@hckynut wrote:
After today I am not sure. Decided about a month ago to start another comeback to get to the best fitness I can, at my age. Consider myself as being fairly fit, considering all the setbacks(physical) in the last 14 months. So!
One of my goals, which I really want to accomplish, is getting back my ice skating skills I have had since my single digit age. Because of my several serious health issues, and on blood thinner and Plavix, I hadn't skated for 12 years. Ran my adult league(52 years), with 2014-2015 being my last year, but all off the ice work keeping it going.
So, since I upped my workout loads the last 2 months to get my legs stronger, along with adding longer cardio sessions, with several intervals thrown in at different times on my treadmill and NuStep, some of my exercise equipment that did not get ruined when our basement got flooded with sewage.
I will shorten this up and get to the point now. I decided about 3 weeks ago to go ice skating. The rink only has Public Skating 2 afternoons a week, and that is about 3-4 too few to really have a shot at getting back once held skills on ice skates. Even moreso because of the nature of my health issues.
First day skating I found out within 10' I had no balance on skates, and slowly fell to the ice. Stayed close to the rink boards sonI could grab them, just in case, and good thing I did. I struggled along making very little headway, for about 45 minutes on skates? Got a little better, but some beginner skaters were doing better than me.
Last week only 1 day for Public Skating, I went and while better, I fell not by the boards. A nice young teen came and helped me up, and I skated back to sit down and try to mentally figure out where my skills and balance were hiding.
So this afternoon, off I go again to skate. I was trying to warmup up, still skating by the boards as a "just in case". Next thing I know, I am falling towards my right side, but forward. I was quick enough to get my forearm up as to not hit my head, but somehow my right chest hit the ice.
I have fallen enough over many decades to know bad ones from those where you get a bruise, even deep ones, and ones where they are probably more serious. I knew as soon as my upper body hit the ice, someting happened internally, and not just a deep bone bruise.
I got up, stood by the boards with my head down, deep in thought. Do I really want to go through the pains of my hockey injuries of the past, or just admit I have lost it? I decided to stick it out for a little over an hour, being 95% sure what injury I had suffered, and what was causing my 8-10 level pain.
I drove home and decided I best get in to see my doctor, but nothing till Friday. I called my nephew-in-law doctor, and he told me to go right to the ER, after I told him I was pretty sure I had fractured at least 1 rib. He said I might have more damage than that, and I would be wise to get the xrays.
Drove to the ER and spent 4 hours there waiting and another hour or more getting the xrays and the results of them. Sure enough I had a fractured upper right rib, once again the #4 I had fractured years ago. I know the drill from my 5 previous fractured ribs.
This time however I won't/can't take any anti-inflammatory or narcotic pain killers. Advil/Aleve will start my colon bleeding again. Narcotics will alter my brain chemicals and I really can't chance because of my issues and Clinical Diagnosis of problems caused with that imbalance. So I am pretty much stuck with Acetaminophen (Tylenol) and it does very little for joint/back or fracture pain levels.
So I figure it will be at the very least 3-4 months healing, which means coughing/sneezing/lifting my arm abovementioned my head, and keeping my furry kids between my fractured rib them standing on or around it. Lots more use of The Motivator (Spirometer) to prevent lungs filling with fluid.
When it is painful to breath deeply, many fail to do so and fluid build up in their lungs. Trying to avoid real high pain levels is a natural human instinct, and for old people like myself, it is harder for most. My advantage(if there is such a thing), is I have been this route 3 times previously
Talked with my wife and she said: "You are going to do what you ARE GOING TO DO, so why are you asking me, I think you like pain". Chances are I will probably grab my skates Friday afternoon and give it another go. I love skating that much, even though what I doing now, can barely be called skating.
Long story/long day, but I thought I would throw it on the board to see what others think. Thank you if you have read this far.
hckynut(john)
John, are you still taking Plavix? I was told after a heart attack the majority of patients have to be on it for a lifetime. That said, I think you are longing for a time that has long gone by. I feel for you because I know all too well that our bodies refuse to do some things that we used to do so well in our youth. I used to play tennis but RA took that away from me. I was pretty good at it and even golf now I am no longer proficient in. Actually, any athlete needs to see the light....just think of baseball players and football players....none of them are in their 70's still playing and there is a good reason for that.
What I worry about is that if you continue to pursue this, you may fall and have a much more serious injury and you won't recover. Also the strain on your heart....How good is this for a recovering heart patient who already has had 2 heart attacks?
Please re-think this.....if not for yourself then for Cindy and your fur children. They need you. Selfishly, I think our community of posters does here as well.
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