Day 130: A Christmas Miracle?

G’day,

At around 2.55PM yesterday I received a phone call from my doctor. I held my breath as I knew he was about to give me the results of my MRI scan from the day before. 

After reading up online I knew there were two broad categories of meniscus tear: a red zone (more blood circulation which speeds recovery) and a white zone (less blood circulation and much longer to heal). While I was praying for the best possible outcome (red zone tear) I still knew it was a 6-8 week road to recovery at a minimum.

Then when the doctor first spoke on my results he said, “mate, it is not as bad as we first thought.” I sat right up and paid very close attention to what he said next, “You haven’t torn your meniscus or any ligaments, there is no structural damage to your knee.” My first thought was Halleluja, it’s a Christmas miracle!”

He went to explain that a small portion of my knee cartilage had broken down (probably due to the rapid increase in workload over the previous four months). This caused a little “bone-on-bone” altercation which resulted in a “pop” in my knee as I was playing squash. This resulted in the swelling and pain I felt immediately after the incident and the initial diagnosis of meniscus tear.

The upshot of all this is that with proper R.I.C.E. (rest, ice, compression and elevation) over the next week or two my knee should be mostly healed! What a turn-around from the day before! However, I will be very conservative in my comeback to training. After having an injury like this I am determined to learn all I can about injury prevention. This may include a daily practice of stretching and mobility training, or perhaps even yoga! I have a lot to learn in this regard.

Before I sign off today a final note on my daily accountability scoring. While I adjusted my points allocation yesterday to reflect the fact I couldn’t train for the time being, I will bring it back to normal as soon as I can walk 10k without discomfort, hopefully some time next week.

Until tomorrow,

AJ