Arthroscopic Knee Surgery -- dealing with it

On December 22, 2016, I had arthroscopic knee surgery due to a torn meniscus. I was somewhat surprised that I could walk immediately after the surgery, without pain, and I never had to use any painkiller in the ensuing days either.

The doctor said no high-impact activity for at least two months, but suggested that walking and biking would be suitable exercises. So, I started walking some distance about five days after the surgery and within a month the knee was feeling so good that I started hiking on trails. That was probably not a good idea. Yes, I could do that pain-free, but the knee would swell up after any hike.

In the meantime, the doctor also prescribed physical therapy, which started on December 28th. I did about 10 sessions of PT, which also left the knee swollen after each session. Both the physical therapist and the doctor suggested that I use an anti-inflammatory to keep the swelling in check, so I did that and the swelling would dissipate overnight; leaving me free to hike some trails the next day.

But, as one who can't leave well enough alone, I started doing hillier, rougher, longer hikes and the knee kept swelling, of course. Now, I've asked myself, why are you doing that? There's plenty of time to rest the knee between now and the start of my hike in late April, so I'm going to forego the rough trails and stick to relatively flat, smooth trails or dirt roads for a month. I will also try to get away from the anti-inflammatory medicine, too.

Today's walk: a beautiful walk on paved and dirt roads in a snowstorm; covered 9 miles in 2:32.

Starting Date -- still up in the air!

The fun starts in late April or early May. That's when I'll be attempting to thru hike the Appalachian Trail, using a plan called the Cool Breeze, as advocated on the Appalachian Trail Conservancy website.

Basically, I'll be doing the AT in three sections, starting from Lee, Massachusetts, where I live, to Daleville, Virginia. Then I'll get off the trail and travel to Mt. Katahdin in Maine and hike south to Lee. The last leg will be from Daleville to Springer Mountain in Georgia.

Why this routine, which does involve some complicated logistics?

• It tends to avoid the 'bubbles' often found along the trail when many hikers start their journey, whether that is the NoBo crowd that starts at Springer Mountain in February through March, or the SoBo crowd that starts in June or July from Katahdin.
• The mid-section of the AT is the 'easiest' portion to tackle--fewer big climbs.
• Taking on the northern section after getting in shape seems logicial, too.
• The last leg will hopefully be done in the fall with some nice colors in the Shenandoah and Smokey Mountains.
• The Cool Breeze attempts to get the best possible weather in each section, so no extremes of cold nor heato deal with. That said, I'll be prepared for the worst.