Life Update: my back is not good.
Post race season I was riding some DH, doing whatever trail riding, not keeping up on my core work and I re-herniated my lumbar disc that's been giving me trouble since 2021. This one was another flare up but I didn't think much of it. I had a similar issue last Fall and I got off the bike for a few weeks, did some PT and I was good to go again. That was mid-October which was exasperated by a weekend trip to Killington Bike Park . Eventually went to PT and seemingly was working back to normal, was able to get on the trainer and then do a trail ride or two a week.
As per usual I got overly confident and went on a 3 hour ride on December 17th, following a 2 hour ride at Port Jervis the day prior. I got back from the ride and I knew I screwed up. I had serious sciatic pain radiating down my legs and couldn't stand up for more than 10 minutes at a time. I was basically horizontal on the couch for a few weeks. I found the Dr. Stu McGill method at this time, found a
Master Practitioner in Morristown and started PT with him. I can't recommend him enough. After a 3 hour exam he diagnosed a serious herniation L4/L5 and possible nerve impingement with strength loss in my right toes/ankle. He didn't outright say it, but I had a feeling he thought I may need surgery.
I got another MRI a week after my exam with Camisa (last was December 2021) and during my follow up my orthopedist got me in front of a surgeon the same day. My L4/L5 disc is crushing my nerve at this point. Unfortunately this has resulted in a loss of strength in the right leg and I could lose the nerve if I didn't get surgery. Quite a whirlwind of a day. White discs good, black discs bad.
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So here I am, 2 weeks and a 2nd surgeon's opinion later, I'm scheduled for a microdiscectomy tomorrow morning. I've read no less than 1000 stories about recovery and what it entails. 2 weeks out of work, 2 weeks WFH and 6 weeks no bending/lifting/twisting. I think I'm about at peace with the surgery as I could be. I never thought I'd end up here. Up until last week I still still convincing myself I could PT my way out of it.
So, what caused this? I wish there was one crash, one lift, one anything I could point to. The reality it's just accumulation of shitty spine hygiene....bad posture, lifting thousands of cases of wine/liquor/beer with terrible form, weak core strength, golfing, baseball, and unfortunately most likely mountain biking. This isn't a death knell but it does probably mean 2024 is going to be a wash for riding bikes. Hoping to be on trails again by Summer (think Six Mile and Allaire) but going to listen to my PT and body most of all. I'll be content on the trainer and doing neighborhood walks again. Take care of your spine health, everyone.