5 months later and I’m starting to feel like myself again.

This past month was full of huge progress:

I went for my first “run”… at 75 percent of my bodyweight. Too bad I can’t take the AlterG with me outside.

The barbell and I are friends again. I’m squatting, deadlifting, even hang power cleaning. I missed you, my harshest friend. (On a side note, turns out not lifting for four months makes you super weak.)

After receiving permission from my physical therapist, I have been taking “jogging steps” on my walks. This means I run nearly as slow as I walk for 20 steps or so while smiling like a lunatic. Can’t stop me now!

I (finally!) go hours without thinking about my ankle. I get out of bed without fearing pain. I don’t dream about my ankle or wake up in the middle night with pain. I can sit cross-legged.

Swimming feels like it used to. I can do every stroke, kick with a kick board, and even sprint a bit. I still tape before I get in, but being able to do old workouts is huge.

Upward dog (sort of) and downward dog are back. I still have some trouble with a few poses, but armed with a blanket, I can modify most things these days. Overall, yoga feels like it used to and my ankle mobility/stability is making huge strides. Probably thanks to the brutal Warrior III.

Yesterday I hit 10,000 steps and didn’t want to cry. My ankle didn’t swell. I didn’t go to bed cursing myself.

I’m so close to running. So close. And yet realistically, probably another month until I’m running more than a quarter mile at a time. And that’s okay. I’ll be running just in time for my favorite weather. My running shorts and tank tops are ready.