Kristi Lyn Miller Blog

Many San Diego locals find irony in the fact that my Box, CrossFit PB, is located directly next to Urgent Care (shared wall, parking lot, business sign, etc).

Match made it heaven?

I must admit, it made for a funny one-liner.

Until one particular Saturday morning. Instead of walking into CFPB to hit Open Gym, I did the one-footed hop into Urgent Care. The joke then suddenly became not very funny….at all.

Achilles Injury – My Broken Tree

I woke up with excruciating pain in my calf/ankle, unable to walk or put any weight on my right foot. I am not talking about the ‘Love Pain’ type of pain we CrossFitters are strangely turned on by. I’m talking about the “ Oh sh*t” type of pain ALL athletes fear.

The Urgent Care Physician diagnosed me with torn fibers in my Achilles. (Insert the “noooo anything but the Achilles” scream here). He explained that, although it was not fully ruptured (yet), it was at great risk.

Quite perplexed at the fact I didn’t “do” anything to bring on the injury, I was having a hard time believing the diagnosis. So, the doctor put it into terms I could understand.

He compared ones Achilles to a tree. Take an ax and make little chops in the tree, over time with enough chops, your tree is in danger of falling over. Then, all of the sudden TIMBER it goes down.

Perks of being in a wheelchair at the airport: skip security line AND personal patdown (bonus)

Down OR Out?

I was in shock. My poor tree! It was all chopped up! My mind was going nuts with thoughts like…

…How could this happen out of nowhere?
…Is it going to rupture?
…How am I going to function without being able to walk?
…How long am I going to be out?
…HOW AM I GOING TO CROSSFIT?

CrossFit for me, as it is for every Crossfitter I know, is not just a form of exercise…it is my passion; it is such an integral part of my every day. It is my community, my confidence, my stress relief, etc.

CrossFit had become a way of life for me. What was I going to DO?

After about three days of resting and icing (and more couch/ TV time than I’d accumulated in the past year), I made some decisions. One – I was going to allow myself to actually ENJOY relaxing as much as I could (I even painted my nails and baked cookies). Two – although I was down, I was not going to be out.

CrossFitting With An Achilles Injury

I contacted my CF Trainers to update them on my injuries, hoping they’d give me some light at the end of the tunnel. Their response completely reinforce WHY I love Crossfit so much and why my trainers are amazing coaches and human beings. They said “Definitely please keep coming in, even in a cast or boot, and we will modify as needed for as long as needed. Erica has been in a boot for 3 weeks, and she has been coming in consistently and doing upper body… so we will always find a way to keep you moving.”

Not to sound like too much of a girl, BUT I burst out in tears of joy. With the ­­unwavering support and encouragement of my CrossFit Coaches and fellow CrossFitters, I slowly (and I mean snail pace) hobbled into my box the next day. Admittedly feeling quite scared and a bit vulnerable, I was ready to face my fears and REALLY ready to sweat!

I called my limp the 2012 swagger…sexy.

Banging Kinesiology Tape job by Dr. Welsh

Sample Injured Achilles Crossfit WODs

Bryan Boorstein and Anders Varner, Owners and Coaches at CFPB, helped me come up with several WODs I could do at Home, at our Box AND at the “normal gym” while I was home for the holidays over the coming weeks. Here are some samples:

Day 3: (At Home) Tabata Workout

- sit ups
- clapping push ups on knees
- bicep curls, seated (10 lb dumbbells)
- Push Press, seated (10 lb dumbbells)
- tricep dips

Day 5: (First Day Back at Crossfit PB)
5 GLORIOUS rounds :

- 20 supermans,
- 20 weighted push-ups on knees (15 lb plate),
- 20 sit-ups,
- 20 seated kettle bells swings (26 lb)

Day 7: At Crossfit PB
4 rounds:

- 15 ring rows (foot lifted off the ground)
- 20 sit-ups
- 20 weighted push-ups on knees (15 lb plate),
- 20 seated push press w/ 18 lb kettle bells
- 10 left leg pistols (left hand holding onto pole, right hand under right knee holding leg at 90 degree angel in order to not tempt foot to front flex, which the foot naturally does with pistols).

Day 9: (At Regular Gym, LA Fitness)
4 rounds:

- 20 supermans,
- 20 weighted push-ups on knees (25 lb plate),
- 20 tricep dips
- 20 seated kettle bells swings (25 lb dumbbell)
- 20 bench press (15 lb dumbbells)
- 20 windshield wipers

Day 14: (At Regular Gym, LA Fitness) Note: First Day Minimally Using Right Leg
5 rounds:

- 10 knees to elbows
- 10 one-legged Burpees (yes they ARE doable! great suggestion Joe Bauer)
- 10 air squat holds (5 second holds at parallel, to start activating right leg muscles)
- 10 HSPU

Increasing Achilles, Calf, Heel, Ankle Mobility

I sought treatment by Dr. Welsh of Peak Performance Sport & Spine Center (an amazing doctor who I highly recommend). Dr. Welsh determined that my injury stemmed from the fact that I have extreme tightness in my lower extremities. I’d experienced regular shin splints, calf pain, ankle “clicking” and occasional knee pain for as long as I could remember. I had accepted these as “just the way my body was,” and never sought treatment to get to the root of the problem (BIG mistake).

In addition to continued treatment by Dr. Welsh to repair my injury and prevent further damage, my CF trainers gave me the assignment of educating myself on calf mobility. If you are also experiencing calf, Achilles, heel, or ankle pain here’s a link to a great site on Mobility WODs!

Click Here for AWESOME Calf | Mobility WOD’s

Time For Reflection – Mentally & Emotionally Rising To The Challenge

On a personal note, all this time sitting still, gave me an opportunity to reflect on the situation. What I realized is that the quality I admire most in people I’ve personally looked up to is RESILIENCE. You know, the people who despite whatever painful, difficult or even devastating situations they are enduring, somehow seem to naturally exude an internal sunshine and happiness. They remain calm, positive and at peace. Maybe, in some way, not being able to walk or CrossFit or rock climb, the Universe has given me the opportunity (and challenge) to demonstrate those very qualities. For that I am thankful, and hope I can continue to rise to that challenge and shine happiness from within.