May 2nd 2011, just an average day out in the forest, riding my mountain bike with some friends. Or not…
By mid-afternoon, I had been admitted to the hospital with a broken back. An L1 burst fracture from going too fast and too hard off a jump. The result of a broken back was 8 pins, 6 weeks in bed and an extra stone in weight. For the non-metric crowd, I weighed 8kg more than before the accident, the harsh reality of no exercise and lots of bed time.
For those 6 weeks in bed and the 3 weeks after that, I had to wear a back brace. This is when it hit home how difficult it was to do anything, as it restricted any movement I once had. I needed to get rid of this quickly and the only way I could do that was to do exactly what the doctor said: exercise.
To help my recovery, I decided to buy a new road bike, even though I had never ridden one before. Hey, at least there were no jumps to tempt me! That first ride, after breaking my back, was a mile, which took a whopping total of 6 minutes. I didn’t care. I was “back on the horse” as they say.
It helped that my doctor encouraged me to keep riding. So, I started off small; going two, three or four miles at a time. By the end of the month I managed to ride 11 miles. This wasn’t just any 11 miles.
This was a ride to my girlfriend’s house, who had supported me and looked after me throughout my whole recovery. What a great first goal to achieve.
Quickly upping my training and ambition, I turned to RunKeeper to help me set new targets. Route planning was key, as my Mum wanted to know where I was in case I decided to repeat my stunt of May 2nd. More important was the ability to broadcast my rides live. I had always tracked my rides and other activities, but now I felt that it had more of a meaning than ever before. These were stats that were unthinkable two months prior!
The medical staff said it was a miracle I could bike. Heck, I was mere centimeters away from never being able to walk again.
Today, though, marks a memorable day: I rode my 3,000th mile since the injury. Well, 3,002 but who’s counting? It’s just over a year since i broke my back, and 10 months since my first ride again, and how do I know these crazy stats? RunKeeper.
For 2012, I have set a Goal of 5,000 Miles. Mad I know, but with a 30 mile round trip commute to work, I am pretty confident I can get there. So far, the elements haven’t been kind to me. Most of the roads are flooded at the moment, and over the winter, the snow certainly did not help, but I can’t seem to go more than a day without wanting to ride my bike. Essex (UK), where I live, has some beautiful country lanes and, had I not hopped on my bike, I would not have discovered any of these wonderful places. Cycling also slows everything down, villages become bigger when your not hurtling through them in a car.
Honestly, I can’t remember what it used to be like before I rode my bike almost every day. I certainly drank a lot less energy drinks! But this I am glad of, because I’m doing something that I really enjoy.
I recommend trying it before it’s too late. I see time as more precious now and enjoying it is more important than ever.
I thank my friends, girlfriend and, most importantly, my Mum for waiting on me hand and foot while I recovered. And a part of me thanks RunKeeper, too, for motivating me to ride, rain or shine (mainly rain at the moment).
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