My Sports Hernia- The Finale

....So to pick up where I left off.....I began PT with Alex at Marathon Physical Therapy.  Obviously, I was eager to get going, but it was more like slow-going (which is what it should be).  We started with a few exercises and pool work...and eventually got on the treadmill after several weeks.  It was the exact time line that my doctors had indicted it would take.  I wanted to rush...but there's really no rushing it.  Several times I got worried that I had pushed myself too far...as I would get some discomfort in the area.  Around the beginning of June I was biking again...very easy and not very far...but biking, nonetheless.  At this point, I was swimming too.  Finally around the second week of July, I started to run outside.  After a couple of weeks of actual training, I got the itch and signed up a few races.  One was a sprint tri at the beginning of August, one was a sprint at the end of August, and the last was a half ironman on Labor Day weekend.  The first race was fortunately cancelled...as I was definitely NOT ready for it.  I wound up winning my AG and placing 5th overall at the next race.  I just did not have any speed in my legs.  The last race I wound up winning by 12 minutes.  Granted, it was not a big race with too much competition (first annual)....I raced really well.  I guess that's what happens when you have several years of base training under your belt...it just carries over.  Anyway, there's a race report for the last race here on the blog, if you're interested.

It has now been just about 2 years post surgery.  I'm really glad I had the surgery.  I'm back to normal training and racing.  But, here's the thing....you can't just have the surgery and go back to normal.  You have to incorporate some new things into your daily routine.  Strength work, exercises.  Believe me, I haven't always been diligent with this last part....but I always fall back in line, as it's absolutely necessary.  I firmly believe that this injury began not only because I have a lot of wear and tear on the body, but also because I was neglecting the other core muscles.  I did have a scare a couple months ago.  I went skate skiing for the first time since the surgery....and a couple of days later I was having a lot of discomfort in the pelvic area.  Fortunately, I think it was just due to the scare tissue in the area.  It went away....but, believe me, it made me nervous.  Anyway, if anyone has any questions, please feel free to contact me directly.  Always happy to share my experience.

-Pat