2 years ago, a fabulous day of skiing in Calgary / Banff turned into the worst day of my life. I had never broken a bone or been seriously injured until I tore my ACL that afternoon. Here is an excerpt from my blog 2 years ago:
"It's hard adjusting to the transition from training so hard for Wildflower ( I completed the swim, bike, and run workouts in Canada at high altitude and even ran 14 miles in 2 hours the day before the accident) And now being on bedrest with my foot elevated and an ice pack on my knee!"
"I'm pretty depressed. I always took running for granted. It was so effortless, unless I was pushing 7 min/ miles. Now a fear I have is that I won't get back to my previous running form with a bum knee. I still dream of becoming an Ironman. I still dream of qualifying for the Boston Marathon someday. Hopefully with the support of family, friends, coaches, and teammates, my dreams will still be realized one day."
Well after ACL reconstruction with meniscus repair in July 2009 and PT/ Rehab, I resumed marathoning in October 2009 and became an Ironman in August 2010. My fear of never running fast again was conquered when I set a marathon PR in Arizona January 2011. I can run 6 and 7 min/ miles again ( for short distances). I'm biking faster than ever before and swimming better as well. The weakness in my surgical leg last year affected not only my running, but also the biking and swimming. Now with my leg basically 100%, I'm much stronger tackling hills on the bike and my swim kick is stronger as well.
I heard popping noises from the surgical knee last year, but that has resolved. Before exercise, my surgical knee can be a little stiff, but after 5 to 10 minutes I'm fine. After a long run, my surgical knee is a little more sore, but there is no swelling. I was wearing a knee brace last year, but I ditched that last summer. I am very happy with my ACL reconstruction and I'm glad I had the surgery. I even went skiing in Feb 2011.
I recently ran the Los Angeles Marathon. Now I'm in training for Wildflower Long Course Triathlon ( Half Ironman) on April 30, 2011, Vineman 70.3 on July 17, Full Vineman ( Ironman distance) on July 30, Ironman Louisville on August 28, and finally Ironman Florida on November 5, 2011.
Obviously there is life after ACL Reconstruction. Good luck to everyone.
