Tapping Away the Injury Blues

Nothing makes me feel older than being sidelined from something that I love doing because of an injury. About a year and a half ago I suffered what’s referred to as a “high hamstring” injury from running. It’s a painful, nagging condition which is, from what I have learned after extensive research, one of the most difficult injuries to heal and recover from. Not only is it difficult to recover from. It takes a long time. It’s located on that sits bone in the lower pelvis and is easily flared. I have gone through various medical treatments only to discover that probably the only thing that is going to work is rest, plain and simple. For me that is easier said than done. I enjoy working out and being physically fit. And if you ask my family, they will admit that when I’m able to exercise on a regular basis I’m not such a grouch. I was trying to find something that wouldn’t aggravate it but when you aren’t able to do any kind of activities that involve jogging, lunges, squats, or extended sitting such as bicycling, you’re pretty limited as to what you can do. Even yoga seems to be a no-no. As my friends talked about their various core classes and races, I did my best to keep my chin up and try not to feel sorry for myself. After all, I have been running since Sammy was a baby and to listen to friends quickly surpass all of my accomplishments not only in speed but in distance was a hard pill for me to swallow. Just when I was getting ready to throw in the towel and accept my new sedentary lifestyle, my good friend Bridget told me that she was taking an adult beginner tap dancing class. Wow did that sound fun! I told her I might like to try that so a few weeks later she let me know when the next class would be starting which I promptly signed up for. I was of course, nervous that I would be only aggravating my injury. But I was determined to give it a try anyway. Even though I did a lot more stomping than fa-lapping, after just one class my spirits lifted. It didn’t aggravate my injury and I found a new form of exercise. I guess I didn’t have to let my self-pity get the best of me. I just needed to get creative and find my inner Shirley Temple. After all, she’ll be young forever!