Swim, bike, and walk

Today was a great day. My friend, Denise, and I made our way over to Lifetime Fitness this morning for their annual indoor triathlon. It consisted of a 10 minute swim, 30 minutes on a Schwinn indoor bike, and 20 minutes on the treadmill. The event was a bit disorganized, Denise and I got lost during our swim/bike transition trying to find the cycling studio (yes, the gym is that big), but the staff was encouraging and helpful and the music selection was amazing. All in all, it was a great way to get our feet wet and prepare for the  outdoor triathlon we intend to do in April.

This was the first time I had ever done a triathlon swim in a pool and I didn't like it as much as the open water swims. Granted, I could see where I was going, I didn't get kicked and smacked, and there was absolutely no worry about being eaten by a giant water dwelling creature; however, I had a really hard time getting into a regular rhythm like I could when swimming in open water. When I stopped to think about it, I realized that the incentive to swim faster was also missing, since the fear of being eaten  makes a person put just a touch more effort into their swim.

After we were changed and once we found the cycling studio, the bike ride portion of the event was pretty fun. I kept my cadence at about 17-19 mph, even though we were encouraged to drop all resistance and pedal as hard as we could so we could cover the most amount of miles. After watching some of the participants bouncing around in their saddles, apparently in one of the waves some man managed to bounce hard enough to move his bike, I was even more appreciative of the good education and safety protocols I received when I was certified to teach Spinning. I definitely felt the gluteus maximus muscles once I got off the bike, which meant that I was pedaling safely and effectively.

The treadmill portion was pretty uneventful. Thankfully there was no tripping or falling involved, and I just walked for 20 minutes.  Unfortunately, the leg is still not 100% since my fall a few weeks ago and my calf started to feel tight and ache the last five minutes. Ibuprofen, stretches and foam roller to the rescue!

Well.... I am back on crutches

Thankfully this time it isn't surgery, femur, or knee related.

Over the past month I have been trying to get out of the house on the weekends with the kids to do a bit of hiking. In San Antonio it's more like taking nature walk, but at least we still get outside and spend some time together. There is no shortage of places to explore and we try a new park every weekend so no one gets bored. Yesterday we went to Eisenhower Park which has a nice trail system and a observation tower that the kids really enjoy. We had a really good time.

And then "it" happened. .We had just finished the most strenuous part of the hike, coming down a hill with some loose rocks. I was walking on flat ground and talking to my kids about the picnic lunch waiting for us in the cooler in the back of the van when I lost footing/or slipped on a rock and I fell. Right onto the my right knee and shin. Thankfully, even while in pain, I was able to keep my head and had one son run to get the people that had just passed us on the trail and I had my other son call my husband. When I finally stood up I almost threw up from the pain coming from my calf and hip. I managed to walk, with some assistance, the longest mile EVER back to the parking lot. A big THANK-YOU to Roger and his wife for coming to my aid. By the time I made it to the parking lot my shin and calf were completely swollen and extremely painful.

My husband took me straight to the ER, but, unfortunately, radiology was backed up so it took forever to get films. The ER doctor didn't let me suffer too long. Once he palpated my leg and saw me jump out of the wheelchair in pain he ordered some Narco, which made me feel SOOOO much better. When I finally had my films done, the x-rays of the femur, knee, and tibia looked great and there were no signs of a fracture or broken implant. That was my primary concern, especially with the lower leg swelling.

I was discharged with a diagnosis of contusion to my knee and shin with orders of NSAIDS and RICE. I was given another set of crutches (yay) and a leg brace. I was also instructed to call my ortho oncologist just to let him know what what going on, because of my abnormal anatomy the ER doctor wanted to make sure that he didn't miss anything in his diagnosis.

At first I was pretty upset, but now I'm feeling okay with the situation. I realize that stupid freak accidents happen to normal people too (I was asked several times on my hobble back to the parking lot if I had sprained my ankle). Falling, getting a contusion, and recovering is just par for course for someone who leads an active lifestyle. My mom suggested that I look into purchasing some trekking poles and since I have some extra time on my hands I am researching a pair to purchase. I think they will be well worth the money, especially since I plan on doing more hikes with the kids once I recover.

Happy New Year!

2013 is a big year, full of some big anniversaries and milestones. My two-year compression screw and knee replacement anniversary is coming up in 12 days, and my four year diagnosis and first surgery anniversary is in six months. Once I reach my four year milestone I will be able to move to a yearly CT schedule instead of the 6 month schedule I'm on now. Less exposure to radiation is always a good thing!

Since this is such a big year I have some big goals to achieve. I am signed up for the Dirty Girl 5k mud run in March. Cancer survivors get waived registration which is amazing and awesome! In April there is a short triathlon (200 yard swim, 10 mile bike ride, 2 mile run/walk) that I'm going to enter as soon as the registration opens. In addition, now that I'm starting to forget what the end of the walk felt like, I want to walk the Rock & Roll Half Marathon again this November and beat last years time.

Obviously, with all of these events I'll need to do a lot of walking so my goal is to walk a total of 500 miles by December 31, 2013. I'm pretty sure I managed to walk 500 miles in 2012; however, I forgot to keep track (woops) so I'll need to do a better job this year. In addition to the walking, I will need to add some road biking (gulp) and some swimming back into my routine. Thankfully, I have found some nice quiet roads that I can use to get back into my biking groove. Getting back into the pool is something I'm really looking forward to. I like how quiet it is when my head is in the water and how my mind goes blank while I forget to count how many laps I have swum.

It's great to finally have a year where I can look ahead to the future and actually plan events. Here is to a healthy and happy 2013!

I am absolutely loving my winter break. It has been so nice to to sleep in, to spend time with the family, and have the freedom to read books that I want to read versus the books that I have been assigned to read.  I'm keeping up with my workouts by meeting a friend and using TRX straps outside at a track so we can watch our kids play and run around. It's been good for both of us, and our kids, to get out and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine.

A tradition that I have missed and am so glad we can take advantage during out school breaks is to pile everyone into the van for a drive to explore new areas, like the Blanco river.

We decided to visit Blanco, Texas earlier this week to visit the Real Ale Brewery (http://realalebrewing.com/). The brewery offers a free tour on Friday afternoons and samples of their seasonal beer. The nerd in me loved that the tour guide explained the science behind making the perfect batch of beer and the beer drinker in me loved that they gave out five free samples that were really, really good.

Today, I had the pleasure of going to Round Rock, Texas to visit The Salt Lick, (http://www.saltlickbbq.com/), and meet up two of my very best friends, Jay and Marcie. A group of us met on the internet 10 years ago, formed our own separate MSN group, and became good friends. Over time we met in real life, after we making sure that the person we were meeting wasn't an ax murderer or an internet "weirdo", and continued to stay friends. After my cancer surgeries Jay and Marcie would either Yahoo chat or Facebook chat with me listen to me whine and complain. They helped me through some of the darkest times of my life and for that I will always be grateful.

It was nice playing catch up and having a conversation that didn't involve a computer or a phone. Since Marcie lives in the Northwest and Jay lives on the opposite side of the state we don't always have the ability to meet up for lunch so today was a very special day. I really hope that one of these years our entire internet group will be able to meet up for lunch. (hint, hint).

It's been a while

Merry Christmas!!

I can't believe how long it's been since I have written. Life has been crazy busy and I have been trying to enjoy every bit of it; although, every so often I will think "Oh, I should write about this" and then.. I don't. Since my third surgery I have:

• Gone back to school with the goal of getting my Doctorate in Physical Therapy. I have a long way to go, but I know that with hard work I'll achieve my goal.
• Walked the San Antonio Half Marathon. It took me 4 hours, but I did it. I finished the race. I was training for the Kansas City Half Marathon when my tumor was discovered and I always promised myself that I would finish a half marathon, even if I had to crawl across the finish line.
• Started fostering dogs for the Texas German Shorthair Pointer rescue. 
• Spent two awesome summers enjoying my kids at different amusement and water parks.
• Continued to grow bone around my implant. 

Since it has been almost 2 years from my last surgery, I have decided to change the name of the blog from Life With Chondrosarcoma to Life After Chondrosarcoma. When I received my diagnosis and had my various surgeries I never felt like there would be a life after cancer. I am so glad that I was wrong. There is life after cancer. Yes, it is something that is always at the back of my mind when I go in for tests and appointments; however, I don't let that fear and worry consume my life.

Some of my goals for the upcoming year include:

• Continue losing weight. When my doctor told me that I probably wouldn't lose any weight until after a year from my last surgery he was right.
• Do a triathlon in April
• Walk another half marathon
• Keep my 4.0 GPA

Before I go, I want to share some pictures of my friend, Beth, and I at the half marathon. Beth lives in Arizona and I am so happy that she was able to fly in to Texas and walk with me!

 Before the race

At the end. We were smiling because we were glad it was almost over.

 Tired, but very happy

We were so happy that when we tried to "Hi-5" each other we missed. Of course the photographer would have to capture that moment in time.

Defying Gravity

My Mother's Day weekend

First family hike in almost 2 years! I was hiding from the sun.

I almost cried. First time on a horse in a few years. I LOVE horses, and it's one of the things I was most concerned about when I got my diagnosis. I wanted to take this boy home with me :).

 I got to sit on Oreo, the Steer. He was awesome and oh so soft. 

The family. It's awesome to be able to to do family activities again.