How To Modify Fitness Goals After Injury

I've been talking about how my Twitter bud @kokogirl started up the Twitter Trim Up Challenge (#TTUC) this month. At first I didn't really think about it but have been quite interested and excited to fully commit!

On Monday I wrote about my goals and some of the smaller goals that would get me there. First off, I neglected to mention that my time frame for these goals is the summer. I don't have a specific date per say but somewhere around July for the most part. To me, I need an actual deadline but I also need some flexibility so I don't set myself up for failure.

Next, as the title alludes I do have an injury or two to address. The most pressing that interferes with my goals (among other things) is a neck injury that was sustained in a car accident when I was a teen. The effects have become more pronounced over the years but I am being fairly diligent in treatment. For the most part.

The second injury also started from the aforementioned collision but has only recently re-surfaced. After playing the worst round of golf in my life on Christmas Day, I woke up the following day unable to move my right knee without excruciating pain and discomfort. On one hand, I was excited that I really hadn't lost my swing but on the other I knew that meant no surfing the rest of the weekend.

Okay, let me get to the point - I had a visit with the sports medicine doc yesterday. I got a cortisone shot for the first injury's effects and the second will be further investigated by an MRI this afternoon. In the meantime, I was told that twisting motions would not be advised until the results come in. No twisting motion = no golf until further notice. I can use the elliptical trainer and surf on gentle waves with a longboard. The latter he relented after asking me where and what I surf (it rules having a surfing doc). No rough waves and no riding the shortboard. I can live with those terms for now.

So - to make this post even longer - here are my modifications to my smaller goals in order to reach my larger goals. Modifications are italicized:

1. Be able to participate in a 20 minute surf competition heat without being so winded that I feel like I am going to pass out.
a. Work on endurance by using elliptical trainer at least 4 times a week
b. Do exercises targeted to the upper body and core
c. Surf at least three times a week on a longboard in gentler breaks until cleared by the doc

2. Be able to paddle out into the 10 foot faces of my favorite swell and catch waves without taking a 20 minute break in between the two!
a. Work on endurance by using elliptical trainer at least 4 times a week
b. Do exercises targeted to the upper body and core
c. Surf at least three times a week on a longboard in gentler breaks until cleared by the doc

3. Consistently drive a golf ball 200 then 250 yards (right now I can get 225-240 once or twice a round).
a. Work on endurance by using elliptical trainer at least 4 times a week
b. Do exercises targeted to the upper body and core
c. Practice at the driving range at least twice a week after cleared by the doc

I'll elaborate on my eating habits to give you the full picture. The only new item is #4. I've gone without adding salt for 3 days now and it's a snap! I think I even feel a little less lethargic? Maybe? Here are my rules for eating:

1. Don't eat when not hungry
2. Stop eating when full
3. Don't add sugar to anything
4. Don't add salt to anything
5. If it wasn't food 200 years ago, it probably isn't food today
6. If it comes ready-made and frozen in a box, it probably isn't food
7. If it contains more than 8-10 grams of sugar don't eat it (total in what you are eating, not just a "serving")
8. Keep hydrated
9. Don't eat any dairy products whatsoever
10. Carefully read the label and truly understand what you are consuming if the case arises that you are going to consume any "processed" foods