Fifty Plus (50+) - Permission to ride again

I had my 9 week checkup today from ankle fusion surgery, on Dec 1, with the doctor (mechanic/carpenter). He said that I'm a fast healer and stated "your done". I asked what that meant and he said that my ankle is completely fused and that I only need to came back in 4 weeks so he can look at the scars. I asked about therapies and he said that PT's usually work on range of motion and my ankle will not have any.

So I'm allowed to begin riding again. I did not reveal to the doctor that my bike computer shows 393 miles for January. It really wouldn't be that much if I discount the indoor miles on the rollers and trainer leaving the lone 36 mile outdoor ride a couple weeks ago. So I'm legally back in the saddle and at tonight's trainer class "even out of the saddle"

Here is a glimpse of his handiwork. At first glance it looks like a poor job of "toe nailing a 2x4 stud".

http://i489.photobucket.com/albums/rr256/sru75/IMG_1584.jpg

Congrats. Now get out and ride! I'm starting my velodrome training for the 2010 season. Our Tues night motorpaced workouts have been rained out the last two weeks. Yes, it does rain in San Diego.

Yikes!

Good for you. Really!

Got any of that 'fast healer' mojo to share around? I'll cut you a deal for a lovely folding bike with a VERY sharp front brake !!

Glad you healed so quickly. Happy trails.

Good for you. Really!

Got any of that 'fast healer' mojo to share around? I'll cut you a deal for a lovely folding bike with a VERY sharp front brake !!

I'm sending it your way. Allow a few hours for the time zone changes.:lol:

That is a lot of hardware. Stainless I presume?? I'm guessing it's not phillips head but but probably a hex or star?

Can I ask what happened to cause the need for that type surgery? Do the screws eventually come out or, are they now permanent body fixtures?

In any event, I'm delighted to hear you're racking up miles now, and wishing you the best. Keep pedaling.

Can I ask what happened to cause the need for that type surgery? Do the screws eventually come out or, are they now permanent body fixtures?

In any event, I'm delighted to hear you're racking up miles now, and wishing you the best. Keep pedaling.

My journey to the surgery was typical to most who had an athletic injury early in life which allowed the joint to become deformed and with total loss of cartridge. I was injured while training for college sports. I played many sports into my early 40's when the ankle went south within two years. I went from being able to dunk a basketball on my 40th birthday to not being able to jog across the street at 44 yrs. That is what brought me to cycling. My ankle continued to get worse but I was able to deal with it. Riding a bike did not hurt except when crossing RR tracks and dropping gears. Last fall when doing simple things like taking out the garbage can to the curb became a big deal I knew it was time to get the fusion.

The hardware stays in place and will most likely be a conversation point every time I'm in an airport.

Your story is almost identical to mine. 20 some years after a ice skating injury (a beginner took me out) and 15 running marathons later the ankle was toast! So at age 53 it got fused. 71 days later I did my first real bike ride with the club. It was February in Cleveland so not many good weather days. At 80 days went ice skating with AFO (sort of a removable cast). At 155 days rode TOSRV.

Your story is almost identical to mine. 20 some years after a ice skating injury (a beginner took me out) and 15 running marathons later the ankle was toast! So at age 53 it got fused. 71 days later I did my first real bike ride with the club. It was February in Cleveland so not many good weather days. At 80 days went ice skating with AFO (sort of a removable cast). At 155 days rode TOSRV.

Have you had any lingering issues or challenges to riding? What club do you ride with, we must cross paths now and then.

That's great news, AJ.

As they say down in the islands, "go for eet mon".:thumb:

Glad your nailed back together.

(least they'll be one guy not blowing past me in the park for awhile)

Have you had any lingering issues or challenges to riding? What club do you ride with, we must cross paths now and then.
That was with the Westgate Wheelers Club. Bike riding was never a problem, even before surgery when walking was tough. Speedskating though does place a lot of stress on the other foot joints.

That was with the Westgate Wheelers Club. .

You must ride with Ron K. We used to work together and he got me back into riding when my running went South.

You must ride with Ron K. We used to work together and he got me back into riding when my running went South.
I haven't ridden with them for the past few years. They start to early in the morning for me, now that I'm retired. But sometimes I see a few of them riding home from work through Lakewood.

Holy crap! That makes my hardware (a plate & 8 screws) look like a minor repair (to severe, open pilon fracture).

Gives me hope that I might do OK when I get back on the bike. Right now getting ready for a pool therapy session after a hard day in rehab, yesterday.

All the best with your recovery ... though it sounds like you're already there.

Ouch.

On the bike at 9 weeks is impressive. I had acetabular (hip socket area) fracture repair on Dec 1 and yesterday was the 1st day they would let me put any weight on my leg. I'm at 50% weight for a week and then full weight bearing and lots of pt. At least mine was from a cycling accident!

I had a pretty severe complication with DVT that bought me an extra week in the hospital, but I'm expecting full recovery from both.

How did those first rides feel after being limited for so long? I can't wait, although my bride and most of my non-cycling friends think I'm crazy to even consider getting on my bike again.

Good luck.

I just noticed we had surgery the same day. 10 screws and 2 plates now permanently reside in my butt.

You must have been allowed to put weight on your ankle earlier than I could put it on my leg. At least we're both pretty much healed up and now just have to work out the kinks.

I'm impressed. It took nearly 5 months until I could weight bear on my ankle. Of course, it was shattered into pieces and muscle damage complicated blood flow.

Just back from pool physio. I'm beat!

I just noticed we had surgery the same day. 10 screws and 2 plates now permanently reside in my butt.

You must have been allowed to put weight on your ankle earlier than I could put it on my leg. At least we're both pretty much healed up and now just have to work out the kinks.

The work on the ankle was to make it "not work". The arthritis was fusing the joint naturally and the pain I experienced was from movement. While wearing the air cast boot, I was allowed to use one crutch after 5 weeks, no crutches after 7 weeks.
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I first got on the trainer for 20 minutes of easy spin on Jan 1st and added a little more each time. I figured that I would not be putting any additional weight on the foot than what the doctor allowed while using the crutch. Riding again was very easy and I was surprised how quickly I got back into form. I had planned for a 1 month shutdown from training and the operation fit into the schedule very nicely.

Good luck with your rehab.

Starting to appreciate that my knee, which has been just very slightly "gimpy" on occasion of late, is responding well to stretching, quad sets and spinning on the trainer...................... Absolutely nothing to complain about here!
Not that I see any complaining in this thread - just tales of hard work towards recovery.

By the way, if a bike ride is involved, it is perfectly ethical for the patient to be slightly less than one hundred percent open and transparent with the physician but not the other way around.

I'm just getting out of the boot and have had the OK to ride in the boot (sorta) for a week or so now. My foot still hurts LAB when shuffling around but feels better on the bike. Did you have any pain issues post boot?

That's a lot of hardware. Hope you rebuild fast. Did you get the Ti upgrade?

I'm just getting out of the boot and have had the OK to ride in the boot (sorta) for a week or so now. My foot still hurts LAB when shuffling around but feels better on the bike. Did you have any pain issues post boot?

Looks like we have the same mechinic, What is you ankle's story?

I didn't have any pain on the bike once the swelling and soreness from the pushing and pulling of the nerves and connective tissues healed and returned to normal size. The feeling of gel on the bottom of my foot took the longest to go away. The bottom of my foot is very sensitive and I feel anything that is inside my shoe, such as grass clippings or dirt while gardening. My ankle was so deformed that some chiseling and grinding was needed to reduce it's size. Pain free walking took about three months. Every day I notice that I'm doing something that I have not done for years or did so with a "wince and a grunt". Walking up and down stairs is an afterthought now, you know what I'm talking about.:eek: I originally believed that I had the fusion surgery at the right time, now I'm wondering why I didn't do it 5 years ago.

That is a lot of hardware. Stainless I presume?? I'm guessing it's not phillips head but but probably a hex or star?

Most plates and screws for bones these days are Ti. It's lighter weight and doesn't set off the metal detectors in airports.

Ouch.

On the bike at 9 weeks is impressive. I had acetabular (hip socket area) fracture repair on Dec 1 and yesterday was the 1st day they would let me put any weight on my leg. I'm at 50% weight for a week and then full weight bearing and lots of pt. At least mine was from a cycling accident!

I had a pretty severe complication with DVT that bought me an extra week in the hospital, but I'm expecting full recovery from both.

How did those first rides feel after being limited for so long? I can't wait, although my bride and most of my non-cycling friends think I'm crazy to even consider getting on my bike again.

Good luck.

My friends and family also thinks i am a little off because i fell in December, then again in February with the one in February being the worse one. Now i just stop if any situation even looks like it could lead to a fall. My hip still hurts but no fracture. My niece rides a fixed gear has some nice scars as well. She wants to ride to Florida from Southern California, i wish her well. When i got back on the bike this last time i was surprised at how much strength i retained from not riding from these to falls. Ride safe.

Looks like we have the same mechinic, What is you ankle's story?

I didn't have any pain on the bike once the swelling and soreness from the pushing and pulling of the nerves and connective tissues healed and returned to normal size. The feeling of gel on the bottom of my foot took the longest to go away. The bottom of my foot is very sensitive and I feel anything that is inside my shoe, such as grass clippings or dirt while gardening. My ankle was so deformed that some chiseling and grinding was needed to reduce it's size. Pain free walking took about three months. Every day I notice that I'm doing something that I have not done for years or did so with a "wince and a grunt". Walking up and down stairs is an afterthought now, you know what I'm talking about.:eek: I originally believed that I had the fusion surgery at the right time, now I'm wondering why I didn't do it 5 years ago.

I got my screws in Vail from the Steadman Hawkins Clinic, great place to get some hardware if you have to. The ankles are both pretty damaged from repeated injuries from snowboarding, xc skiing and trail running, the right ankle will get some matching hardware in about 24 months or so depending on how nicely I treat it. This is my first full week sans boot and my foot feels horrible, like any part of it might break at any minute, all the soft tissue is stressed out and the "gel" effect on the bottom is really weird. That said I managed a pretty clean 30 miles (two laps around Mercer Island, WA) on the road bike today with little pain, walking afterwards was pretty pathetic though and for some reason my bib shorts from last season seem WAY tighter. I do notice that every day things do improve and all the pain seems to be soft tissue rather than the fusion, time will tell.

I also wished that I had done this a couple of years ago, I got really conservative advice from multiple docs who all insisted that I should try to live with the kankles until replacements were perfected. I finally flew to Steadman Hawkins to see if I was eligible for a STAR ankle and was told that I would never be a candidate for a TAR and should get my ankle fused ASAP and get on with my life. It was a real WTF moment for me,

BTW I tried to respond earlier and had some tech issues at my end so if this or some variation of this post double posted my bad.

This is my first full week sans boot and my foot feels horrible, like any part of it might break at any minute, all the soft tissue is stressed out and the "gel" effect on the bottom is really weird. That said I managed a pretty clean 30 miles (two laps around Mercer Island, WA) on the road bike today with little pain, walking afterwards was pretty pathetic though and for some reason my bib shorts from last season seem WAY tighter. I do notice that every day things do improve and all the pain seems to be soft tissue rather than the fusion, time will tell.


The bike trainer and rollers was the best therapy for me. I began with easy 20 -30 minute rides at first then progressed to longer times with more resistance on the pedals. I also continued core exercises and did pull ups from the get go. I was able to maintain my weight pretty well even though the Christmas season fell several weeks after the surgery. I know what you mean concerning it might break at anytime. Once I got the clearance to begin riding, I started go do some off the saddle work and had those same feelings.

Next up for me is to begin jogging/running. I can't wait for cyclocross racing season and being able to get off the bike and run over barriers and up hills with the bike on my shoulder. I did it prior but only with trepidation and huge hurts.

Good luck, you are on your way to normal.

The bike trainer and rollers was the best therapy for me. I began with easy 20 -30 minute rides at first then progressed to longer times with more resistance on the pedals. I also continued core exercises and did pull ups from the get go. I was able to maintain my weight pretty well even though the Christmas season fell several weeks after the surgery. I know what you mean concerning it might break at anytime. Once I got the clearance to begin riding, I started go do some off the saddle work and had those same feelings.

Next up for me is to begin jogging/running. I can't wait for cyclocross racing season and being able to get off the bike and run over barriers and up hills with the bike on my shoulder. I did it prior but only with trepidation and huge hurts.

Good luck, you are on your way to normal.

Running! I didn't think that was even in the cards. Sounds like you were a little more disciplined than me during you convalescence, man do I have to pay the piper now. Woulda shoulda - I did perfect my beer tasting skills and Thai cooking though ;-0

I had spinal surgery (laminectomy and fusion at L4/L5) in mid-March. I am doing just great and at this point walking 2 miles at a reasonable rate with no more pain in my right leg. The doc has also allowed me to carefully do some weight training using half the amounts as before.

So while I am thrilled with the progress thus far, I will likely not be allowed on the bike until mid-August. So I wish you all the best and look forward to re-joining the ranks later on.

Best regards