleared, do a search on my blog for walking and start a walking program. If you choose to run, ease into running.
You Will Be Surprised
Walking and running will help you feel better physically, feel better about yourself, and get your body moving.
Running Is Not For Me
That's fine. I will post about running later, but there are plenty of things you can do other than running.
Walking Is Not For Me.
Okay, now we have a problem. In a post about running I will also talk about walking. But walking is essential to everything we do. We get out of bed and WALK to the bathroom, WALK to the kitchen, and WALK to the car. Every exercise program must include at least walking.
NEW POST AND CONTEST!
In the next week, I will post how much I weigh! email me with how much you think I weigh. the closest guesses will win a prize. Email your guess to getmyfatbuttinshape@gmail.com and get a chance to win something special. i will post the Prize in the next few days. In the mean time I need to get my fat butt in shape.
Well, I did it. Another walk and run. I went about 1 mile and a half, in about 18 minutes. It felt really good. Once again I ran 3 minutes and ran 2 1/2 minutes. This will be my additional 10% run and Thursday I will just stick to the 15 minutes. I really don't want to over do it.
Motivation
So many people have email me that they walk or run for fitness, then stop. They just can't seem to keep up with it. then they ask me how I stay motivated. The first part of motivation desire. you have got to want the results more than the inclination to not go out and walk or run. another part is Hope. Do you have the hope that running or walking will actually help you? do you believe it? Well do. when you believe it and want it. you will get it.
Time
Another reason people have told me they don't keep up with running or walking is because they don't have time. These same people have time to read email, surf the net, play on their wii, watch Monday night football, etc. I would suggest 30 minutes a day, and believe me that's not much. It is essentially 2 Saturday morning cartoons. If nothing else 15 minutes a day! That's it. Hope and Desire
While at PT a saw a number of older people that fell down and hurt themselves. Just from falling down. I know of people that just can't do basic physical activity. Walk to the corner, go up stairs, or do house work, because they have slowly become to weak to do them. The lack of exercise could have been from an injury, an illness, or (the most common) time. The older you get the faster time goes by. I don't want to be that guy that is 70 years old and need help getting out of a chair. Well, no matter what your situation is, it is never to late! I know of a women who took up running at 70.
Getting Started
If you have had an illness or injury that has prevented you from exercise of any kind, I suggest you talk to your doctor and get a referral to a Physical Therapist. Physical Therapy will get you on the right path, at the right pace, designed for you. Some long term injuries may require special medical treatment. I would suggest that you get the treatment you need and get on a physical therapy plan. If it has just been a long time since you have done and fitness program, once again consult your doctor first. Once you have been cleared, do a search on my blog for walking and start a walking program. If you choose to run, ease into running.
You Will Be Surprised
Walking and running will help you feel better physically, feel better about yourself, and get your body moving.
Running Is Not For Me
That's fine. I will post about running later, but there are plenty of things you can do other than running.
Walking Is Not For Me.
Okay, now we have a problem. In a post about running I will also talk about walking. But walking is essential to everything we do. We get out of bed and WALK to the bathroom, WALK to the kitchen, and WALK to the car. Every exercise program must include at least walking.
NEW POST AND CONTEST!
In the next week, I will post how much I weigh! email me with how much you think I weigh. the closest guesses will win a prize. Email your guess to getmyfatbuttinshape@gmail.com and get a chance to win something special. i will post the Prize in the next few days. In the mean time I need to get my fat butt in shape.
Friday, December 5, 2008
My Last Session In The Pool
Oh, Glorious Day
I am finally done with PT all together. I did my last pool session and it was great. A really good work out. I am not nearly as tired today as I expected especially since I ran and walked yesterday. I may run and walk again tomorrow. We will have to see.
About This Pool
The pool used by the Physical therapy place I go to is called a Hydroworx. Have you heard of swim in place pools? Well this is essentially one of those, plus it has a treadmill in the floor. Plus there is a jet and hose that actually will give you a really good underwater message. I only mention this because they have more features adn are cheeper than other swim in place pools I have seen. Great for rehab or athletes. check them out at www.hydroworx.com.
The Challenge
I was actually pretty good during Thanksgiving and did not eat too much. Now I need to keep it up and be good during christmas and New Years. New Years may be easy since my wife is do on New Years eve and I will be in a hospital. Not much free fatty food floating arround there. But I really need to make sure to get my fat butt in shape. I will tel you when I think I'm ready for my first 5k.
I am finally done with PT all together. I did my last pool session and it was great. A really good work out. I am not nearly as tired today as I expected especially since I ran and walked yesterday. I may run and walk again tomorrow. We will have to see.
About This Pool
The pool used by the Physical therapy place I go to is called a Hydroworx. Have you heard of swim in place pools? Well this is essentially one of those, plus it has a treadmill in the floor. Plus there is a jet and hose that actually will give you a really good underwater message. I only mention this because they have more features adn are cheeper than other swim in place pools I have seen. Great for rehab or athletes. check them out at www.hydroworx.com.
The Challenge
I was actually pretty good during Thanksgiving and did not eat too much. Now I need to keep it up and be good during christmas and New Years. New Years may be easy since my wife is do on New Years eve and I will be in a hospital. Not much free fatty food floating arround there. But I really need to make sure to get my fat butt in shape. I will tel you when I think I'm ready for my first 5k.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
My First Real Run On A Real Road
Let's Do Some Running!
Okay so it was walk and then run and then walk some more. There is a loop near my house which is close to a mile all the way arround. At my last PT session, I walked and ran on a treadmill and did 1 mile. So today I got out on the road. I walked 3 minutes and ran 2 1/2 minutes alternatively for 1 mile and a quarter and it took about 15 minutes. It felt good. I was a little sore after but I felt good.
Stretch
Yes, I stretched before and after. It made a lot of difference and the movement in my right ankle seems to be improving a lot.
Small Incramental Steps
Now I will increase next week by 3 minutes. I will probably add it to the Wednesday walk. So monday will be 15 minutes and Wednesday will be 18 minutes. I will then figure out how I should be increasing the amount of time I run and shorten the amount of time I walk. Then I can get my fat butt in shape.
Okay so it was walk and then run and then walk some more. There is a loop near my house which is close to a mile all the way arround. At my last PT session, I walked and ran on a treadmill and did 1 mile. So today I got out on the road. I walked 3 minutes and ran 2 1/2 minutes alternatively for 1 mile and a quarter and it took about 15 minutes. It felt good. I was a little sore after but I felt good.
Stretch
Yes, I stretched before and after. It made a lot of difference and the movement in my right ankle seems to be improving a lot.
Small Incramental Steps
Now I will increase next week by 3 minutes. I will probably add it to the Wednesday walk. So monday will be 15 minutes and Wednesday will be 18 minutes. I will then figure out how I should be increasing the amount of time I run and shorten the amount of time I walk. Then I can get my fat butt in shape.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
LAST PHYSICAL THERAPY SESSION
Final Evaluation?
Well, I had PT today and we did the last evaluation for PT. Anthony took measurements, discussed how much has improved, what problems are still present, and what to do next. As I have mentioned before PT has become more of a Work Out than therapy. That is a good sign I need to start doing things on my own. Mostly I need to get out on the road and run, bike, and get back in the pool and swim. So I have one more scheduled pool PT Friday and one follow-up and I am off.
The Problem
First I still have tremendous ankle problems in my right ankle and much of it is permanent. If I were a professional athlete, my career would be over. But since I'm not, all is good for the most part. Running will get that back into decent shape.
Plan Of Action
I actually ran on a treadmill! Whoo-hoo! a wamping 4.8mph (yes, I know. While in the Marines I could almost walk that fast in full gear.) So I walk for 3 minutes and run for 2 1/2 minutes for a total of 15 minutes, twice a week. The next week I increase this by 10%. Since I am more concerned about time than distance right now, I will increase the next week by 3 minutes, then by 3.3 minutes, then by 4 minutes, and so on until I am at a half an hour for each work out. Then I will reevaluate what I am doing. I will also be decreasing my walking time and increasing my running time. I will keep you posted on how I decide to do that.
What Else?
I need to get back on my bike. I can bike to work, to the store, and other places close by. I still have my gym membership so I will get back in the pool. Last, I still have my Core Performance Book and I will start the basic (highly reduced to start with) workouts.
When Will I Race?
We have our President's Day Freedom Run coming up on February 14th, 2009. I am not sure how much work I am going to have to be doing, but I would like to run it this year. My PT suggested on January first, even if all I did was run walk it, so My goal of February doesn't sound to bad. Now all I have to do is get my fat butt in shape.
Well, I had PT today and we did the last evaluation for PT. Anthony took measurements, discussed how much has improved, what problems are still present, and what to do next. As I have mentioned before PT has become more of a Work Out than therapy. That is a good sign I need to start doing things on my own. Mostly I need to get out on the road and run, bike, and get back in the pool and swim. So I have one more scheduled pool PT Friday and one follow-up and I am off.
The Problem
First I still have tremendous ankle problems in my right ankle and much of it is permanent. If I were a professional athlete, my career would be over. But since I'm not, all is good for the most part. Running will get that back into decent shape.
Plan Of Action
I actually ran on a treadmill! Whoo-hoo! a wamping 4.8mph (yes, I know. While in the Marines I could almost walk that fast in full gear.) So I walk for 3 minutes and run for 2 1/2 minutes for a total of 15 minutes, twice a week. The next week I increase this by 10%. Since I am more concerned about time than distance right now, I will increase the next week by 3 minutes, then by 3.3 minutes, then by 4 minutes, and so on until I am at a half an hour for each work out. Then I will reevaluate what I am doing. I will also be decreasing my walking time and increasing my running time. I will keep you posted on how I decide to do that.
What Else?
I need to get back on my bike. I can bike to work, to the store, and other places close by. I still have my gym membership so I will get back in the pool. Last, I still have my Core Performance Book and I will start the basic (highly reduced to start with) workouts.
When Will I Race?
We have our President's Day Freedom Run coming up on February 14th, 2009. I am not sure how much work I am going to have to be doing, but I would like to run it this year. My PT suggested on January first, even if all I did was run walk it, so My goal of February doesn't sound to bad. Now all I have to do is get my fat butt in shape.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Back To The Pool!
Physical Therapy in the Pool
Well, I am back in the pool, and it was pretty good. Since I got in first thing this morning, the pool was really warm and so was the pool room. As cold and nasty as it has been, it felt great. Started out with stretches and then did some running on the wonderful underwater treadmill. It is pretty cool since there is a camera and a TV to allow you to see what your feet are doing. My running was at about 3.2 mph. Even for a pool that was not very fast. I am really having trouble getting a good plant with my right foot. At that speed, my heal should hit first and I just roll over my foot then push off with my toes. Because my leg is still stiff, I am landing flat footed on my right side. Not good.
The Surprise
Well, just about 15 minutes before the end of my session, my Pool PT was informed his next person canceled. So he asked if I need to be or go anywhere and I didn't. That gave me another 30 minutes of work out. So we did jumping, lunges, squats and more. PT these last few times have stopped being PT and have turned into 45 minute (or in this case) to an hour and 15 minute work out! It feels great, but I have some major things to work on while I get my fat butt in shape. But what am I to do with this ankle?
Well, I am back in the pool, and it was pretty good. Since I got in first thing this morning, the pool was really warm and so was the pool room. As cold and nasty as it has been, it felt great. Started out with stretches and then did some running on the wonderful underwater treadmill. It is pretty cool since there is a camera and a TV to allow you to see what your feet are doing. My running was at about 3.2 mph. Even for a pool that was not very fast. I am really having trouble getting a good plant with my right foot. At that speed, my heal should hit first and I just roll over my foot then push off with my toes. Because my leg is still stiff, I am landing flat footed on my right side. Not good.
The Surprise
Well, just about 15 minutes before the end of my session, my Pool PT was informed his next person canceled. So he asked if I need to be or go anywhere and I didn't. That gave me another 30 minutes of work out. So we did jumping, lunges, squats and more. PT these last few times have stopped being PT and have turned into 45 minute (or in this case) to an hour and 15 minute work out! It feels great, but I have some major things to work on while I get my fat butt in shape. But what am I to do with this ankle?
Friday, November 21, 2008
Dr. Appointment, PT, and Surgery Picutres
Pictures First
These are two picture from CT scans before and after surgery. So the first picture is before surgery. The picture is color enhanced by the computer. You are not actually looking at the blood vessels, but the blood inside. Green indicates abnormal blood flow. The second picture is after surgery. The stint may appear to be on the out side, but in fact it is inside. It appears that way because you don't actually see the blood vessels, but what is inside.
These are two picture from CT scans before and after surgery. So the first picture is before surgery. The picture is color enhanced by the computer. You are not actually looking at the blood vessels, but the blood inside. Green indicates abnormal blood flow. The second picture is after surgery. The stint may appear to be on the out side, but in fact it is inside. It appears that way because you don't actually see the blood vessels, but what is inside.
Doctor's Appointment
I finally had my appointment with my regular doctor. I still have blood work and labs to do, but everything went well. Nothing out of the ordinary. He is updated on my situation with my accident and I have a follow-up in January. I like my doctor and I feel confident about working with him.
Physical Therapy
Okay, PT has now changed from rehab to a 45 minute work out. I was so tired when I was done, but I sure need it. I will be back in the pool next week so I will be able to start running soon. As for my knee, the problem is not my knee, but inflexibility of my right leg. the more I stretch it, the less problems I have. So STRETCH!
What Next?
The holidays are coming up, so I want to make sure I don't eat too much. I will weigh myself after Thanksgiving and I will start aggressively tyring to loose weight from there. PT has cleared me to pull out my bike, so I will be doing that. I will keep you posted. PT has also cleared me to try and start running again. Now that doesn't mean I will be running miles at a time. I will probably run for 1 minute and walk for 4 minutes. do that for about 15 to 20 minutes depending on how I feel.
A Poll
In the next couple of weeks, I will be posting a Poll and I will ask questions about walking for excesses. If you have any ideas for questions let me know and keep watching for the poll. I want as many people to answer as possible, so spread the link to everyone! Keep watching the blog while I get my fat butt in shape.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
I Am In Bad Shape!
The Visit
Well, this weekend I had my sister over. She had flown out to Utah to see family, flew in to NC to visit a Brother-in-law, then over to see my family. We had a great time and the entire family had fun!
Shin Splints
My sister has been complaining about shin splints. She gets them from walking, running, etc. Because of the pain she does not work out. Shin splints is the inflammation of the muscle and tendon (the posterior personal tendon) that runs down the front of your leg or shin bone. It is believed that this is cause from additional use of the tendon in running and walking. as you walk or run, this tendon and muscle are used to lift the front of your toe out of the way. With any muscle and tendon use, if you over do the work out, it will become sore and inflamed.
Oh My Gosh!
I showed her some stretches do do and a couple of workouts to help. Oh my gosh! I had a hard time doing them and a couple I couldn't do at all. I am in really bad shape. I have my doctors appointment tomorrow and I will talk with him about my progress. My incision site is improving but I am still really sore and have to be careful. I will especially talk to him about my knee. I am really concerned now since it is sore and stiff.
How To Treat Shin Splints
There are several ways to treat the problem. First we are going to assume that you do want to continue some type of work out, but this muscle and tendon need rest and can not be over worked. This is commonly called relative rest.
Relative Rest
Relative rest is a combination of stretches, exercises, and modified walking or running to help strengthening the muscle and reducing inflammation of the tendon. Doing the Soleus Stand stretch and the runners stretch are important. Check out these stretches also. Next proper exercise of the soleus muscle is needed. Find a step, place you toe on the step and you heel over the edge. then to toe raises, allowing you foot to fall bellow your toe, over the edge of the step. Last modify your running and walking. You can do this by running in a pool with a water belt, or substituting the running and walking with biking. Biking is a great aerobic exercise that builds muscle in the legs and DOES NOT have the impact stress of running and walking. slowly build back into running and walking and I mean slowly. Normally you would increase your mileage by 10%. If you suffer from shin splints, do not increase more than 5%, may even 2.5% would be better.
Time And Miles
It is difficult to translate an equivalent bike ride to walking and running. Generally speaking, 4 miles of biking is equal to 1 mile running or 2 miles walking. So if I run 1 mile, the biking equivalent is 4 miles. If I want to walk to get the same workout as 1 mile, I have to walk 2 miles.
For all of you pros out there, YES THIS IS NOT EXACT. THIS IS INTENDED FOR THE AVERAGE PERSON TO WALK OR RUN TO GET BACK IN SHAPE.
So walk 1 mile. How long does that take you? Lets say it takes you 15 minutes. then do your walking in a pool for 15 minutes. Generally I can bike twice as fast as I can run, So I would bike for 30 minutes on a stationary bike, setting the resistance level to feel like I am using as much energy as I would if I were walking.
Why Not....
I will probably get a lot of emails asking my why not use the odometer on the stationary bike, or why not do this or that or the other. when I was really working out and training for triathlons, I probably WOULD do this that and the other. If you feel that you are at that level, by a book on the subject relating to triathlon training or running. I don't have the time or space on this blog to do and explanation justice. Remember, this is for me and other to just get back into shape.
Last Thoughts
The best way to start is stretching and walking. Slowly build the amount of time or distance you walk. I will keep you posted on my progress as I get my fat butt in shape.
Well, this weekend I had my sister over. She had flown out to Utah to see family, flew in to NC to visit a Brother-in-law, then over to see my family. We had a great time and the entire family had fun!
Shin Splints
My sister has been complaining about shin splints. She gets them from walking, running, etc. Because of the pain she does not work out. Shin splints is the inflammation of the muscle and tendon (the posterior personal tendon) that runs down the front of your leg or shin bone. It is believed that this is cause from additional use of the tendon in running and walking. as you walk or run, this tendon and muscle are used to lift the front of your toe out of the way. With any muscle and tendon use, if you over do the work out, it will become sore and inflamed.
Oh My Gosh!
I showed her some stretches do do and a couple of workouts to help. Oh my gosh! I had a hard time doing them and a couple I couldn't do at all. I am in really bad shape. I have my doctors appointment tomorrow and I will talk with him about my progress. My incision site is improving but I am still really sore and have to be careful. I will especially talk to him about my knee. I am really concerned now since it is sore and stiff.
How To Treat Shin Splints
There are several ways to treat the problem. First we are going to assume that you do want to continue some type of work out, but this muscle and tendon need rest and can not be over worked. This is commonly called relative rest.
Relative Rest
Relative rest is a combination of stretches, exercises, and modified walking or running to help strengthening the muscle and reducing inflammation of the tendon. Doing the Soleus Stand stretch and the runners stretch are important. Check out these stretches also. Next proper exercise of the soleus muscle is needed. Find a step, place you toe on the step and you heel over the edge. then to toe raises, allowing you foot to fall bellow your toe, over the edge of the step. Last modify your running and walking. You can do this by running in a pool with a water belt, or substituting the running and walking with biking. Biking is a great aerobic exercise that builds muscle in the legs and DOES NOT have the impact stress of running and walking. slowly build back into running and walking and I mean slowly. Normally you would increase your mileage by 10%. If you suffer from shin splints, do not increase more than 5%, may even 2.5% would be better.
Time And Miles
It is difficult to translate an equivalent bike ride to walking and running. Generally speaking, 4 miles of biking is equal to 1 mile running or 2 miles walking. So if I run 1 mile, the biking equivalent is 4 miles. If I want to walk to get the same workout as 1 mile, I have to walk 2 miles.
For all of you pros out there, YES THIS IS NOT EXACT. THIS IS INTENDED FOR THE AVERAGE PERSON TO WALK OR RUN TO GET BACK IN SHAPE.
So walk 1 mile. How long does that take you? Lets say it takes you 15 minutes. then do your walking in a pool for 15 minutes. Generally I can bike twice as fast as I can run, So I would bike for 30 minutes on a stationary bike, setting the resistance level to feel like I am using as much energy as I would if I were walking.
Why Not....
I will probably get a lot of emails asking my why not use the odometer on the stationary bike, or why not do this or that or the other. when I was really working out and training for triathlons, I probably WOULD do this that and the other. If you feel that you are at that level, by a book on the subject relating to triathlon training or running. I don't have the time or space on this blog to do and explanation justice. Remember, this is for me and other to just get back into shape.
Last Thoughts
The best way to start is stretching and walking. Slowly build the amount of time or distance you walk. I will keep you posted on my progress as I get my fat butt in shape.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
My PT Ran A Marathon
Here It Is!
My PT guy ran the City of Oaks Marathon. He finished 156th overall with a time of 3:45. Well done! With his permission, here is a link to see the picture.
Marathon Photos
My PT guy ran the City of Oaks Marathon. He finished 156th overall with a time of 3:45. Well done! With his permission, here is a link to see the picture.
Marathon Photos
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
PT - Not A Lot of Progress
Friday Re-Evaluation
Well, I went back to PT on Friday for a re-evaluation. No knee problems, but my ankle and right index finger are like frozen. He worked with both a lot and I really didn't feel any pain. They are just really stuck. But it went well. I finished off some lunges. Well, that I paid for the lunges. Other than soreness, I will explain later.
The Incision Line
Well, when the doctor cut on me of course there is an incision. The inner layers were stitched and the outer layer on the skin was glued. This new surgical glue is used because it has reduced infections by 90%. Hey sounds good to me. Now the incision should have healed by now. The problem is every little thing I do, it make a micro tear on that line. Now from picking up girls, laundry, bending over, getting hit there by the littlest child, etc, I have small tears all the way across the incision line. Of course they bleed like crazy, scab up, and the scab attaches to my underwear, and then when I get up and move or walk, it tears off and it bleeds again. To top it off, I am incredibly sore! My wife mentioned this to her mother and her mother said that it should have healed by now. No kidding!
More PT
I went to PT again yesterday and "oh my gosh!" I have no balance. PT was fine but my knee is not doing so good. It is sudden too. It felt fine and then just yesterday, I would get a sharp pain and it feel like my knee is going to dislocate. I have got to get that looked at.
So... That is where I am. Very little walking, some PT and now the knee problem is back. Leave a comment with any advice.
Well, I went back to PT on Friday for a re-evaluation. No knee problems, but my ankle and right index finger are like frozen. He worked with both a lot and I really didn't feel any pain. They are just really stuck. But it went well. I finished off some lunges. Well, that I paid for the lunges. Other than soreness, I will explain later.
The Incision Line
Well, when the doctor cut on me of course there is an incision. The inner layers were stitched and the outer layer on the skin was glued. This new surgical glue is used because it has reduced infections by 90%. Hey sounds good to me. Now the incision should have healed by now. The problem is every little thing I do, it make a micro tear on that line. Now from picking up girls, laundry, bending over, getting hit there by the littlest child, etc, I have small tears all the way across the incision line. Of course they bleed like crazy, scab up, and the scab attaches to my underwear, and then when I get up and move or walk, it tears off and it bleeds again. To top it off, I am incredibly sore! My wife mentioned this to her mother and her mother said that it should have healed by now. No kidding!
More PT
I went to PT again yesterday and "oh my gosh!" I have no balance. PT was fine but my knee is not doing so good. It is sudden too. It felt fine and then just yesterday, I would get a sharp pain and it feel like my knee is going to dislocate. I have got to get that looked at.
So... That is where I am. Very little walking, some PT and now the knee problem is back. Leave a comment with any advice.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Today Is A New Day
The Doctors Appointment
I have been waiting for this for some time. A Day when the Doctor would say "Everything looks great, you CT Scan and x-rays look fine, you can't get back to exercising and stop taking that medication." Well, today was that day! I spent most of the day at the hospital. They took 4 x-rays and 4 CT scans. The doctor actually saw me quickly with little wait. He is even going to give me copies of all my CT scans and when I get them, I will post them.
Walking
I have started walking again. I have only been doing about 1/2 a mile to a mile. Last week I did 4 miles and so far this week I have done only 1. I hope to do 5.
Physical Therapy
I start back up on physical Therapy Thursday. I should be clear to do everything (ie walk, run, bike, and get in the pool) in three more weeks. I am still concerned about my right knee, but they are going to check it out at PT.
I Am So Ready
Without needing to take the medication anymore, I won't be so tired and will actually be able to work out and start getting my fat butt back in shape. I will keep you posted. Especially about my knee.
I have been waiting for this for some time. A Day when the Doctor would say "Everything looks great, you CT Scan and x-rays look fine, you can't get back to exercising and stop taking that medication." Well, today was that day! I spent most of the day at the hospital. They took 4 x-rays and 4 CT scans. The doctor actually saw me quickly with little wait. He is even going to give me copies of all my CT scans and when I get them, I will post them.
Walking
I have started walking again. I have only been doing about 1/2 a mile to a mile. Last week I did 4 miles and so far this week I have done only 1. I hope to do 5.
Physical Therapy
I start back up on physical Therapy Thursday. I should be clear to do everything (ie walk, run, bike, and get in the pool) in three more weeks. I am still concerned about my right knee, but they are going to check it out at PT.
I Am So Ready
Without needing to take the medication anymore, I won't be so tired and will actually be able to work out and start getting my fat butt back in shape. I will keep you posted. Especially about my knee.
Monday, October 6, 2008
The Big Day - Surgery
My Last Day
I am not sure why, but my younger daughters were pretty concerned about the surgery. I did everything I could to keep things calm and act as if this were just a normal trip to go see the doctor. No such like. My second oldest had to have her picture taken with me, just in case, and wanted to spend the last day with me just in case. So we watched Chicken Little. As soon as I get the picture I will post it.
The Day Before
My sister-in-law came up for a couple of reasons. She is an officer in the Air Force and was going to be giving the "Oath of Office" to another officer at the Iwo Jima Memorial. She also came up to spend the night with the kids while I recovered from surgery. She would leave for DC upon my return. I think it worked out well.
The Wedding
That Saturday, after surgery, a young woman from our church was getting married. My mother-in-law, my wife, and my oldest daughter all had part in making sure the wedding went well. I was informed that with the friend taking the "Oath of Office" and the wedding plans, it would not fit into the schedule to also have a funeral so I was forbidden to die (jokingly of course.) I decided to not disappoint anyone and live.
The Joke
I mentioned this to several people, but first told it to my daughters. No-one thought it was funny though. I was having dinner with my daughters and of course the subject of the surgery came up. This time it was how they were going to put me to sleep. Anesthesia was going to give me an epidural. I explained that they would give me drugs in my back to numb me and they would operate that way. I left out a lot of details on purpose and as a joke. For example, there would be a sheet between me and the doctors so I would not be able to see the procedure. I told my girls that I would get to watch. Not only would I get the epidural, but they would give me a number of other medications to relax me, and allow me to sleep. I told my girls that I would be awake. So here is the joke. I told them that I was going to wait until the doctor started cutting on me, then at the moment he touched me with the knife, I would scream "OOOWW!" then just say "Sorry, just Kidding." My girls did not find that funny and listed the reasons why that was I a bad idea along with everyone else. I thought it was hilarious and would make a funny scene in a sitcom. I jinxed myself though.
The Big Day of Surgery
So I show up at the hospital at 8:45am with my wife and Mother-in-law. I fill out some paperwork then head to the waiting area for surgery. I check in at the waiting area and wait for them to call me back. They gave me a pager and wen it beeped I was to return to the surgery prep area and the beeper was to stay with my wife. That way if they need to her (i.e. when I was ready for surgery and done with surgery they could just beep her.) They beeped me I went into and curtained off area with a bed and a chair for my wife. They gave me a robe, a hair cover, and socks. I got dressed and waited for anesthesia. They came and asked how I wanted to be put under and I chose the epidural. (By the way, if you are ever going to deliver a baby, I say take the epidural asap! it was great.) They tested the epidural my placing and Ice cube on my arm and asked if it was cold, and of course it was. Then they placed it on my stomach near the surgery site and asked if it was cold. The first time it was. They gave me more medicine and then the second time, I could hardly feel that they touched me. Once that was ready, I met the surgery staff and we went over the procedure. We even wrote on the area to be operated on and designated what site to do the procedure and what side not to touch. Shortly there after, they wheeled me back for surgery.
What We've All Been Waiting For - Surgery
They wheeled me back onto the operating room and moved me off my bed and onto to the operating table. It felt really weird because my legs were numb. The strapped me down to the table, tapped my feet down, taped my arms down, and even put a seat belt on me. Then they place a drape between my upper body and the doctors. They gave me more medicine through the epidural that would allow me to relax and sleep, but they could wake me and ask me questions if they needed to. I fell asleep. All of the sudden I woke right up and screamed! I had not received enough medicine through the epidural and I have never felt such pain when they cut me open. See I jinxed myself with my joke. They gave me more medicine waited about 20 minutes then continued without any problems. Surgery was supposed to take about an hour. It ended up taking 4 1/2 hours. The plan was to put in one stint. It would block the lower hole in the aorta and flow would stop through the second hole and the first. Well it didn't work they way. When they blocked the lower hole, blood started to flow into the upper hole and form a new channel. They ended up putting to stints and each had a small extension, make 4 pieces of hardware in all. They woke me up to let me know it was over and wheeled me to recovery.
Recovery
I have had surgery several times and recovery was the easiest with the epidural. Shortly after returning to recovery I woke up and talked with the nurses. All of the sudden I felt dizzy. My heart rated dropped from 71 bpm to 31. I went pale, they laid me down, prepped some drugs, then it went right back up. I ended up staying quite some time in recovery. They monitored everything. I eventually got my own room.
Spending the Night
The only room they had was a one person room. They brought in one of those fold out chairs that turns into a bed, so Stephanie was able to spend the night. As usual every two hours they woke me up for vitals. I could not sleep. At about 2 am. I started to feel really sick so I paged the nurse. Took them quite some time to respond. The doctor (looked like a young intern) on call happen to come in to check on me. Because of the type of procedure I had, nausea is a really bad sign, so he ordered and EKG and blood work. I knew it was going to be bad when the nurse asked if she should call phlebotomy. That means she can't or is really bad a drawing blood and wanted someone else to do it. The doctor said that they weren't going to be around until 4 am and that the test couldn't wait that long. So the nurse drew the blood. Oh my gosh! Let's stick in the needle and see how much we can move it around. In, out, in, out, wiggle left, wiggle right. It was so bad, my wife had to turn away. I thought to myself "She has 5 seconds to get that in or I will asked her to get someone else to do it." Then I started to count. She got it in before I got to "4". My hand still hurts were she did it. Another nurse came in and did the EKG. The setp-up took longer than the proceedure and everything looked good.
No Sleep
The nurse left the heart rate machine in there and it started to beep because the batteries were running down. So I called to have them come and get it. No one did. It beeped for a half an hour before it finally died. Plus the constant come and checking in on me, I actually didn't sleep until I got home.
Going Home Well, were were told that the doctors would do rounds and if everything looked good, then I would go home. Doctors came by at 7 am and everything looked good. Then they wanted an ultra-sound before I went home. So we got it done. Then they wanted an x-ray before I went home. Got it done. Then the surgeons wanted to see me. They did. I finally got to go about 3 pm instead of 8 am like I was told. Oh well.
Home
I am very tired and I have a few incisions that are healing. The stitched up the inside, but they used a glue on the outside. I am still pretty sore, but I will be just fine.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Running For President!
I just got this in the email. I can't believe it!
http://www.news3online.com/
Pre-Surgery Meeting
The Waite
As advanced as the medical profession is, I don't believe they have the one basic tenant of all business down pat. Scheduling. I was actually seen and worked on by someone for 45 minutes to and 1 hour. But I spent 4 hours at the hospital. Aside from that, the care is great.
First Meeting
Well we met with the doctor and asked all the questions. I seems that when they doctors first saw the problem, they thought it might heal itself. After the last CT Scan and they saw the holes and the blood moving the wrong way it became clear it was only going to get worse. The reason for surgery now is to avoid and major arterial wall damage that would require a more extensive surgery. What is planned is quite basic.
The Surgery
First they will give me anesthesia, then the doctor will cut a 4 inch slice into my groin (see the illustration.) Inset the sting and sew me back up. The stint will block the blood flow into the wall of the artery and it will then heel up.
Recovery
I can take it easy and do just about everything after surgery. 2 weeks later I can start PT and walking again. 4 weeks and I can start running and pool work. 6 weeks and I should be just fine.
The Bad News
I can't believe this, even with my medication my blood pressure was 155/93 and I weighed 208 lbs. That is 2 shy of the most I have even weighed!
So Cute!
My second daughter ask my wife if she could stay home and spend the day with me, just in case I don't make it. I thought it was cute, my wife didn't.
Next...
Wednesday October 1, 2008; early in the morning will be surgery. My next blog will be October 2nd, after I get home (unless I don't make it.)
P. S. - I have an account at for live video broadcasting. When I am rebroadcasting again, I will let you know what date and time. To see my broadcasts go to www.stickam.com/larsen0966
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Physical Therapy and My Knee
No Walking
I have been pretty worried about me knee. I took it easy Monday and I only had a problem once. I decided to take it easy and rest my legs, just in case I am overworking a muscle.
Good Morning! I still feel terrible when I first get out of bed and try and walk. My feet are swollen and stiff, and my ankles just ache. It takes some time to get going before I feel semi-normal and can really get moving around.
Checked Out The Knee Well, as soon as I got to PT I had Anthony check out my knee. It was not as bad as I thought, but my knee is loose. He told me that if it keeps giving me problems to have the orthopedic Doctor check it out.
The Pool I think they are playing musical chairs with pool therapy. I had a different pool therapist again. But no problems with my knee in the pool. If I can get them to video tape my in the pool I will let you know.
Next... I have surgery coming up and I will be meeting with the doctors Thursday. We will have to see what we are in for.
Good Morning! I still feel terrible when I first get out of bed and try and walk. My feet are swollen and stiff, and my ankles just ache. It takes some time to get going before I feel semi-normal and can really get moving around.
Checked Out The Knee Well, as soon as I got to PT I had Anthony check out my knee. It was not as bad as I thought, but my knee is loose. He told me that if it keeps giving me problems to have the orthopedic Doctor check it out.
The Pool I think they are playing musical chairs with pool therapy. I had a different pool therapist again. But no problems with my knee in the pool. If I can get them to video tape my in the pool I will let you know.
Next... I have surgery coming up and I will be meeting with the doctors Thursday. We will have to see what we are in for.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
My Right Knee
Saturday Night Luau
At church we had a Hawaiian activity. A REAL LUAU! It was great. During the day I started to feel like a pull on the outer right side of my knee. Mostly when I turned corners and my leg would naturally twist. I didn't think much of it. But then today it started to get worse. This evening I had meetings at church and it got even worse! Now the feeling is painful and there is a tearing stretching feeling. THEN at home I felt my knee slip. Later I stepped on a shoe and I felt the pull and tearing in my knee and I fell down. I can't imagine that I have torn something, because after I turn or what ever, the pain is gone. There is no swelling, no pain when I touch or rub it. Only when my knee twists or turns. I am so going to have the PT look at this and I may not be running Tuesday after all.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Walking, Health, and Physical Therapy Update
Weekly Walking Mileage
Well this week I did 7 miles, plus a lot of other walking. Just around the house, at a church activity and such. By Saturday I was feeling pretty tired so I did not go out and log miles on Saturday. I figured I needed a rest.
Physical Therapy I am working with a new physical therapist in the pool. Hello to Tiffany. We did a lot of exercises and new jumping exercises I hadn't done before. I am really excited and looking forward to pool workouts. Mostly because I feel like I am actually running and walking as apposed to on land where all I can do is walk.
Rest - Just Taking A Break I really need to take it easy. I have been feeling sore all week. I started to feel pin prick pain in the arch of my left foot. The pin rick sensation is caused by the stretching and micro tearing of the fascia (tendons) in the bottom of my foot. If I over do my walking, the problem can get worse than it already is and I could be laid up even longer. Taking a break will give my muscles a chance to heal and recover. Then I will be refreshed and ready to go by the beginning of next week. When I say rest, I don't mean sit or lay around and do nothing. I still walk around the house, take my medication, keep my feet up, use ice. I just don't go out and see how hard I can walk for 2 miles. It is called active rest, even though I don't feel very active in the first place.
Running at PT I am supposed to be prepared to run on a treadmill (not in a pool) Tuesday. My first attempt at actual running! Yeah! Probably will be for a minute or so, but I am looking forward to it and I will let you know how it goes.
Physical Therapy I am working with a new physical therapist in the pool. Hello to Tiffany. We did a lot of exercises and new jumping exercises I hadn't done before. I am really excited and looking forward to pool workouts. Mostly because I feel like I am actually running and walking as apposed to on land where all I can do is walk.
Rest - Just Taking A Break I really need to take it easy. I have been feeling sore all week. I started to feel pin prick pain in the arch of my left foot. The pin rick sensation is caused by the stretching and micro tearing of the fascia (tendons) in the bottom of my foot. If I over do my walking, the problem can get worse than it already is and I could be laid up even longer. Taking a break will give my muscles a chance to heal and recover. Then I will be refreshed and ready to go by the beginning of next week. When I say rest, I don't mean sit or lay around and do nothing. I still walk around the house, take my medication, keep my feet up, use ice. I just don't go out and see how hard I can walk for 2 miles. It is called active rest, even though I don't feel very active in the first place.
Running at PT I am supposed to be prepared to run on a treadmill (not in a pool) Tuesday. My first attempt at actual running! Yeah! Probably will be for a minute or so, but I am looking forward to it and I will let you know how it goes.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
The Start of A New Week
First - A Shout Out!
I would like to give a shout out to my Physical Therapist Anthony! So when I start doing Triathlons and running marathons, you can blame him.
I would like to give a shout out to my Physical Therapist Anthony! So when I start doing Triathlons and running marathons, you can blame him.
Surgery?
Okay, I was talking to my wife about Surgery. For a number of reasons, Surgery would be best soon. And it is easier to schedule now and cancel later than to schedule later. So right now surgery is is scheduled for OCTOBER 1ST.
Okay, I was talking to my wife about Surgery. For a number of reasons, Surgery would be best soon. And it is easier to schedule now and cancel later than to schedule later. So right now surgery is is scheduled for OCTOBER 1ST.
Walking So Far
This week, I have only done 1.5 miles and that was yesterday (Monday). I still am try to keep up a brisk pace. I was going to try and walk today but, PT was enough for the day, then It rained, and my sister-in-law and family came in. They are a lot more fun then walking. Besides I had to get the house clean.
This week, I have only done 1.5 miles and that was yesterday (Monday). I still am try to keep up a brisk pace. I was going to try and walk today but, PT was enough for the day, then It rained, and my sister-in-law and family came in. They are a lot more fun then walking. Besides I had to get the house clean.
Physical Therapy
We started out with a warm up on the stationary bike. Then we moved on to the stretches. Today we did something new. We used a trampoline! I did some running in place, jumping forward and back, left and right, then hopping on each foot. It was a lot harder to keep my balance than expected, and it was a good workout. I am still having trouble with my right index finger. It is better than it was, but I am afraid I might be in a permanent point.
We started out with a warm up on the stationary bike. Then we moved on to the stretches. Today we did something new. We used a trampoline! I did some running in place, jumping forward and back, left and right, then hopping on each foot. It was a lot harder to keep my balance than expected, and it was a good workout. I am still having trouble with my right index finger. It is better than it was, but I am afraid I might be in a permanent point.
So I Am Having Surgery?
This is the deal. I have it scheduled for October 1st. I have an appointment with the Doctors, September 25th. I have one last question for them and this is it: "You had me NPO (no eating) in the ICU at Chapel Hill for 3 days. You looked at a ton of Cat Scans and x-rays. You decided NOT to do surgery then and that we would wait. NOW you want to do surgery. What has changed to make you want to do Surgery now?" Then answer will hopefully be enlightening.
This is the deal. I have it scheduled for October 1st. I have an appointment with the Doctors, September 25th. I have one last question for them and this is it: "You had me NPO (no eating) in the ICU at Chapel Hill for 3 days. You looked at a ton of Cat Scans and x-rays. You decided NOT to do surgery then and that we would wait. NOW you want to do surgery. What has changed to make you want to do Surgery now?" Then answer will hopefully be enlightening.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
A Lot Of Miles and New PT Treatment
A Word About Walking
When walking there are two general ways of classifying your pace. There is walking and then there is aerobic walking. Walking is what I do with my kids on Sunday when we go to Grandmas house. Aerobic walking is walking at a pretty brisk pace for at least 10 minutes. If you walk briskly for less than that, you really never get your body into the aerobic mode. Aerobics is the way your body fuels its muscles and not whether or not your winded. I am trying to get in a minimum of 3,000 aerobic steps or 20 minutes of Aerobic walking. That is about 1.5 miles of walking briskly. I want to get 10,000 steps a day. We will get to that in the near future.
When walking there are two general ways of classifying your pace. There is walking and then there is aerobic walking. Walking is what I do with my kids on Sunday when we go to Grandmas house. Aerobic walking is walking at a pretty brisk pace for at least 10 minutes. If you walk briskly for less than that, you really never get your body into the aerobic mode. Aerobics is the way your body fuels its muscles and not whether or not your winded. I am trying to get in a minimum of 3,000 aerobic steps or 20 minutes of Aerobic walking. That is about 1.5 miles of walking briskly. I want to get 10,000 steps a day. We will get to that in the near future.
The Walking Miles For The Week
I walked 7.7 miles at an aerobic pace. The problem still is that after I am done walking I need to take a nap. That medication is killing me. I see the Doctor next Thursday.
I walked 7.7 miles at an aerobic pace. The problem still is that after I am done walking I need to take a nap. That medication is killing me. I see the Doctor next Thursday.
Walking In The Pool
I had Physical Therapy on Tuesday and Wednesday. These two days I did pool work. There is a pool with a treadmill in the floor and I did some walking and running in the pool. What the pool does is reduces the impact of the walking and running, but provided resistance by moving through the water. I still can't run on land. It was a good work out and I felt muscle work out through out my legs. I was very tired when I was done, but it felt great to actually run again.
I had Physical Therapy on Tuesday and Wednesday. These two days I did pool work. There is a pool with a treadmill in the floor and I did some walking and running in the pool. What the pool does is reduces the impact of the walking and running, but provided resistance by moving through the water. I still can't run on land. It was a good work out and I felt muscle work out through out my legs. I was very tired when I was done, but it felt great to actually run again.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
The Aneurysm
Questions From My Friends
Okay, people have been asking about my aneurysm. Technically, in my case, it is called a dissection. The aorta has several layers of walls to protect it from damage and to contain the blood when blood pressure levels change. There are two holes in the inner wall of my aorta. Blood is running into one hole and has formed a channel inside the wall of the aorta, then running out the other.
Okay, people have been asking about my aneurysm. Technically, in my case, it is called a dissection. The aorta has several layers of walls to protect it from damage and to contain the blood when blood pressure levels change. There are two holes in the inner wall of my aorta. Blood is running into one hole and has formed a channel inside the wall of the aorta, then running out the other.
Danger!
My dissection measures about 3.75 cm. The danger zone is anything over 5 cm. After it reaches 5 cm, the aorta has a high probability of blowing within 6 months.
My dissection measures about 3.75 cm. The danger zone is anything over 5 cm. After it reaches 5 cm, the aorta has a high probability of blowing within 6 months.
Now Or Later?
When first discovered during my accident, the doctors decided to wait and watch. Now after a few months they want to operate. They tell me I could wait, keep monitoring it as I have been, but the doctors want to take care of it now. What was the change? I am not completely sure. It has been determined that the blood is flowing into the bottom of the wall and flowing in backwards up the aorta then out the second whole. At the time the doctors told me they wanted to operate, we decided to ask around, think about the situation, and then make a decision. I have not made one yet.
When first discovered during my accident, the doctors decided to wait and watch. Now after a few months they want to operate. They tell me I could wait, keep monitoring it as I have been, but the doctors want to take care of it now. What was the change? I am not completely sure. It has been determined that the blood is flowing into the bottom of the wall and flowing in backwards up the aorta then out the second whole. At the time the doctors told me they wanted to operate, we decided to ask around, think about the situation, and then make a decision. I have not made one yet.
To Run or Not To Run, That Is The Question
Well, I am on heart medication to keep my blood pressure down. Not that it was high, the doctors just want it low. The problem is the medication makes me super tired and I sleep all the time. So, even though I am walking, I don't get enough exercises so I am gaining mega weight. With additional weight, my blood pressure is getting higher. It all seems quite counter productive. I also want to get back to running, but my right ankle is just not there yet. I still need more mobility before I will be able to run on it. The doctor says running will be no problem. Though your heart rate increases a lot during exercise, your blood pressure has a very small increase as long as you are not over exerting yourself. So first chance I get, I will run!
Well, I am on heart medication to keep my blood pressure down. Not that it was high, the doctors just want it low. The problem is the medication makes me super tired and I sleep all the time. So, even though I am walking, I don't get enough exercises so I am gaining mega weight. With additional weight, my blood pressure is getting higher. It all seems quite counter productive. I also want to get back to running, but my right ankle is just not there yet. I still need more mobility before I will be able to run on it. The doctor says running will be no problem. Though your heart rate increases a lot during exercise, your blood pressure has a very small increase as long as you are not over exerting yourself. So first chance I get, I will run!
Question Of The Day
Do I operate now or Later? Stay tuned and find out what I decide!
Do I operate now or Later? Stay tuned and find out what I decide!
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Weekly Milage Count
This Week's Walking Miles
So here it is. I walked 7.5 miles this week. That is roughly 16,800 steps. That only includes walking for exercise and not the normally moving around the house.
Next Week
Total miles for next week (staying with the 20% rule) is 9 miles. Also I am going to start other exercises to get into a better state of fitness.
Any Problems?
My left ankle has been really sore today. I have met my mileage (thanks to shopping at Walmart last night) so I am going to take it easy today.
Did You Drowned?
Nope. We survived Tropical Storm Hanna. Lot of rain and water, but that is it. I pretty much slept through it.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Walking For Fitness
A Lot Of Miles
Well, I walked 6.5 miles this last week. It was a lot more than I had planned.
The Rule Of Thumb
Remember that rule I mentioned before about not exceeding 20% of miles in one week. Well, I broke that rule. Now I am really tired. I am lucky I didn't hurt myself.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
More Physical Therapy
Another Appointment
This time I didn't do the standard get on the bike for a couple of minutes for a warm up. We did it at the end. Did my stretches again. But this time my therapist did a lot more work on my ankle. there was a really stiff band right down the middle of the back of my leg. He also did a lot more work on that knuckle of my index finger.
The Alphabet
While the therapist was working on my joints, I was supposed to draw the letters of the alphabet with my feet. Boy, that was more painful than him working on me. I am sure I was grimacing, but it was not because he was hurting me, it was the alphabet.
The Bike
At the end of Physical Therapy I road a bike for 7 minutes. It was set so that I could see how much power I was exerting on a scale of 1 to 10. The target was 4. So I kept it at 4 until I had 1 minute left, then I jumped to 5. With 30 seconds left, I jumped to 6. With 10 seconds left, I jumped to 8. oh my legs felt like jello when I was done.
Ice
Good thing they ice down my joints before I leave or I would really be in pain.
Monday, September 1, 2008
The Beard
I thought You Had a Beard!
Everyone has been asking me about my beard. Since all of my pictures are of me and my beard many people thought that I still had it. But I don't.
You Shaved?
Probably about a month after I got out of the hospital, I decided I need to get rid of the beard. So, Stephanie shaved me and my Dad video taped it. The video will be on www.youtube.com/larsen0966 pretty soon. I will let you know when the video is posted. Until then, here is the latest picture.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
New To My Blog
You must Start Here
If you are new to reading my blog, it is very important that you start with my first entry. It is called "The Car Accident". This even started everything, so read that first. Click on "The Car Accident" and it will take you right to that post.
PT Workout
Boy!
They sure did work me in PT. Lots of stretches and there are a couple of spots that they rubbed down really well. My upper ankle is still pretty swollen and they worked on that. My index finger is still giving my problems and they worked on that.
Good thing I got Ice afterword.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Start Running From Scratch
A Great Article
Runner's World has a great article about how to start running. It is for people who are new to running or someone who is starting back to running after a long lay off or injury.
The Title is "A Fresh Start". Check it out. I will as I get my fat butt in shape.
A Message From A Friend
From A Recent Email
200 lbs? That's nothin, man! I got ya beat by 46 lbs - and that's down from the beginning of the year (I think I started at 264, and I seem to have gained a couple back over the last week while on vacation). Although, in my defense, I seem to have very heavy bones which makes 210 about my ideal healthy weight. So, according to the gym scale this morning, I've got another 36 lbs to go.
Q: How much are you trying to lose?
A: My ideal weight would be 160 lbs. I got close when I was doing Triathlons at 169 lbs.
Q: And how do you go about it with the heart problem? After a half hour on the eliptical I'm drenched in sweat and my heart rate is up around 150-160, so I can't imagine what kind of exercise would be okay for you.
A: Exercise is not the issue really is is my blood preasure. I need my blood preasure to stay bellow 130/40. When I raced my heart rate would get to about 140 bpm. When I worked out, my heart rate would get to 170 bpm. Because of your age (41 years), it sound like you are working in the high aerobic range. Great for health but actually lowsy for loosing weight. Keep your heart rate at about 90-100 (65% of Max) for twice as long and you will burn fat like crazy! When you get your heart rate high, your body can't burn fat fast enough to keep it fuled so it uses your sugar store and oxygen. another problem with that is you feel hungery after you work out and so you eat. You need to replace your sugar store, but you end up increasing your fat too. Mostly because we tend to eat too much after. So slow and long will help you burn more fat.
Target Heart Rate
I used the Method to determine your Target Heart Rate by the American Heart Association.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
One More Photo
The Splint
This is my arm in a splint. My daughter and father are with me also. The splint was heavy and oh, did it itch! But as the swelling went up and down, the splint was a lot better than a cast. After a month the splint came off and a cast went on. The cast was worse! It itched worse and was heavier. It was a short cast thought so I could move my arm at the elbow.
Home In Aircast
Aircasts
The new advancements in break technology. normally a person would have a single break. The doctors would cast it and then you get crutches. But when you have two bad legs and a bad arm, crutches don't make sence. so they put me in two aircasts that would allow me to walk with a walker. the walker even had a special brace for my broken arm.
Another Picture
The ICU
I still don't know how my wife did it, but she got the ICU to let my girls in to see me. This picture was taken just before they arrived. I am sure more pictures were intended, but the camera didn't seem to come out. I remember see the expressions on my girl's faces. They looked really concerned. I made a quick decision to act as healthy and happy as I could. as soon as they saw I was fine. They cheered right up.
Photos
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Here They Are: The Photos
My sister asked me to post some pictures of me on this blog. So here they are.
This is me in the ICU at Chapel Hill. The red nose is from burns. It is hard to tell but there are small burns all over my cheeks. They had just taken me off Oxygen.
Just Another Walk
Well, I slapped on the pedometer and off I went. I walked just over a half a mile. According to my pedometer most of it was done at an aerobic pace. Yeah! However it said I only burned 47 calories. Booo! That is like one corn flake! It only took 11 minutes, so we are making progress. I will feel better when I am back to running. I so need to get my butt back in shape!
Physical Therapy
My Evaluation
I went to my first appointment today. The scheduled me for 45 minutes and wished they had scheduled me for an hour. The measured both ankles and my wrist to see there size. My right ankle is so huge! I can barely get my show on. then the used a tool to see how far I can move my joints. they are better than my last doctors appointment, but I am in bad shape. they also measured my grip strength. 40lbs on the left and 40 lbs on the right.
I also stood on one foot to test my balance. Balance in my left foot is okay, but I could barley do it on my right. I also did toe lifts. That is I went from being flat footed to standing on my tip toe. I was able to do 20 reps on each foot, but my right ankle swelled up like a balloon. It required ice after we were done.
My Assignment
I have seven stretches and exercises I need to do and I need to do them twice a day.
Stretch Gastroc uni standing (Runner stretch)
Stretch Soleus stand (Soleus stretch)
AROM ankle alphabet (Ankle alphabet)
AROM finger lumbricals flx/ext (Finger bye bye)
AROM finger PIP flx/ext intrinsics (Dragon head)
AROM hand/finger tendon glide (Hand tendon glides)
Stretch wrist flexors bil (prayer) (Prayer stretch)
Well that is it. I will keep walking and doing my exercises and stretches and we will see how it goes. I will also go to PT twice a week for awhile too.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Walking for Exercises
Right Now
About all I can really do for exercise is walk. I have a pedometer and I have measured distance on my road so I can track how far I can walk (Actually run, prior to the accident.)
Getting Started
As soon as I got the Okay to walk, I walked a quarter of a mile. Then I walked a quarter of a mile, four different days. Each week, I would increase the distance. This week I will be walking 5 miles. Ultimately I want to wear my pedometer all the time and walk 10,000 steps a day.
Rules of Thumb
You should increase you walking by no more than 20% of the miles you walked the previous week. So lets say you walked 10 miles in a week. 20% of 10 miles is 2 miles. That means you shouldn't walk more than 12 miles the next week. That DOES NOT MEAN walk 10 miles on Saturday then walk 12 miles on Monday because it is the next week.
What I Did Today
I am luck to live close to the grocery store so I walked to the store and picked up a few things for dinner. Total Distance to the store and back is 1.5 miles.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
How Far I Walk
I need to get my fat butt in shape, but I do not feel like I am making Progress.
The Appointment
I had my Vascular (having to do with my Aneurysm) appointment this past Tuesday. Well, in spite of Medication my blood pressure is not where they want it 131/60. The top number needs to be bellow 130. In spite of increased walking, I now way 200.0 lbs.
New Information
My aneurysm hasn't changed in size or length, but I had a CT scan with a special dye called contrast. What they saw were two holes in the wall of the Aorta wall. One at the bottom of the aneurysm and one at the top. As they watched the dye they saw it enter the bottom hole and move up to the top hole and out. That is right, the blood was flowing the wrong way through the wall of my Aorta. Now they want to do surgery to fix it. We decided to talk about it (We as in my wife and I, and talk to other medical professionals who are our friends.) My biggest concern is that surgery was originally ruled out because in 25 years the hardware would go bad and need to be replaced. That would make me 66. Not a good age for surgery. Doctors said it would be better to wait a few years because medicine was advancing and new technology may be available. Well, now they want me to have surgery, which mean I am looking at surgery again at about 66. One thing is for sure though, it is not getting better and it is not changing fast. But it ca only get worse. Once it gets a centimeter bigger, the odds are 90% chance of this thing blowing with in six months of that change.
My Weight
Well, the medication I am on to keep my blood pressure down make me tired. So tired that as soon as I finish walking I need to take a nap. The problem is I am gaining weight fast, because I really am quite inactive. I might be up to 3 miles a week, but that isn't crap. And then I get tired and can't do anymore. So I am gaining weight and it is causing my blood presure to go up! We are trying to find a new medication.
I will keep you posted.
Monday, August 18, 2008
My Vital Data, Measurements, and Weight
All right here they are. All the vital health data that I can think of. If I need another, please let me know and I will se what I can do.
- Weight = 199.2 lbs
- BFP = 23%
- BP = 120/60
- RHR = 70 bps
- SHR = 81 bps
- Neck = 17.5 in
- Chest (relaxed) = 43 in
- Chest Expanded = 46.5 in
- Expansion = 3.5 in
- Waist = 44 in
- Bicept = 13 in
- Forearm = 11 in
- Hips = 40 in
- Thigh = 22 in
- Calves = 14
Saturday, August 16, 2008
My Current Workouts to Recovery
I so need to get my fat butt in shape.
So far for workouts all I have been able to do is walk.
The first week I walked a 1/4 of a mile twice. Total = .5 miles
The next week I walked a 1/2 mile 4 times. Total = 2 miles
This passed week I walked a 1/2 mile twice and over a mile today. Total = 2.25 Miles
I will keep you posted to my progress.
Monday, August 11, 2008
The Car Accident
Thank You
First I want to thank every for their support and assistance to my family during this passed couple of months. I would also like those who don't know to hear from me what happened.
Saturday, June 14th
I woke up at 6 am, dressed and drove my oldest daughter to South Carolina. I was going to start filming a pioneer trek reenactment, for the youth of my church, on Tuesday. My sister-in-law and her husband have just had twins. My oldest daughter was going to spend the week of the trek with them to help them out. I arrived in Rowland NC. At 8:am. My brother-in-law met us there at the BP. By 8:30 AM, everyone was back on the road. My daughter was on her way to Charleston and I was heading home. Around 10:00 am, I stopped at a McDonald's to go to the bathroom and get a drink. I felt good. I remember entering Aberdeen were Highway 1/15/501 merge together. I remember making the right hand turn and heading down the road. That is the last thing I remember.
What Happened?
According to witnesses, I made a sudden left turn, into on coming traffic. The speed limit in that area is 35 mph. I am also aware of speed traps along the road and would ave been doing the speed limit. A gentleman traveling in the opposite direction was also doing the speed limit. At 10:30 am we hit head on. I do not remember any of this. It now appear that my left front tire blew and I lost control turning into oncoming traffic.
EMT, Lights, and Sirens
The next thing I remember is hearing a man's voice. He said he was a military EMT and to hold still and not move in case I had a neck or back injury. He then told me to close my eyes because they were going to break the window to get me out of the car. I heard sirens, police, fireman. I was finally cut out of the car. They put me in a neck brace and on a backboard. I was taken to Moore regional hospital and my wife was notified. I had a CAT scan done of my head, abdomen, and back; x-rays of all my limbs; and placed on oxygen.
Help From My Church Leaders
Bishop Houseman, the Bishop of the Pinehurst congregation of my church was contacted by my wife and two Elders came and gave me a blessing. I do remember talking with the briefly, but I do not remember who they were. I listened very carefully to their prayer and I do remember them saying that the doctors would find all the injuries.
Unexpected Surprise
Well, come to find out that during the CAT scan, the doctors found an Aorta Aneurysms in the lower abdomen. It was discovered that I had broken my left leg, severely sprained my left ankle, jammed several fingers, and broke my right wrist in several places.
Resetting My Arm
The Doctors put my left hand in traction. It was kind of like putting my fingers in a metal Chinese finger trap, lifted my hand into the air and placed a weight on my elbow to pull it down. I was given a shot for pain then the Doctors re-set my hand. Even though it was very painful, I have to thank them for doing a great job. It was very painful!
The Flight
Because of the aneurysm, it was decided that I needed to go to UNC Memorial Hospital. They flew me out few minutes later. I spent 3 days in ICU.
Surgery, 1 or 2?
The day they moved me to a regular room they scheduled surgery to put pins in my arm and leg. Then to repair the aorta. More X-rays were taken and one more CAT scan of my aorta and one of my wrist.
Divine Intervention
My wife wanted me to have another blessing before surgery so she called a friend of ours. He came with one of the Elders from his ward (congregation). In their blessing, I was told that I would recover quickly and people would be surprised at how quickly I recovered.
No More Surgery
Not more than 30 minutes after I left, the doctors in charge of my arm and leg surgery came to tell me that they were canceling it. The CAT scan revealed that my hand and wrist were set so well, that the bones were healing exactly were they needed to be, the same with the leg. Then the doctors in charge of my aorta decided that the the aneurysm was stable and could be treated with medication for now.
So This Is How It Went Down
Currently I am home. Both legs were in special support boots and my right hand was in a splint. All cuts have healed well. I've got my glasses back, and the small burns on my face and nose from the air bag are healed. I was supposed to be in a wheel chair for a month, but it only lasted a week and a half, then I started walking.I had a walker for another couple of weeks. I was supposed to be in a walker for another month and be up and going by about August. Then with the help of the boots I was able to get up and start walking with out the walker quickly.
Appointments
I had a follow-up on my wrist and aneurysm. The doctor put my arm in a cast. I chose blue. White would be too dirty, black would be to hot, and I just don't do pink.
The Ticking Time Bomb
My aneurysm is unchanged and I will have a follow-up in a month.
It's Off
After 3 weeks the doctor took my cast off and gave me a brace. As long as I was comfortable I could start walking with out the aircast boots and I didn't have to wear the brace all the time. I took the boots off and put them on twice more. They have been off for several weeks now. I wore the brace a couple of time, but it irritated my arm. So I took it off and never wore it again.
I Am So Glad I Have A Great Wife
My wife was on vacation while I was in the Hospital and was off the next week. After that my parents flew in and stayed for just over a month.
No Cooking!
I have a freezer full of frozen prepared meals, that my girls can reheat. Several members of my church have stayed with me while my wife left to do shopping and thanks to all the families that have watched my girls.
Thanks to everyone for all the help and support. Now I need to get my butt in shape.
See you soon!
First I want to thank every for their support and assistance to my family during this passed couple of months. I would also like those who don't know to hear from me what happened.
Saturday, June 14th
I woke up at 6 am, dressed and drove my oldest daughter to South Carolina. I was going to start filming a pioneer trek reenactment, for the youth of my church, on Tuesday. My sister-in-law and her husband have just had twins. My oldest daughter was going to spend the week of the trek with them to help them out. I arrived in Rowland NC. At 8:am. My brother-in-law met us there at the BP. By 8:30 AM, everyone was back on the road. My daughter was on her way to Charleston and I was heading home. Around 10:00 am, I stopped at a McDonald's to go to the bathroom and get a drink. I felt good. I remember entering Aberdeen were Highway 1/15/501 merge together. I remember making the right hand turn and heading down the road. That is the last thing I remember.
What Happened?
According to witnesses, I made a sudden left turn, into on coming traffic. The speed limit in that area is 35 mph. I am also aware of speed traps along the road and would ave been doing the speed limit. A gentleman traveling in the opposite direction was also doing the speed limit. At 10:30 am we hit head on. I do not remember any of this. It now appear that my left front tire blew and I lost control turning into oncoming traffic.
EMT, Lights, and Sirens
The next thing I remember is hearing a man's voice. He said he was a military EMT and to hold still and not move in case I had a neck or back injury. He then told me to close my eyes because they were going to break the window to get me out of the car. I heard sirens, police, fireman. I was finally cut out of the car. They put me in a neck brace and on a backboard. I was taken to Moore regional hospital and my wife was notified. I had a CAT scan done of my head, abdomen, and back; x-rays of all my limbs; and placed on oxygen.
Help From My Church Leaders
Bishop Houseman, the Bishop of the Pinehurst congregation of my church was contacted by my wife and two Elders came and gave me a blessing. I do remember talking with the briefly, but I do not remember who they were. I listened very carefully to their prayer and I do remember them saying that the doctors would find all the injuries.
Unexpected Surprise
Well, come to find out that during the CAT scan, the doctors found an Aorta Aneurysms in the lower abdomen. It was discovered that I had broken my left leg, severely sprained my left ankle, jammed several fingers, and broke my right wrist in several places.
Resetting My Arm
The Doctors put my left hand in traction. It was kind of like putting my fingers in a metal Chinese finger trap, lifted my hand into the air and placed a weight on my elbow to pull it down. I was given a shot for pain then the Doctors re-set my hand. Even though it was very painful, I have to thank them for doing a great job. It was very painful!
The Flight
Because of the aneurysm, it was decided that I needed to go to UNC Memorial Hospital. They flew me out few minutes later. I spent 3 days in ICU.
Surgery, 1 or 2?
The day they moved me to a regular room they scheduled surgery to put pins in my arm and leg. Then to repair the aorta. More X-rays were taken and one more CAT scan of my aorta and one of my wrist.
Divine Intervention
My wife wanted me to have another blessing before surgery so she called a friend of ours. He came with one of the Elders from his ward (congregation). In their blessing, I was told that I would recover quickly and people would be surprised at how quickly I recovered.
No More Surgery
Not more than 30 minutes after I left, the doctors in charge of my arm and leg surgery came to tell me that they were canceling it. The CAT scan revealed that my hand and wrist were set so well, that the bones were healing exactly were they needed to be, the same with the leg. Then the doctors in charge of my aorta decided that the the aneurysm was stable and could be treated with medication for now.
So This Is How It Went Down
Currently I am home. Both legs were in special support boots and my right hand was in a splint. All cuts have healed well. I've got my glasses back, and the small burns on my face and nose from the air bag are healed. I was supposed to be in a wheel chair for a month, but it only lasted a week and a half, then I started walking.I had a walker for another couple of weeks. I was supposed to be in a walker for another month and be up and going by about August. Then with the help of the boots I was able to get up and start walking with out the walker quickly.
Appointments
I had a follow-up on my wrist and aneurysm. The doctor put my arm in a cast. I chose blue. White would be too dirty, black would be to hot, and I just don't do pink.
The Ticking Time Bomb
My aneurysm is unchanged and I will have a follow-up in a month.
It's Off
After 3 weeks the doctor took my cast off and gave me a brace. As long as I was comfortable I could start walking with out the aircast boots and I didn't have to wear the brace all the time. I took the boots off and put them on twice more. They have been off for several weeks now. I wore the brace a couple of time, but it irritated my arm. So I took it off and never wore it again.
I Am So Glad I Have A Great Wife
My wife was on vacation while I was in the Hospital and was off the next week. After that my parents flew in and stayed for just over a month.
No Cooking!
I have a freezer full of frozen prepared meals, that my girls can reheat. Several members of my church have stayed with me while my wife left to do shopping and thanks to all the families that have watched my girls.
Thanks to everyone for all the help and support. Now I need to get my butt in shape.
See you soon!
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