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I'M CLEARED TO SKI!

va_deb

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
How did I miss that you're 100% cleared? Well, with some limits, but Woo hoo anyway!!
 

bounceswoosh

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
totally the same here. My knee talks to me a lot lately. :P

I keep saying that all this snow will be a great base once I'm comfortable to ski trees this season. Medically, that would be March, around 9 months, when the graft is 90% of its full strength. But it's hard to say if my knee will tolerate quick moves yet at that point ... I feel like right now, it's hard to turn hard.
 

Peaheartsmama

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I keep saying that all this snow will be a great base once I'm comfortable to ski trees this season. Medically, that would be March, around 9 months, when the graft is 90% of its full strength. But it's hard to say if my knee will tolerate quick moves yet at that point ... I feel like right now, it's hard to turn hard.

Oddly it seems like its my non-operated knee/leg that's giving me issues . The one that has the brace on it feels solid -- that said I have stuck to greens so far... are you wearing a brace at all?
 

bounceswoosh

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Oddly it seems like its my non-operated knee/leg that's giving me issues . The one that has the brace on it feels solid -- that said I have stuck to greens so far... are you wearing a brace at all?

Huh. I have had days when my "reference" knee aches and my healing knee doesn't. But not while I'm skiing. Sounds like a compensation thing?

I'm not wearing a brace per se. I'm wearing an ace bandage just for compression and warmth. I wear it while skiing and for an hour or two after, and it seems to keep the swelling down. It's possible there wouldn't be any swelling, anyway. It's possible this is just the natural progression of my knee as I ski more. But it seems like it helps, and certainly doesn't hurt. I didn't want a brace that would impede movement at all.
 

COchick

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I love my Hg80 brace... I have never found it to be restrictive and can wear it all day with no problems. I have tried others (never tried anything as simple as an ACE though... hmmm) but always end up deciding the Hg80 is the best and most comfortable for my needs. I need to order another one for the other knee as I just use a sleeve brace on that one usually. I might toss an ACE bandage in my ski bag this year though and give that a whirl.
 

bounceswoosh

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Yeah, I mean, everyone is different. My doc wasn't pushing a brace, although he did suggest I'd be more comfortable with compression. Every brace I try, I hate. My dad suggested the Ace bandage, and it's kind of brilliant. Fully adjustable so that I can perfectly match my leg shape and intent.

Most leg braces aren't even made in my size, and even if they are, for some reason the neoprene always feels like it's sliding down my leg. Maybe it's just a textural thing. I forget I'm wearing the Ace bandage. And the price is hard to beat!
 

Peaheartsmama

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I love my Hg80 brace... I have never found it to be restrictive and can wear it all day with no problems. I have tried others (never tried anything as simple as an ACE though... hmmm) but always end up deciding the Hg80 is the best and most comfortable for my needs. I need to order another one for the other knee as I just use a sleeve brace on that one usually. I might toss an ACE bandage in my ski bag this year though and give that a whirl.

My Doctor said I could wear one the first year, if only to provide a little "mental" support -- so far I really really love it. I use a Don Joy one. Its a little clunky walking around at first but once you use it for what it was actually intended for, it literally disappears, which is what the rep told me when I was getting fitted. Cant tell its even there, yet you can feel a certain support and stability that might not be there otherwise. I can even drive comfortably with it.

Like you said -- whatever works and gets you back on the mountain is all that matters!
 

bounceswoosh

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I skied with the lesson today. There was some fluff from overnight, and it snowed later in the day, too. I got my most vertical so far. I skied several black diamonds - the first time this season. Did not feel like a big deal. Granted, Breck lower mountain single blacks are not crazy steep - but I'll take it! My knee hurt less at the end of the ski day than it did at the beginning (although it's just the tiniest bit achey right now). I felt more and more confident in my skiing, especially in soft snow. I even took a couple of small jumps on the side of the run - and landing didn't bother my knee at all.

Our first run of the day turned out to be Psychopath Gully. They'd groomed it. It was lovely. We came back later in the day to ski it a few more times - the first time we skied it after lunch, it was a bit scraped up, but it was snowing hard enough that it was soft and lovely for the second lap. I kept going farther and farther afield, dipping into this turn around a tree here, that little alternate route there ... it just felt *natural*. I felt like myself. I love 3D snow and trees. I love taking the route less taken. I had to put up my hands to block a branch, and it made me happy.

Walking to the lifts this morning, Horseshoe Bowl just looked amazing, and I thought to myself, "I just don't know how much longer I can hold back." Today I discussed it with my instructor. If the vis is good and I'm feeling confident tomorrow, I may take 6 chair or the T Bar and ski B 50 (widely spaced glades) and maybe the north-facing aspect of Horseshoe, which is not very steep. He doesn't see any issue with me skiing these runs if I'm skiing well.

We'll see what I think tomorrow. I just felt so *on* today, and I think part of the reason I felt so *on* is because of the natural shape of the snow. I am good at using little terrain features to my advantage. I felt "flow" in my skiing for maybe the first time, really, this season.
 

bounceswoosh

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
What's the saying? We make plans, and the gods laugh?

It snowed through the night and is still snowing. Vis is terrible, so I'm definitely not skiing B50 on the upper mountain. I was having second thoughts, anyway, overnight. And I feel pretty awful. Skiing with this cold caught up to me. So I'm probably just going to chill in the condo until my AT boot fit this afternoon. Maybe take the dogs to the park - it will be wonderful, although the fence at this point is more like a boundary marker. Cooper could easily have stepped across the fence at one snowbank - maybe half a foot stuck up. Fortunately, they seem to still believe in fences. (Weird, because if a gate is open, Cooper will run right out without hesitation.)

I tend to think this is a good outcome.
 

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