I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s been 16 weeks and three days since my hip surgery and I’m beginning to feel almost normal. But it’s been an up-and-down process during the recovery period.

When I first met with my surgeon, Dr. Riyaz Jinnah, he told me I’d have to wait six months before I could run again. I saw him last week and reminded him that six months comes out to the end of March. He said OK, he wasn’t going to quibble over a day or two.

I will see him again just before the date I’ve set for my first run. It’ll be at South Asheboro Middle School track, the reason being that’s where I started running regularly 30 years ago to the month.

Depending on how I feel and precautions Dr. Jinnah may provide, the first run could be one lap or even just a jog down the straightaway. In other words, it may be as much ceremonial as a new beginning.

Getting to this point has been and still is an exercise in ups and downs. As I’ve progressed, I’ve had times when I felt I was moving forward, only to be brought back down by pain in the affected hip.

When I rest, the hip seems to feel better, but not working out makes me gain weight. Doing exercises is supposed to strengthen the muscles in my upper leg, but sometimes that leads to pain and stiffness.

The workouts I’ve been doing include the stationary bike, the elliptical machine and weight machines. I did all three a few days ago and started hurting again afterward.

What’s frustrating is that I can’t tell during the exercises if I’m overdoing it. It’s only afterward that I pay the price. And I’m not sure hurting afterward is a bad thing or just part of the process of healing.

Today I feel better and plan to work out again, albeit with caution. I need to burn calories to work off the extra 10 pounds I’ve gained since surgery. I don’t want to look like a medicine ball rolling down the track on my first day back.

Soon I’ll begin a countdown, marking off the days until THE RUN. As the big day approaches, I know my workouts will become more intense.

Here’s hoping the light I’m seeing at the end of the tunnel isn’t Norfolk & Southern.



Posted January 23, 2010. Larry Penkava is a staff writer for The Randolph Guide. He can be reached at (336) 625-5576 or by e-mail at lpenkava@randolphguide.com.