Well after completing that grueling 10K in May, it seemed like a good idea to take a break from running and try something new for my workouts. A colleague at work suggested a while back that I try karate so I started looking into martial arts classes in the area. I was fortunate enough to find a Tae Kwon Do class for a relatively good price at the YMCA.
In the first class, I learned the 21 basic Tae Kwon Do moves and how to punch and kick correctly. The second class I learned all kinds of self defence moves and how to get out of holds. I was having a ton of fun and even considering signing up for the next session so that I could test for my first belt.
The third class brought all kinds of surprises. We started class by reviewing the basic moves from the first class. We then split into two groups. One instructor worked with me and the other worked with the two other students. I learned 3 of the "forms" of Tae Kwon Do in which you do several different moves at once in a particular sequence. I caught on to them quickly and actually felt like I was learning real moves. After practicing the punches and kicks on the bags for a while, we joined together as one group and took turns doing jump kicks at the heavy bag. This is where things got interesting. A jump kick is where you jump off one leg, kick with the other while in the air, then land on the leg you jumped off of. I was doing ok until I switched legs. The first jump off my right leg went terribly wrong. I landed funny, heard a pop, crumpled to the ground, and heard another pop. I spent the next five minutes or so screaming and rolling around on the floor in excruciating pain. I was most definitely done for the day.
The instructors lifted me off the floor into a chair and gave me some ice while the class finished the last few minutes of class. My knee and the bottom half of my leg was hurting very badly. A pain I have never felt in my life. As the instructor was filling out the incident report, he asked me at least three times if I needed an ambulance. This was most definitely not happening. I was already embarrassed enough by the fact that the "old person" in class got hurt there was no way I was going anywhere in an ambulance. He helped me down the stairs and I drove home somehow still in a great deal of pain.
The next day I was still in intense pain but also in denial that I did anything serious. I figured I'd give it a few days and it would be fine. Later in the day I went to a friend's house and they convinced me to go to the doctor. I was able to get in to my family doctor right away and after about a 15 minute appointment she sent me straight over to an orthopaedist. Not a positive sign. The orthopaedist said I sprained my MCL and probably tore something too. He ordered an MRI to confirm. The following week I went back to the ortho to get the results of the MRI. He said I had sprained my MCL, tore my ACL, tore my lateral meniscus, and bruised my tibia. Oh and he also suspected I had a blood clot and sent me straight to the hospital to get an ultrasound. Finally, after a very long day of really bad news, the ultrasound showed I did not in fact have a blood clot.
The result is I will have to have surgery to repair or remove the damaged meniscus and have a graft to replace my ACL. I will begin physical therapy next week to help relieve some of the swelling and stiffness and to get a larger range of motion so that on July 27, the ortho can cut me open and reconstruct my very broken knee. I will have 4-6 weeks of painful, annoying recovery before I am mobile again and a minimum of 6 months before I can do any activity at all. This is not how I was planning on spending my summer. Finishing my new things for the year is going to be a challenge now that I only have one good leg but I'm determined to do it.
