As another type of cross-training which allows more mobility and position changes for my spine, the physician and therapist have approved me going ahead and continuing to play tennis, as long as I try to limit the number of matches I play per week and, of course, adhere to a strict pre- and post-match stretching program. Steve and I are both participating in local challenge ladders which has provided us the opportunity to meet a great many delightful players and we are both learning so much from the variety of styles we face each week.
More photos of us playing in our respective matches can be found
Here. Be warned though, we both tend to get a little happy with the camera, so there are quite a few photos in the gallery!
Although I still am on restriction with my biking due to the sustained forward flexion and repetitive pedaling motion it requires which intensely aggravates my spine and joint issues, it appears that the constant change of position and multi-directional movements involved in playing tennis has seemed to help with my spinal flexibility somewhat, and being able to still get out in the beautiful spring weather is always a bonus - see you on the court!
I've gotten my custom orthotics and put them into my running, tennis and bike shoes, and all I can say is wow! What a difference they make. I still have some leg and back pain with biking, particularly on longer rides, but it is more manageable with the shoe inserts. Correcting the positioning/pronation of my feet seems to help all the way up through the knee, hip and even into my back. The doctors and therapists have told me that it will take time for my skeletal structure and muscles to adapt to the correction provided by the inserts, since they are readjusting the mechanics of my body. But hopefully the orthotics, in combination with the stretching and strengthening program I'm currently on will provide the mechanical correction necessary for restoration of my joint function and gradually increasing pain relief. At any rate, I can now ride my bike for nearly an hour at a time, play tennis through a full match, even run - albeit slowly - for a couple of miles . I don't do all these things in the same day of course, but the new footbeds do expand my capability for avoiding burnout and boredom, not to mention aiding my exercise capacity, by giving me the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities with increased comfort and stability.
After a nearly 20 year hiatus, the sound of music has begun to call to me again. I rented a flute for a couple of weeks last month, just to see if the spark was still there and discovered that happily, it was! So after a couple of weeks of practice, relearning the keys, notes, and written music as well as some playing "by ear", I'm rekindling an old friendship with this beautiful woodwind and purchased my very own flute. Obviously, I'm still on the basic beginner stuff, but it's amazing how it makes me feel to hear a song that I recognize and realize I am the one making the music! It's been a wonderful refuge in a time of much turmoil and stress in my life - I only wish I had rediscovered it sooner. I would write more, but there is music to play!
That's my hubby and I couldn't be more proud! Steve has been competing in a local men's tennis ladder and I managed to get some photos of him playing in today's match. Ever the competent athlete, he is demonstrating himself to be a quick learner and quite proficient in tennis as well as biking, windsurfing, running, swimming, and pretty much anything else athletic he tries.
We spent almost the entire day today enjoying the sunshine and great fellowship at the