I am SO proud of myself! I had major knee surgery over a year ago and was so afraid that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with my family while on our Disney vacation. My husband likes to get to the parks when they first open and leave the parks after the night time firework show and I just didn’t know how much walking I would be able to take. I have been “working my knee” with a personal trainer since I was released from physical therapy, but 5 straight days of walking was really pushing it. Ruth, my personal trainer, has been focusing on getting me ready for this vacation for a few months now. make sure you read my post on “Walking To Prepare For Vacation” if you are planning a vacation any time soon. My Disney vacation is now over and my knee feels better than ever! So I know that walking has been good for me, but there’s no way I can do the amount of walking that I’ve done on this vacation on a daily basis.
My knee still feels odd and tight, but no pain! Just think, if I keep this exercising regime up, my knee will continue to get better and hopefully it will feel normal again one day. My physical therapist that worked with me once I was able to begin therapy, said that it would take two years of exercising to regain full knee range of motion. My knee surgery was worse than a knee replacement. I watched the knee replacement patients zoom right past me in terms of recovery time. My surgery was a tibial tubercle transfer / osteotomy and lateral release. I am so proud of myself for working so hard in the gym since my legs don’t hurt after 5 straight days of walking through Disney. I am in better shape now that I was the last time I went on a big vacation, thanks Ruth!!!
The greatest challenge of this Florida vacation was keeping myself from being knocked over while fighting the waves in the ocean. My 7 year old wanted to stand right where the waves broke and hold hands and jump through each wave. It was fun, but a real workout on my legs and knee. If I lived by the beach, I would make sure and incorporate this into my workouts when possible. Do you have a weekly workout regime? Do you focus on a certain area of your body or do you go for “whole body workouts?”
When we went to Disney a few years ago, I felt the same way you did. I was nervous to go because I didn’t know if I would be able to walk that much either. I have back problems and walking and standing has never been my friend. I was able to manage thankfully and was able to keep up with my family.
Yeah!! At least all that gym you go to really has helped you!! So glad you had a great time! yes, water aerobics is the best exercise there is for anything!!