First Beach Walk

Well, it's been so long since we got up and went for a beach walk, it SEEMS like our first!  So this is the first official beach walk since I broke my foot on April 23rd.  I can't express how awesome this is for my soul!  So what if I actually "walked" less than a quarter of a mile from door to door... It took me more than an hour and got my heart rate up to max!  And afterwards, I was EXHAUSTED!

When I get up in the morning, obviously the swelling is down to the lowest level of the day.  It takes me a little while to get warmed up, and with the help of Tylenol, I can set out with a single crutch to assist me.  My right leg is VERY weak.  So weak in fact, that my mind just can't accept it.  I try to put my weight on the leg and feel it begin to buckle beneath me, so the crutch is necessary.  For now.  I can usually get a few steps without it each day, but I need the crutch to catch me when the leg says "we're done"!

We've got a lot of seaweed washing ashore right now.  It collects in a line and then the waves wash some sand up onto it, creating a soft, spongy area that is treacherous to me.  Ask me how I know this!!!

So I've had to be very careful in placing my crutch, and my foot so as not to find one of those deceptive spongy spots.  The rocks are also a little treacherous with a crutch. But that's where the sea glass hides!

Hunting for sea glass is a favorite pastime of mine.  Oh how I have missed it!  Today, we found two pieces of blue glass in just the short time we were out.  This is a coup!  I also found something yellow.  It's like a rock, but I've never seen anything like it before.  In the video above, you can see how I have to find a secure place for my foot, and I still can't put a lot of weight on the forefoot.  So my beach combing is limited, and I had to revert to spotting the glass, and letting Bruce go and get the pieces for me.

I've gotta say that I'm proud of these few steps.  Once I got the go-ahead from my doctor, I've been full steam ahead.  It hurts a LOT, but I figure that it will get a little better each day if I just try to push it as much as I can.  It's taken a long time to get down this far, but I refuse to accept that it will take equally long to get back to normal.  

Unfortunately for me, my body is not quite in sync with my brain on this.  In no time at all I was feeling exhausted and shaky, and worried that I wouldn't even be able to get myself back home.  So, even though I was far from finished treasure hunting mentally... physically it was time to call it a day.

But not before I pushed it just a little bit further with a few VERY simple exercises.  Just the act of transferring my weight from one leg to the other is a huge feat!  And doing some shallow squats turned out to be very painful for that right ankle.  But if I keep trying every day, it should eventually get better.  RIGHT???

So we turned back to the gate, and I did make it home with my handfull of treasures!  This is just the beginning!