Best Foot Forward.
Walking & PT Day 75

Runnin' Down a Dream

Sun, September 13, 2026
A meme x-ray captioned 'Am I still ok to run?', showing the bones of a spindly bird-like leg beside a small splayed foot, gently poking fun at whether it's wise to go running.
Pain
1 /10
Weight-bearing
FWB
Mobility
Walking the pups to the park a couple of times a day in the RecoverX brace.
Mood
Genuinely, surprisingly great; grateful and itching to move

I have fallen behind on writing here, and I could not be happier about the reason: I have been too busy being active. Things are going SO WELL. I have been strapping on my RecoverX brace and taking the pups to the park a couple of times a day, my two-and-a-half-month check-in is DONE, and I have the x-rays to prove how amazing it all looks. Right now, life is surprisingly, wonderfully good.

It is crazy to think that three months ago I was hobbling around in severe pain, watching every small footfall, trying to hold an impossibly hard position that was impossible precisely because a whole inner ankle tendon was no longer doing its job. Back then, I did not imagine that jumping forward three months would land me somewhere less painful than that exact moment in time. But here we are.

So here is the moral of the story: do not waste life and time when things hurt. Take care of them before they suck up one more moment of what is left of the good years. Perhaps by this time next year, I will be gearing up for another long(ish) race.

Anyway, doctor’s orders: keep up PT for another three months, and stay active with things like walking, yoga, biking (NOPE) and/or the elliptical (DOUBLE NOPE). I get to restart my [solidcore] membership in two weeks, along with my deep core work, and hopefully some balance work and lower body classes too.

And now for the newest imagery. That is a lot of metal for one foot.

A top-down x-ray of the right foot: a screw angles through the base of the big toe where the bunion was corrected, a small plate and screws run along the inside of the first metatarsal, and the five metatarsals fan down toward the ankle. An oblique top-down x-ray of the right foot, marked 'R', showing a screw through the base of the big toe and a small plate with screws down the inner midfoot, the toes fanned out above. A lateral, side-on x-ray of the right ankle and foot: the tibia and fibula meet the ankle joint, with screws and hardware running through the midfoot and along the arch.

But it seems everyone is happy with the new additions to my lower extremity, and honestly, so am I. I would write more, but I think it is about time to head out on the trail. The pups need to go out, and so do I.

Firsts & Wins
  • Two-and-a-half-month check-in done; x-rays show the repair looking fantastic
  • Walking the dogs to the park a couple of times a day in the RecoverX brace
  • Cleared to stay active: walking, yoga, and more
  • [solidcore] and deep core work restart in two weeks
  • Less pain today than before surgery; the math finally flipped
Tags check-inx-raysbraceptrunning-identitysolidcoremindsetmilestone