30 July 2012
14 July 2012
04 July 2012
Crotchety
Happy to get a 50-mile ride in today, but three (three!) bike-related pet peeves reared their heads.
- Cyclists wearing earphones. Why do I bother calling "on your left"? You're oblivious. This is an epidemic that's going to get people killed (and it's illegal to boot).
- Unfriendly riders. Pull up next to a guy at a red light, say, "Morning! How's it going?" and NOTHING in reply (and he's not even wearing earphones). I'm not looking for a riding partner, I'm just saying hi, dammit. We're both riders fighting the elements and traffic. How about an iota of solidarity?
- Wheelsuckers who don't introduce themselves. Look, all I ask is that you come up alongside, say, "Hi! My name's Fred. I'm really tired; do you mind if I sit on for a bit?" before engaging the tractor beam for miles. That way, I know you're there, and I can say, "Fine, you can sit on, but I'm not going to point out hazards for you, so be careful." If I'm riding by myself, it's because I want to, but I'm not going to hook you if I know you're there.
21 May 2012
Rollin'
Four months on anticoagulants down, hopefully just two more to go. However, things continue to go better than I feared they would, and in fact today I logged my 1000th mile of the year (the official tally at garmin.com says a bit less, but I know I have at least 10 un-logged miles). Yesterday I had the longest ride I've ever done within Denver (65 miles), and I actually felt pretty damned good at the end:
01 March 2012
22 February 2012
Just Happy to Ride
When I was diagnosed with a Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) in my left calf last month, I really wasn't sure what lay ahead. I just had a vague notion of that whole "you can end up with a pulmonary embolism and die VERY QUICKLY."
Well, almost a month later, thankfully that hasn't happened. Every so often there's a little gurgle or other off sensation, and I ponder how long it takes for a massive clot to go up the femoral vein and vena cava, through the right atrium and ventricle (is my recollection of physiology correct?), to the pulmonary artery, then BANG! I don't know, and basically I've stopped worrying about it.
In reading the accounts of other fit folks (might even say athletes) struck out of the blue by DVT, things looked kind of grim. Either it was "here I am, 2 years later, still swollen and hurting, nothing helps..." or "I've come to accept that I just won't ever be the same." What the hell? This sucks. I didn't ask for this! I joke with my wife that this is a "sympathy DVT" since she, just having undergone ACL surgery, was the one at risk for a DVT, not me.
So, a month-ish into what's supposed to be a 6-month course on Warfarin, where am I? I'm not injecting Enoxaparin (Lovenox) into my belly anymore, although that really wasn't that bad. My INR, a measure of my blood's tendency to clot, is very close to where it's supposed to be, and I just made what I hope is the last adjustment to my Warfarin dosage. I'm able to do what I need to do at work, including copious travel (I now move my legs around A LOT when I'm sitting in a car or on a plane). My leg normally feels fine, and the constant "incipient cramp" sensation I had for 3 weeks pre-diagnosis went away quickly once I started treatment. Every so often the calf feels a little heavy, and I prop that leg up or take off my sock and it feels better.
Exercise definitely helps the leg feel better. The first gym workout, an easy walk on the stepmill with a 120-BPM heart-rate limit, went OK but the leg felt like it was having chills. That hasn't really recurred since. I went skiing last weekend, and while my leg swelled up badly in the boot the first day, I took the hint and loosened the boot whenever I could the second day, and the leg felt fine (it helps that it was much colder and windier, and therefore conducive to frequent breaks!). I realized while skating and poling on a flat into a fierce headwind that my heart rate was sky-high, probably over 160, so I'm not really worried my heart is going to explode anymore.
Today's big news was my first ride post-diagnosis. It was a Chinook day, cloudy but not cold, so I decided to take the plunge. I rode to work, then took a roundabout way home and even saw the kids at karate. Here's the data: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/151802530 . The heart rate data for part of the ride was messed up because I wasn't sweating enough, but other than being in less than stellar form, I felt good. Good enough, in fact, to feel like building fitness during my treatment is a reasonable goal. I'm not trying to get into racing shape, but I want to aim for riding Copper Triangle in August. I always register at the last minute, so I have plenty of time for sanity checks. We'll see. However, I just noticed this year's jersey design is cool... Motivation!
Well, almost a month later, thankfully that hasn't happened. Every so often there's a little gurgle or other off sensation, and I ponder how long it takes for a massive clot to go up the femoral vein and vena cava, through the right atrium and ventricle (is my recollection of physiology correct?), to the pulmonary artery, then BANG! I don't know, and basically I've stopped worrying about it.
In reading the accounts of other fit folks (might even say athletes) struck out of the blue by DVT, things looked kind of grim. Either it was "here I am, 2 years later, still swollen and hurting, nothing helps..." or "I've come to accept that I just won't ever be the same." What the hell? This sucks. I didn't ask for this! I joke with my wife that this is a "sympathy DVT" since she, just having undergone ACL surgery, was the one at risk for a DVT, not me.
So, a month-ish into what's supposed to be a 6-month course on Warfarin, where am I? I'm not injecting Enoxaparin (Lovenox) into my belly anymore, although that really wasn't that bad. My INR, a measure of my blood's tendency to clot, is very close to where it's supposed to be, and I just made what I hope is the last adjustment to my Warfarin dosage. I'm able to do what I need to do at work, including copious travel (I now move my legs around A LOT when I'm sitting in a car or on a plane). My leg normally feels fine, and the constant "incipient cramp" sensation I had for 3 weeks pre-diagnosis went away quickly once I started treatment. Every so often the calf feels a little heavy, and I prop that leg up or take off my sock and it feels better.
Exercise definitely helps the leg feel better. The first gym workout, an easy walk on the stepmill with a 120-BPM heart-rate limit, went OK but the leg felt like it was having chills. That hasn't really recurred since. I went skiing last weekend, and while my leg swelled up badly in the boot the first day, I took the hint and loosened the boot whenever I could the second day, and the leg felt fine (it helps that it was much colder and windier, and therefore conducive to frequent breaks!). I realized while skating and poling on a flat into a fierce headwind that my heart rate was sky-high, probably over 160, so I'm not really worried my heart is going to explode anymore.
Today's big news was my first ride post-diagnosis. It was a Chinook day, cloudy but not cold, so I decided to take the plunge. I rode to work, then took a roundabout way home and even saw the kids at karate. Here's the data: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/151802530 . The heart rate data for part of the ride was messed up because I wasn't sweating enough, but other than being in less than stellar form, I felt good. Good enough, in fact, to feel like building fitness during my treatment is a reasonable goal. I'm not trying to get into racing shape, but I want to aim for riding Copper Triangle in August. I always register at the last minute, so I have plenty of time for sanity checks. We'll see. However, I just noticed this year's jersey design is cool... Motivation!
26 January 2012
DVT!
This winter started off with the usual routine... No riding, get to the gym when I can. December was kind of hectic, between work and my wife's ACL surgery, so time at the gym went down. Come New Year's, though, I decided it was time to ramp up on my 6-week routine of heavier weights, lower reps.
Well, I made it about to the end of Week 1 before realizing I was trying to lift the same weights as I did at the END of last winter's Six Weeks of Hell, and without as good of a training base. I tweaked my right shoulder doing bench presses (still hurts, but getting better). Calf exercises consisted of 3 sets x 25 reps of seated calf raises with 115 pounds on the bar (similar machine shown below), followed by 3 sets x 25 reps of standing calf raises, which I do without extra weight but using only one calf at a time, with the other foot unsupported. Guess what? I tweaked my left calf.
After that episode, I had the kind of soreness I would've expected... But it just wouldn't go away. I'd think I was getting better, then I'd go to the gym for a light workout, and PA-TWANG! The calf would cramp up, or at least be painful.
Earlier this week, I started noticing the left calf felt "fuller" and tauter than the other, but didn't think much of it. It was Wednesday morning, when I got up at 5 a.m. to catch an 8:00 flight to Vegas, when I realized "Damn! That calf is really swollen!" I thought back to my Grandmother Alice's battle with blood clots in her leg when she flew to visit us for Christmas not too long after knee surgery... She spent several extra weeks in Toledo while on anticoagulants. I thought about the prospect of going to Vegas, getting sick, and being stuck there for who knows how long! Not a great prospect.
I blew off the flight to Las Vegas, abandoning a cheap plane ticket in the process. I took my youngest to Preschool and got to attend the Dad's Breakfast I otherwise would've missed. After that, I called my doctor. "Can I get in today?" "We're totally booked." "Okay, here are my symptoms..." "Can you be here at 11:15?"
Long story short, after an exam at my PCP's office and a Doppler ultrasound at the hospital, I was diagnosed with Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), which is a big, nasty blood clot. My clot extends from my ankle up to my knee. Had it gone above my knee, I would've been admitted to the hospital on the spot. Such clots, if left unattended, can break off, travel to the lungs, and kill you in the form of a pulmonary embolism. I was immediately placed on two anticoagulant ("blood thinner") drugs and ordered to take it easy and elevate my leg. Tomorrow I return to the doctor for a blood test to see if my dosage needs to be adjusted.
For now, I have no idea why this happened, as I haven't had surgery or a long plane trip lately. However, I suspect that muscle strain, dehydration, and a low resting heart rate may have created the perfect storm for a clot to form. Stay tuned for updates.
Well, I made it about to the end of Week 1 before realizing I was trying to lift the same weights as I did at the END of last winter's Six Weeks of Hell, and without as good of a training base. I tweaked my right shoulder doing bench presses (still hurts, but getting better). Calf exercises consisted of 3 sets x 25 reps of seated calf raises with 115 pounds on the bar (similar machine shown below), followed by 3 sets x 25 reps of standing calf raises, which I do without extra weight but using only one calf at a time, with the other foot unsupported. Guess what? I tweaked my left calf.
After that episode, I had the kind of soreness I would've expected... But it just wouldn't go away. I'd think I was getting better, then I'd go to the gym for a light workout, and PA-TWANG! The calf would cramp up, or at least be painful.
Earlier this week, I started noticing the left calf felt "fuller" and tauter than the other, but didn't think much of it. It was Wednesday morning, when I got up at 5 a.m. to catch an 8:00 flight to Vegas, when I realized "Damn! That calf is really swollen!" I thought back to my Grandmother Alice's battle with blood clots in her leg when she flew to visit us for Christmas not too long after knee surgery... She spent several extra weeks in Toledo while on anticoagulants. I thought about the prospect of going to Vegas, getting sick, and being stuck there for who knows how long! Not a great prospect.
I blew off the flight to Las Vegas, abandoning a cheap plane ticket in the process. I took my youngest to Preschool and got to attend the Dad's Breakfast I otherwise would've missed. After that, I called my doctor. "Can I get in today?" "We're totally booked." "Okay, here are my symptoms..." "Can you be here at 11:15?"
Long story short, after an exam at my PCP's office and a Doppler ultrasound at the hospital, I was diagnosed with Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), which is a big, nasty blood clot. My clot extends from my ankle up to my knee. Had it gone above my knee, I would've been admitted to the hospital on the spot. Such clots, if left unattended, can break off, travel to the lungs, and kill you in the form of a pulmonary embolism. I was immediately placed on two anticoagulant ("blood thinner") drugs and ordered to take it easy and elevate my leg. Tomorrow I return to the doctor for a blood test to see if my dosage needs to be adjusted.
For now, I have no idea why this happened, as I haven't had surgery or a long plane trip lately. However, I suspect that muscle strain, dehydration, and a low resting heart rate may have created the perfect storm for a clot to form. Stay tuned for updates.
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