It’s been a week since I started physical therapy. (Maybe I should call it personal training, since it’s mostly just me exercising with supervision, and Rylie has certifications in both physical therapy and personal training, but since the abbreviation PT works in either case I’m putting off deciding.) Since that first session, I’ve been working on my own at home, doing the exercises I did in the gym at the PT place, the ones I can replicate with the equipment I’ve got anyway, as I did not rush out and buy a leg press machine or a rope ladder or even a big inflatable ball. I wasn’t sure I was doing enough–Saturday all I managed was one set of one exercise standing behind my grocery cart in the produce section while Mr. Karen picked out fruit–so I was pleased when I went in this morning and Rylie said she could see I’d been doing my homework. I was most happy that she didn’t have to sit on the floor next to me to stabilize my right knee while I did the cone touches like she had before; I was able to keep my knee in the right place all by myself. I also had better form when doing squats, which was the other thing I needed a lot of correction on before.

I haven’t noticed much improvement in my running yet, mostly because I haven’t been running that much. Per Rylie’s instructions, I’m jogging only until I feel the first twinges in my leg and then stopping to walk right away, which means my average pace per mile is way up and my running minutes are way down. I did get out three times last week, for a total of seven miles, which isn’t too bad, especially considering it was meltingly hot for a few days there. The past two times, I’ve gone out in new shoes, a pair of Asics Gel-Nimbuses I bought because a) Rylie suggested I try a neutral shoe and b) these came in my size and were on sale. (When they arrived, I was surprised by the orange accents; color didn’t enter into my decision to get them, which is very strange for me.) So far so good, though I can’t run long enough in a row right now to give them a really good test.