Happy 2020!

I'm 57 years old, back to being very active, the achilles tendonitis is essentially gone, and I'm climbing pretty much all the time now. I sent my first 5.12 last August and I'm trying to do a few more this year. My two boys are in High School now (gasp!). I took 2.5 years off from CU to go start a company which was just purchased by WeWork, so I'm back at CU 50% time now. Doing lots of consulting on the side, which is flex-time (perfect for feeding my climbing addiction). Life is good! I don't know if anyone actually reads this stuff... especially since I don't post much here, but once in a while I get the urge to post a simple update. If you do read this, I hope you and your family are well and you're getting out there and enjoying life!

Four years after my last entry: I still can't run, but somehow I'm back to climbing (and doing the approaches/descents!). My heels still hurt sometimes, but it's tolerable and I just keep going. What was the cure? Vitamin D. I was deficient and as soon as I started taking supplements, my whole body started feeling better. It only took 6 years to figure that out! Ugh. Anyway, I should live a fair bit longer now that I'm able to exercise again. Wheee

Nothing's really happened in the last year. Oh, except that we moved back from CA to Colorado, my 7 yr old son developed Type 1 diabetes, my wife and I divorced, and my feet still hurt. Turns out I have retrocalcaneal bursitis and my tendons are actually healthy. At first I was very excited about this news, thinking there would be some new miracle cure for bursitis that wasn't available for tendonitis. But, as it turns out, the treatment options are still pretty much the same. Considering Extra-corporeal Shock Activation Treatment next. Does that sound fun? I'm probably done with running for life (frown), but I'd be happy if I could just do long hikes with my kids at this point. Keep it real out there kids! John Black

A year in Santa Barbara is nearly done: we leave in 3 weeks to head back to Colorado. I feel like we still have more to do here, but all things must end. Enjoyed watching the partial eclipse today with my two boys. But even these simple things (like walking around a downtown mall to look through a telescope) were challenging since my feet constantly hurt still. Two years after I injured them. If I had only known then what I know now, I would have taken it a lot slower back in May 2010. I'm going to make a new effort to rehab again when I get home. I'm not sure what's left to try, but I need to at least be able to hike if nothing else.

Goodbye, to a friend...

In Santa Barbara for a year, on sabbatical. The achilles felt great for about 8 weeks, I hiked up to 6 miles and even started running again, but moving here put me back 6 months: apparently carrying heavy weight on my achilles was awful for them.

I've had the same doctor since 2006: Dr. Travis Crawford over at Avista hospital. He's helped me some with the achilles over the past year, and I just did my annual physical with him last month before we moved. He was an avid cyclist, a father of two middle-schoolers, a neighbor, and a friend. Apparently, at work last Friday, he suffered a stroke and died over the weekend. He was about 41.

It's inconceivable to me that he could be gone. I'm ready to say goodbye to my elderly relatives, of course. My grandmother recently died at 99 years old, and we were all ready for it. And when you hear about casualties in a war-torn area, you sort of expect that it's a fact of life there. But losing a relatively young friend, with no known risk factors for stroke, in the span of 2-3 days.... that's not supposed to happen.

His wife was a teacher to both my sons during their kindergarten years. I can't imagine the pain she's in. I'm awash with sadness.

If you knew this guy... heck, even if you didn't... give the people you love a hug tonight.

Warmly,

John Black

Staying Positive

With the weather warming up and the days lengthening, I've been trying to get out a little. But the Achilles aren't letting me do much still.

I spent 8 weeks with Dr. Jeremy Rodgers, a Boulder-area chiropractor and sports medicine PT. He had me wearing a night splint, icing, stretching, and doing a variety of strengthening exercises. I definitely improved during that time, and started to feel like I was finally healing.

But since then I've had the tendons flare up back to the "normal" levels from last year. Perhaps this was due to excessive exuberance, leading to a 1mi jog (in about 12 mins) 2 weeks ago.

Part of being 48 yrs old is that little mistakes often mean several weeks of regret. :)

Anyway, we're moving to Santa Barbara for a 1 year sabbatical at UCSB and I hope my feet can take the strain of packing and unpacking. Plus, we're planning a few stops in Utah along the way.

Fingers crossed.

More than you wanted to know about Achilles Tendonosis

It's been over 7 months since I woke up one morning with pain in both heels. I have been to 2 MDs, 3 PTs, an acupuncturist, a massage therapist, gone through tons of ice and ibuprofen, prayed to various gods, and even worn funny socks that keep my foot dorsi-flexed through the night while I attempt sleep.

Nothing has changed...

...well, that's not true: I'm about a thousand dollars poorer. But my heels still hurt and I can't hike, jog, or run.

I started out addressing this injury aggressively: I went to see Mark Plaatjes. Everyone says he's painful, and they are right. I almost cried during the visit, but the Catholic-upbringing-side of me enjoyed the suffering. Unfortunately, I didn't really get any relief from my injury.

I've studied endlessly on the topic of Achilles problems, and I now know more than I ever wanted to now, but I'm no where nearer a solution. One authority said that this injury is so frustrating that some medical professionals like to say "the only sure cure for Achilles tendinitis is death."

Anyway, to be a bit more positive, I went through the summer swimming vigorously. I got my 500 down sub 7min (my PR is 5:25, but that was college and I was swimming 25k yards a week). My weight went from 205 to 166. My cholesterol from 232 to 171. I felt better, looked better, but it was hard dealing with the frustration of wanting to run and not being able to.

I hired a running coach who is amazing, but even her wisdom and experience couldn't help me beat this thing. She had me hike flat ground, consistent and slow, watching my form, measuring my overall mileage. But eventually, after 3 months, I just gave up.

So now I'm a couch potato again. I've gotten busy and lost the urge to swim (honestly, it's boring). I'm going to try and keep the weight off, but finding exercise is still a challenge.

I ran into John "Homie" Prater recently at a New Year's party, and talking to him made me realize how much I missed getting outside since I gave up about 3 months ago. I genuinely love just being outside... I need it. And I still refuse to believe that, at age 48, my body can't handle a little bit of it.

More time I guess... and patience...