Whatever I can do

I saw Dr. Klapper for a follow-up on Tuesday and the long and short of it is that there is some moderate improvement in the right hip and the left hip is more problematic. I'm going to keep up with the physical therapy and see whether I still have pain in another 6-8 weeks. If I still do, he recommends surgery and if not, then no worries. He said there's a possibility that some tears form something of a callus and so it would be possible to have something of an irregularity without pain. He doesn't think that you need to necessarily operate simply because there's an irregularity on an MRI or X-ray.

I don't know what to make of that.

I described to him the pain I had following Pilates last time, and he explained that it's not the hip that is causing the pain, but the surrounding musculature and weakness. So I asked him if I could do Pilates and/or Yoga, and he gave me the answer that I can do it as long as it doesn't hurt. Okaaaaaaaaaaaay.

So I went back to Mind2Body today and worked with the owner, Lani. She identified a bunch of ways in which I was unintentionally compensating for weak muscles by overworking the stronger ones, and was so good at explaining ways to isolate the ones that I need to strengthen. As a runner (or should I say former runner -- booo), I was particularly fascinated by the weakness in the inner foot and big toe area. I'm so used to putting the pressure on the outside of my feet from the way I pronate, and it's amazing how that has made my inner feet weak. I managed to get through the entire hour without pain, and I am hoping to get through the rest of the day in such a way. But the thing I found most interesting is that I think, despite my best efforts, that I'm compensating improperly in some of my water exercises. It's hard to tell because nobody is there watching me contract each muscle specifically. Some of the Pilates exercises seemed like the pool therapy exercises (but on land, of course). I would love to do both because I think they compliment each other and that by getting better at one, I'll necessarily get stronger and improve my form in the other.

I had a massage last night, which was really helpful to loosen the areas also. My massage therapist suggested that I get regular deep tissue massages (I'd love to if they lowered their prices, lol), and to try rubbing certain essential oils into the hip/thigh area. She also suggested that I try acupuncture. Her other suggestion was to sit on a tennis ball where the butt and leg meet to send blood to the area and to loosen up that area.

In light of all of this, I got very excited and a renewed sense of optimism that I may be able to forego surgery. After all, it seems like even if they fix the joint, I'm still going to have to deal with all this residual weakness and imbalances. But my husband brought me back down to reality with the simple, "it's all necessary, but it may just be postponing the inevitable...you may still ultimately need to have the surgery to correct the joint." Maybe, but either way, I want to do EVERYTHING I can do to strengthen and heal on my own first. No regrets.

I saw one of those inspirational questions the other day that asked if you could change one thing about your life, what would it be. I would normally answer that question "lose weight" but I realized something was different when that no longer felt like the honest answer. I AM losing weight (approx 13 pounds so far). I still have a way to go. But my new answer to that question is "heal my hips." I want this done and far behind me. Is that too much to ask?