Last night I was finally able to sleep for a solid 5 straight hours, popped my pills, and fell right back asleep for another 2 hours.  This was quite the relief after not sleeping for more than one or two hours at a time for two-and-a-half days.  I am also happy to report that despite many false alarms, I was finally able to complete yesterday's number one goal (read the post to find out).  I was really expecting to have struggled more than I did yesterday but was actually quite comfortable, mostly thanks to the efforts of my support crew....my wife Logan and dog Murphy.  My planned day of binge watching Netflix was interrupted quite nicely by some live sporting events, and Logan set up the Euro Cup 2016 on one screen and the US Open on the other, and even grilled me up one amazing steak!  I am truly blessed to have such an amazing partner to spend my time with.  If you're having a major health issue that limits you like this one, it's just so valuable and important to have someone around to help you, and I am truly thankful!  ​I also have to give credit to the Chief Morale Officer, Murphy, for staying by my side day and night and letting me rub his head!

Physical Therapy Started today, and it was nice to get out of this recliner and move around a bit.  Today's session was fairly basic and low intensity, but with being less than 72 hours post-op, things were pretty tight and tender.  The main point today was just to focus on some very easy mobility exercises to keep things loose.  In fact, most of what I did today is a lot of what you should be doing anyway in triathlon, running, cycling, etc. and reminded me of a great book that I've been reading.  Power, Speed, Endurance has a great section on mobility (especially of the hips) that everyone should be doing.  If you're having hip problems or want to prevent them, I'd recommend picking up that book.  It was beneficial to me, especially to learn the "Pose Method" of running.  This isn't a book review, but it's a solid book for any multisport athlete, or someone with mobility issues.  After therapy, I was sore.  I didn't do much other than squeeze my butt cheeks and straighten my leg a bunch, so it wasn't a significantly difficult session, but it was enough!  Fortunately, I got to spend the last 15 minutes with probably the best thing I've ever worn:  the Game Ready Cold Therapy Compression System.  OH.MY.GOD!  I imagine this is what it's like to be a pro athlete.  I wanted to stay wrapped up in it forever.  So cold, so tight, so much relief! If you're going through some serious PT, I hope you're doing it at a place with these things, they are so worth it.  If not, I guess you'll just have to spend the $5,000 and buy one on Amazon right here LOL.  Take a look at this website, gameready.com.  Show it to your PT if necessary so they get one.  I'm pretty excited now to spend my last 15 minutes of each session recovering with this wrapped around my hip!  My doctor sent me home with something similar to that, which I'm wearing 24-7, but it's nowhere near that good, although it's still pretty nice (aside from having to be plugged in all the time).  

Goals for day 3 through the weekend:

Mobility exercises 3x/day, start to reduce pain meds, and move around more throughout the day.

Also finish Bloodline season 2 and watch as much US Open and international soccer as possible.  Thanks for reading, follow on instagram @kingofthelake and keep checking back for more.  I'll be posting a great lifting program over the weekend.

The last time I finished an athletic season without an injury was in 1997.  Since then, literally every year I have competed in an athletic sport has ended with an injury.  Triathlon has been no different.  2014 - herniated disc, hip pain.  2015 - severe hip and butt pain, rhabdomyolysis (rhabdo as it's colloquially known), and a friggin' heart attack.  I had the same goals for 2016 that I had for 2016:  don't get injured, break an hour in a Sprint, and win the 2016 Clydesdale National Sprint Championship.  Well folks, it's looks like the streak is still alive.