Taking it slow is about as painful for an athlete as getting injured itself. I always try to convinceย myself of ways to climb or exercise that fall into the doctorโs perimeters, but have found thatย can be equally as detrimental.The time of recovery I am given is sharpied on my calendar. If Iย should be "resuming normal activity" in three months, then gosh darn it, I should be climbingย 5.13 or 5.14 by then. Unfortunately, Iโve learned that "normal activity" for sedentary people isย not performing at a top level. But, it's like a carrot for me, something to grasp for, somethingย to make all the time on the couch, all the time watching climbing, all the time thinking aboutย running, biking, hiking, climbing actually worth it. Sadly, my enthusiasm and zest for climbingย and pushing myself has also been my downfall. After numerous finger injuries, shoulder injuriesย and so on, I have learned it's best to take my time coming back. A month off now is better thanย three later down the line.ย Back in 2003 I had a stress fracture in my sesimoid bone in my foot. For those of you whoย don't know about the sesimoid, they are tiny bones right under the ball of your foot, and actย like a fulcrum for your tendon to run across. That summer I had been working on a route calledย Sarchasm. Set at 12,000 feet, itโs a stunning climb, weaving back and forth on an arete. The twoย hour hike several days per week was a great way to escape the heat of the summer, but slowlyย wore my feet down. (I'll save the fact that I wore a really old pair of shoes, for another post onย being smart.) Like a true stubborn athlete, as soon as I completed the climb I pushed throughย the pain and boarded a plane to the alpine wonderland of the Cirque of the Unclimbables. Fourย months later I found myself climbing on El Cap and couldnโt stand on a ledge without collapsing in pain. I had a continual limp when I walked and had upsised my climbing shoes by two sizes.ย I realized I could no longer brush it off as a minor toe pain and finally succumbed and saw aย doctor. He graciously told me I had a stress fracture in my foot, and with a month in a cast, andย a couple months in a boot with rest, I should be back to climbing in no time. Being in my earlyย twenties, I immediately halved the timeline that he gave me and interpreted his "rest" suggestionย as no climbing shoes, no running, no skiing, etc. I surely thought biking using the back of myย foot instead of the front of my foot was rest. I also lumped climbing in my boot into the โrestโย category, as long as I didnโt use the hurt part of my foot. For three months I rode my stationaryย bike religiously every day and even took my boot to La Sportiva and had sticky rubber put on itย to improve my booted climbing skills. As I write this, it's a bit disconcerting to remember my mentality, but all too familiar. Needless toย say, I spent the next nine months dealing with the injury. It wasn't until I actually rested and letย my body recover that I healed. Now, I definitely know some people where this strategy works,ย and I lump them into the superhuman category. Everyone heals at different paces, and I for oneย heal very slowly. It might be thanks to my extremely hyper mobile joints, my bull headed-ness,ย or just my physical make up, for whatever reason Iโm on the long end of recovery. The mostย important thing Iโve learned is listening to my body. If it hurts to climb, I should take the day off.ย I know that sounds sacrilege, but itโs worth it in the long run. "What about my momentum?" Iย think. "What about the progression I was going to try and make today?" But trust me, it's takenย me almost two decades of begin a professional climber to realize that it's okay to take a day off.ย In fact, it's okay to take a week off if it will counteract a several month injury. On this road back to recovery, I am trying to be diligent about listening to my body, withoutย falling into the "too scared" mentality as well. It's a delicate balance, wondering when I can pushย myself versus knowing when to hold back and take it easy. Over the course of all my injuries I'mย still in the learning process, which is frustrating but also good to still be learning. Yesterday I was out in the boulders on Yosemite with two of my favorite people to climb with,ย Justin and Randy. I was working on a problem that I have done in the heat of the August sunย without expending much effort at all. The conditions were perfect yesterday, but my body isnโt.ย After finally reaching the summit, Justin said,"I know that probably felt hard to you, but youย sure don't look like a person who hasn't climbed in a few months, your body just knows how toย climb." I smiled when I heard him say this. It not only feels good to climb again after injury, butย it's nice to know that they body can retain so much. My advice is to take it slow. Listen to yourย body, push yourself a little each day, if you push too much it's not the end of the world, take itย a little slower. If you have seen a physical therapist or doctor and have rehab exercises, putย those ahead of your climbing in terms of priority. I know that I take my exercise bands with meย everywhere, doing my shoulder exercises in the boulders of Fontainbleau or at the base of theย sport crag of Oliana, Spain. Sure I feel self conscious, but remind myself that everyone at someย point gets injured. Even if I am getting awkward stares at the crag, I am getting equal smiles andย interested questions.
