Disaster: broken foot.

chrisw12
chrisw12 Posts: 1,246
As some of you may know :oops: my whole season has been based around one race in the first week of September. Training has been going very well with all intermediate targets pretty much met and I'm within shooting distance of getting top 5 in the Welsh Bar. Well it's gone pear shaped.

In an end of term football game I managed to go over on my foot and to cut a long story short when I went to A and E this morning the doctor said I MIGHT have a break in one of the bones in the foot. He's therefore put me in a half plaster until Wednesday where I think I'm seing a specialist to see if it is actually broken. (It's the bone on the outside just before you get to the ankle.)

What I want to know is, what is the worst case scenario if the foot is broken. I presume taliking to others that I'll be in plaster for upto 6 weeks? Is there alternatives to being put in plaster? With my foot in plaster I can't even drive and with it being school holidays that in itself is going to be a nightmare.

What should I be doing in the meantime to speed up recovery. One legged drills, drinking milk, extra vitamins, burning virgins?

Comments

  • chrisw12 wrote:
    As some of you may know :oops: my whole season has been based around one race in the first week of September. Training has been going very well with all intermediate targets pretty much met and I'm within shooting distance of getting top 5 in the Welsh Bar. Well it's gone pear shaped.

    In an end of term football game I managed to go over on my foot and to cut a long story short when I went to A and E this morning the doctor said I MIGHT have a break in one of the bones in the foot. He's therefore put me in a half plaster until Wednesday where I think I'm seing a specialist to see if it is actually broken. (It's the bone on the outside just before you get to the ankle.)

    What I want to know is, what is the worst case scenario if the foot is broken. I presume taliking to others that I'll be in plaster for upto 6 weeks? Is there alternatives to being put in plaster? With my foot in plaster I can't even drive and with it being school holidays that in itself is going to be a nightmare.

    What should I be doing in the meantime to speed up recovery. One legged drills, drinking milk, extra vitamins, burning virgins?

    Hi Chris

    I snapped an ankle ligament playing squash whilst living in Germany and had my foot and ankle in plaster for some weeks. I had no one to drive me to the hospital for appointments so I had to rig up my bike with a flat pedal plus toe strap and cycled there. If you put your mind to it you could do something similar and keep your fitness while the foot is healing.
  • fossyant
    fossyant Posts: 2,549
    Argh... football injuries - one game I avoid despite getting requests from colleagues - too much rough stuff going on !!
  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    Hi Chris

    Sorry to hear of your injury - fingers crossed for you that you haven't actually broken anything. In a similar position myself the the minute, breaking my collarbone 4 weeks ago - luckily, all of the big events I had planned for this year were already done - but I'm still gutted that the rest of my season is knackered so I can sympathise entirely with you.

    No experience of broken bones anywhere else, but I have been advised to take calcium supplements to help speed the mending process. No idea if they actually work, or whether you'd be better sacrificing that virgin as well just to be on the safe side. :)

    Most important thing is to keep positive and get by as best you can until your injury is heeled.

    Cheers and all the best
  • chrisw12
    chrisw12 Posts: 1,246
    Thanks for the support guys, I really appreciate that.

    Mike, the pig head in me says great idea (flat pedals toe clips) I'll be back on the bike tomorrow but alas I know my wife wont let me, so I'll take a few days off. Trouble is if on Wednesday they say it's broken and to stay off the bike, I don't think I'll be able to even listen to her.
  • Chris I'm sorry to hear this, I know how hard you have been working towards it. I'd just say there's always next time, and if you ignore the medical advice and common sense, you'll need to wait until next year to fulfill your ambitions anyway.

    on second thoughts, I could always lead you out for the last 2 hours.... :lol:
  • chrisw12 wrote:
    Thanks for the support guys, I really appreciate that.

    Mike, the pig head in me says great idea (flat pedals toe clips) I'll be back on the bike tomorrow but alas I know my wife wont let me, so I'll take a few days off. Trouble is if on Wednesday they say it's broken and to stay off the bike, I don't think I'll be able to even listen to her.

    I've just had my second heart attack. Trying to convince my wife that I'm OK to go out and ride my bike again let alone race is a tough task. I'll take a suspected broken foot as a swap any day. I'm seeing cardiologist on wednesday and hoping to get an angiogram soon after. In the meantime the lbs are piling on. It's all very depressing but hey breaking the hour for 25 miles after 2 x heart attacks; now that's s story to tell my grandchildren.

    I'll be back next year having another go, but you'll be back for September no doubt. Cheers Mike
  • chrisw12
    chrisw12 Posts: 1,246
    Mike, your right, I've got to keep things in perspective and my wife said the same as you, a broken foot isn't 'f..ing life threatning get over it', though after I asked her to get that 6th can from the fridge I started to think that it might become life threatning. :D It's nice to be waited on, but this is the other problem, she's eventually going to flip. :evil:
  • BeaconRuth
    BeaconRuth Posts: 2,086
    Sorry to hear about your foot Chris. It's obvious how very frustrating it must be.

    Like someone else said, now is the time to try and see the longer-term picture. If you don't get to ride this year there'll be other races, other years, other opportunities. I know you've been working very hard on your fitness, but it's not wasted effort if you've been enjoying the process long the way.
  • chrisw12 wrote:
    Thanks for the support guys, I really appreciate that.

    Mike, the pig head in me says great idea (flat pedals toe clips) I'll be back on the bike tomorrow but alas I know my wife wont let me, so I'll take a few days off. Trouble is if on Wednesday they say it's broken and to stay off the bike, I don't think I'll be able to even listen to her.

    I've just had my second heart attack. Trying to convince my wife that I'm OK to go out and ride my bike again let alone race is a tough task. I'll take a suspected broken foot as a swap any day. I'm seeing cardiologist on wednesday and hoping to get an angiogram soon after. In the meantime the lbs are piling on. It's all very depressing but hey breaking the hour for 25 miles after 2 x heart attacks; now that's s story to tell my grandchildren.

    I'll be back next year having another go, but you'll be back for September no doubt. Cheers Mike

    We're all rooting for you Mike, fingers crossed and all that for Wednesday.
  • ut_och_cykla
    ut_och_cykla Posts: 1,594
    I met a dutch chap who had severely sprained his ankle on a European tour. The German doctor told him 48 hrs rest then provided him with a thinnish plastic cast that fitted in his biking shoe and told him to cycle as much as he wanted! I know a broken foot bone is a different matter but how about asking about other options if they have to put you in a cast? September is a way off. With a plastic cast you might be able to swim after a while and perhaps even turbo train with care. A severe sprain however will take longer to heal, leaving a weak point for up to a year - ask my hubby!!
  • Dr_Death
    Dr_Death Posts: 1,262
    Very much depends on which bone, and how badly it's broken. If it is the base of you 5th metatarsal (the lump on the outside edge of your foot about half way down) then you should be ok. If it is your lateral malleolus (the lump on the outside of your ankle) then you are most likely knackered.....
    Steve

    Trust me, I'm a doctor!

    http://www.vimeo.com/DrDeath
  • chrisw12
    chrisw12 Posts: 1,246
    Big appologies, sorry for being a drama queen and attention seeker :oops: :oops: but there's no way anything is broken! :oops:

    First off it was the radiologist who said there might be a break there, the doctor couldn't see anything hence why he was refering it and putting on a half cast.

    Anyway on Saturday very little pain and I could actually walk relatively comfortably on it. By Sunday afternoon I'd had enough so took a risk and took the plaster off. Result, I could walk pretty much ok, impacts like walking down a stairs were still hurting. Sunday evening, took the bike out for an easy spin and felt great, no pain and the ankling movement actually felt quite 'nice'. Went out today on a 200 miler, nah only joking. :D Went out for an hour's ride. When I came back, for the first time I could actually start to walk properly, cycling is so theraputic.

    Still a bit of swelling and the though of running makes me cringe but I presume that nothing is broken, either that or I'm the bionic man. :D So I'm back :o:o:o:o:o
  • BeaconRuth
    BeaconRuth Posts: 2,086
    Right, that's it! You've had all your sympathy allowance from me! :wink:

    ps. are you doing the Welsh 100?
  • chrisw12
    chrisw12 Posts: 1,246
    Was definitely yes, then foot so definitely no, now definitely yes :D

    and if you tell me you are riding it, it will be defintely be yes yes yes :wink:
  • BeaconRuth
    BeaconRuth Posts: 2,086
    I'm trying to decide whether to ride it or not.
  • thatlondon
    thatlondon Posts: 50
    I broke my 5th metatarsal last year when I tripped over the Dog. I was in full cast for 3 weeks then in an Air cast for about another 1 week.

    However due to the lack of mobility I ended up with a blood clot behind my knee. This is quite rare but make sure you make an effort to wiggle those toes to keep the circulation going.

    Best of luck for a speedy recovery.