Damn the clam

Kate's Rehab list:
Goal #1-Find a doctor who doesn't speak in a condescending manner and is willing and able to listen to what I have to say.

DONE! Thanks to my friend Kim, I found a doctor who listened, is a runner, and spoke the words I wanted to hear, "It may take awhile, but we'll get you there."

Goal #2- If my knee happens to, "take awhile" to heal, I'll find a good physical therapist to get me there.

And TA-DA! Throw your hands up in the air people... also completed! His name is John Schmitz. I am posting his blog to my favorite blogs so if any of my female Indianapolis Runners need a physical therapist, they can just look him up. The blog is called "In Motion".

Many of the exercises John wants me to do are listed there on the blog. They are all stabilizing exercises. IN regards to my body, let's just say that my stabilizers suck. My stabilizer muscles have been slouched on the couch, watching The Wheel of Fortune and claiming disability for about 18 months now. If you were to place my stabilizer muscles on a continuum where Arnold Swarzenegger sits perched on the strong end and Pee Wee Herman hovers unsteadily at the weak end, Pee Wee and I might have to duke it out for last place.

Which I must admit, pisses me off. I spend so much time lifting to AVOID injury. Apparently, according to John, I did a lot of the right type of things, just maybe a little bit too aggressively. Did I mention that this man is diplomatic? Thus, I am yet again presented with a recurring theme, push and push and push and crash.

Now, John assigned a set of exercises for my knee. Your Grandma probably does these exercises at the free aerobics class in her retirement home, things like leg lifts and "The Clam", which is essentially laying on your side and lifting your knee a few inches up towards the ceiling.

I am not knocking Grandmas here, because, let me tell you, my butt is totally sore the next day! John is quick to assure me that these exercises are not easy if you do them correctly. Still, there is no glory in "The Clam", I am here to tell you that first hand.

Except of course, for the fact that practicing these exercises seem to be working. I think my stabilizers are at least off the couch and throwing away the crumpled candy wrappers right now. I continue to hope physical therapy will get me back in my running shoes and out on the street again. I really miss running longer distances. I'll "clam" all day if that's what it takes, even if your Grandma could do it better.