10 Weeks Out

Tomorrow I have my two month follow-up at Multicare - though it will actually be 10 weeks.  I'm trying to not anticipate/expect any kind of number on the scale because I know if it's not what I'm expecting that I'll be disappointed.  I have to keep telling myself that as long as I'm heading in the right direction, I'm succeeding at this. If I could just believe it and not be comparing myself to people who are 20-30 years younger and losing at a much faster rate.  *sighs* 

My trend reports over the past month look alright. I'm averaging about 800 calories, 38 carbs and 94 protein per day.  That's right about where I want to be - I can't be extreme about calories or carbs if I want to succeed at this long-term.

My knees have been a real bitch...the left one has been wonky, so much so that I couldn't "flutter kick" with it in deep-water cardio, but then last Friday, the right one flared up so bad that I could barely walk.  Going up and down stairs was excruciating. Just bending it when I sat was nearly unbearable. I iced it all weekend and I even took ibuprofen a couple times to relieve the pain, though I know that I should NOT take it after having the sleeve. I was that desperate. 

I got in to see Brad, the physical therapist who fixed me 6-7 years ago. He is truly amazing and knows his stuff. He did a more thorough exam on my knees than the olympia orthopedist wackos ever did on me (I went three times to them!) and he is 99% sure that I have bilateral medial meniscus tears in BOTH knees. And the reason I've been in this back and forth endless loop for so long is that when one leg is flared up, I overcompensate with the other leg.  Then when the flare up ends, the leg I'd been overcompensating with flares up. It's been back and forth and back and forth for literally MONTHS...and I'm so very tired of it. It's wearing me down. Next step is to get MRI in both knees so we'll know exactly what I'm dealing with, and then to see an orthopedic specialist (in Tacoma!) to figure out my options.  I just know I can't go on like this. 

So about the deep water cardio...I have gone 4 times I think...then missed because of my knee flaring up. If I'm back from Tacoma in time I'll go tomorrow, and again on Saturday morning, then I'll be out of town and unable to do it again until the following Saturday. I'm planning to hire a personal trainer for at least a few sessions...to get my routine figured out.  I just hope that my knees will cooperate. I'm so very, very tired of being benched because of physical injuries.