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Baby steps Posted on 12.18.2011 by greg.kuchyt

It’s been 9 weeks since my accident. I am walking without any aides, albeit with a fair share of discomfort at times. The recent appearance of winter has not helped the discomfort either. It seems that the cold makes everything incredibly sore at this point. I would say I am probably 75% of normal at my worst points and 90% at my best times. I am cleared to do weight training as tolerated and simple things like hiking, though dynamic impact activities (skiing, running, etc) are off limits till February. So a long road still awaits, but seemingly things are getting better.

As friends are having proper adventures in the mountains, I was able to go on my own version of an adventure today as well. I was able to set foot on a trail for the first time in 9 weeks. My adventure consisted of about 2 miles and 450′ of gain…and I was happy with every minute of it. It is hard to explain how the simple pleasure of moving self-propelled through nature can become such an integral component of your identity. Perhaps there is no way to explain it, it simply needs to be felt. Regardless, it is sufficient to say that a small part of me has been non-existent these past 9 weeks. To be sure, the climber within me still lies in hibernation, waiting for the winter of recovery to recede and the warmth of spring rock faces to coax it from its den. I can’t help but think of the movie “What About Bob?” and “baby steps”. Baby steps to walking normally, baby steps to being able to do unrestricted activities, and baby steps to re-train and be back to “normal”.