A Cure for the Broken Leg Blues

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On November 1, 2013 I was swept off a mountain in an avalanche.

I shattered my patella and dislocated my knee joint.  ACL, PCL and MCL tears.  I had surgery to reconstruct the patella on November 8th and had to spend 9 1/2 weeks in a straight leg brace.  My leg felt like a useless  appendage; a big, heavy piece of wood strapped to my hip.  I spent several weeks in bed. 

 

As I healed and pain in the knee receded, the rest of my body wanted to do more.  I was instructed to keep my leg straight.  No bending, no weight bearing.   Although I have been injured before, this one was worse.  I wasn’t getting up this time.  I got upset and daily life seemed worse every day.

 

Other things started going wrong in my body.  I felt weak and fatigued. The pain meds were making me sick.  There was concern that I could get a blood clot.  I had terrible back pain from being on crutches.  Even though I wore a circulation sock, my foot was constantly cold.  The blood just wasn’t moving in my body like normal.  

Mentally, I was a mess.  I love back country skiing but was it worth it?  With more surgeries on the horizon to ‘fix’ the injury I felt worn down by worry.  Would they be successful?  Would my knee function again?  Will I want to go skiing in the mountains?  Can I?  From the stress of my situation my immune system dipped so low that I got sick with Shingles.  I felt trapped in my body and bombarded by pain.  As someone that is constantly in motion, this injury was devastating.  I felt not only physically broken, but totally broken down through and though.  

 

My blood needed to move.  It needed to run through my legs and make me feel alive again!

My normal go-to activities were out or reach.  No skiing, no climbing, no running, no working… not even walking.  I tried ‘distance crutching’ but that only hurt my arm pits.  I couldn’t think up an effective work out.

 

As a surprise gift from my boyfriend, I received some private sessions with Crystal at Wright Training.  I went to my first session and she had all kinds of ideas for a workout.  Crystal is a person that understands injuries (she’s been through a few herself) and is able to safely train around handicap.

My back pain went away by doing the lifts the (W)right way and holding certain stretches.  We got my heart rate up and blood carried oxygen to my body, even to that injured leg.  Recently, I found out that my PCL had repaired itself.  It grew back!  This does not happen in all cases and surgical PCL repair seemed almost a certainty.  I am currently researching if the  increased blood flow from working out could have made a difference in ligament regrowth.  My evidence for the increase in circulation was that my foot feels warm.   I feel my energy level is up and like myself again.

Most of all, I needed someone to understand how it feels to come back from a scary injury.  Crystal made me feel that I am not alone in my recovery process.  She’s gotten through it, so I can too!  She helped to fix my outlook on the injury.  A positive attitude goes a long way when your life seems broken.

By: Laura Krusheski

 

Elsa Smith takes first at the IFSA JHMR Comp!

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Elsa Smith is fifteen years old and is in 10th grade at the Jackson Hole Community School. She has lived in Jackson Hole her whole life and grew up playing soccer, swimming, Nordic skiing, and free skiing. Elsa has maintained a GPA above 3.8 her whole middle school and high school career and has made swimming all-state both her freshman and sophomore years. Elsa began strength training with Crystal Wright when she was twelve, and training has stayed a major part in her life since then. At thirteen she joined the Jackson Hole Freeride Program, which pushed her to compete in three big mountain competitions, where she ended up winning two of the competitions. On the first day of training last year, Elsa tore the ligaments in her ankle, which lead to surgery and a seven-month recovery. She continued to train at Wright Training throughout her injury, which overall helped her mental and physical recovery immensely.

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Elsa dedicated her pre-season to training with us and the results are definitely paying off. After an early season-ending injury in 2013, Elsa was excited, yet nervous to get back out on the snow.

“My goals for this winter are to progress as a skier, come back from my injury, and compete in big mountain competitions,” Elsa told us at the beginning of the season.

1014049_516890625033296_302023286_n “By being in the gym, not only am I getting stronger but I’m always surrounded by great role models. I work with so many women at Wright Training who have achieved so much in the skiing and snowboarding world. They not only kick my butt in the gym but on the mountain as well. I am working with experienced athletes who know what the skiing world demands and have been in the same positions that I have been in. They teach me everything, from how to carve better turns, to staying healthy, and how to be successful in competition.”

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But after the Junior IFSA event in Toilet Bowl and JHMR this past weekend, I don’t think Elsa has to worry about making a comeback. As we headed to inspection Elsa was quiet, focused and confident. We approached her first air, a line I had never noticed through Toilet Bowl, and watched her confidently inspect the take out, landing, and transition to her next feature. As I sized up the first air, I asked Elsa how she felt. “I know I can stomp it. I’m strong enough, I’m a good skier, I can absolutely land it.” And nailed it she did!

I think her mom, Margaret summed it up best, “I had no idea you could ski like that Elsa!”

Elsa attributes her success on them mountain this year to Wright Training.“Since younger athletes are more vulnerable to injury, strength training is the best way to prevent any sports-related breaks or tears. Injuries are common in skiing, but because of Wright Training, I’m so much more confident on the snow. Being strong in general is important in the sport, and by having the training that I do, I am able to be a stronger and more aggressive skier than many other girl athletes my age.”

Nice work Elsa! Good luck in Targhee next weekend!

Keeping the Winter Cold at Bay

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By: Morgan McGlashon
Strength training, yoga, and good decision making on the mountain are ways we all attempt to stay injury-free throughout the ski season. But for most of us, it’s more difficult to stay sick-free all winter.
Jackson moves at a fast pace, not just occasionally, but all the time. Couple that with the  harsh winter environment and it’s almost impossible to keep the runny nose, soar throat, and hacking cough at bay. Fortunately, there are a number of simple things that we often forget that can help keep energy levels high and maintain a healthy and happy body.

Eat less pizza. It is easy to fall into a pattern of Pearl Street bagels for breakfast, skiing all day, a slice of pizza at the VC for a 4 o’clock lunch, and then  another slice of pizza for dinner. It’s important to maintain a healthy diet even when you know you are burning off the calories skiing all day. Your body still needs the vitamins and nutritional benefits of fruits and veggies, so try to bring an apple and sandwich in your pack to eat on the tram and incorporate more fruits, veggies, and protein at breakfast and dinner.  Chicken and a salad are better for you than pizza and will help your body fight off the ferocious winter colds.

 Drink more tea and less alcohol. I know that sounds like something your grandmother calls you on the phone to tell you, but it helps. Especially when you feel a soar throat coming on, some tea with a little lemon, honey, and ginger will make you feel a whole lot better. Besides, it tastes good, and is nice and hot.
Sleep more. Although its tempting to ski or work all day, go out at night, sleep a few hours, and repeat for weeks on end as many of the twenty-somethings do in this town, getting a good night’s sleep is crucial. It will help in more ways than one. Take a look at our blog post about sleeping to see why.
Take a day off. You know you are getting sick, take the day to recover. Don’t go skiing, don’t go to the gym, and no, yoga is not an exception. Just do it. Take the whole day off and watch Netflix or re-read the Hunger Games and try not to get FOMO (fear of missing out) too bad.

Maybe it’s a lifestyle change – not a resolution

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Happy New Years! It’s that time of year again, where everyone is making their lists of what to change in the coming year. Weight loss and aesthetic goals top of the list of goals across the nation, but the trick to fat loss isn’t more exercise and less calories. If you want to see real changes, try these 5 steps to a healthier diet.

1. Ditch the sugar – Seriously, how many times have we all heard this? But instead of thinking as sugar as sucrose or high fructose corn syrup think of it this way; sugar is a carbohydrate and while you’re body does need carbohydrates in order to function (by NO means am I slamming carbs here) our bodies need significantly less carbs than the average American eats on a daily basis. Ditch sugar and all sugar substitutes (think stevia, xylitol, truvia, aspartame, etc) and think about natural sugars (honey, agave, dates) as a treat, not a daily addition to your diet.

2. Eat more protein – This doesn’t mean adding more peanut butter to your toast in the morning. Protein should come from high quality sources, beef, fish, game, eggs and poultry. Try to incorporate a little bit of protein into each meal throughout the day.

3. Eat high-quality fats – The national tone towards fat is definitely changing, but after decades of low-fat diet-fads, we’re still living in a fat-phobic land. But here’s the thing, fat is actually good for you, keeps you satiated, and provides an effective source of energy for your muscles and brain. Your muscles can only store up to 100 g of carbohydrate, which is equal to about two bagels. But your muscles can store substantially more fat as a usable energy. High quality facts include coconut products (oil, shredded unsweetened coconut, and milk) olive oil, fish, nuts, and olives.

4. Get some sleep – Seriously, make sleep a priority! Go to bed earlier, you’re probably not missing out on that much anyway. If you need more advice other than the fact that sleep deprivation will you make you crazy, check out our previous blog on why sleep matters.

5. Make time to relax – We live in a world that is go, go, go; a world where our value is dependent on our productivity and a world where taking vacation is something many feel is a luxury they have to vehemently defend. How many people do you know who fail to use all of their PTO in a year? How stressed, sleep-deprived, and annoyed are we as a nation? Take the time each day to carve out a little you time. Maybe that’s the time you work out, read a book, take a long walk, or catch up with a friend. But here’s the catch – this isn’t part of your to-do list, or something you stress out about finding the time to fit in. This is the time you take a big, deep, breath, and find a little inner peace.

 

Happy New Year! See everyone in 2014!

Ski Fit is over, now what?

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By Crystal Wright

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It’s a common belief that once you participate in preseason training, you are set for the season and see no reason to maintain your strength gains. For example, our ski fitness, an 8-week program in the fall, is sold out every year. However, many believe that once the 8-week commitment is over their time at the gym is done.

Why would you work so hard and then not maintain that strength?

Maintaining a strength routine throughout the ski season can help prevent injury and stay healthy. It seems like the logical next stop is to continue training at the gym throughout the winter season. But can be significantly more challenging to continue training once you feel like you’ve already achieved your goal of getting in shape before the season started.

Many people find it hard to feel like they are training for the sake of training. But instead of thinking of it in this light, consider evolving your goals in the gym as the season progresses. Pre-season you are training to get strong for the upcoming season. Once the season starts, your goals shift to maintaining the strength you gained in the fall.

 

Why does in-season training matter?

According the AFSC (Athletes Fuel Strength and Conditioning) if a person does not participate in 30 plus minutes of strength training it can only take 5 days to see a small decline in strength. After a month numbers decrease in sport and there is noticeable difference in performance. Strength leads to improved force production, which makes you more explosive and produce more force!

Playing only one sport, or a series of sports that use similar muscle groups, allows for muscle imbalances to develop in the body. Sports such as skiing, snowboarding and hockey engage the big muscles; the primary movers like your glutes, hamstrings and quads, but the deeper, smaller muscles, the stabilizers are not engaged or trained in the same way.

Maintenance does not require a serious time commitment. It’s low volume and less intense. I would recommend 2x a week during the season. This would include certain strength, work capacity and stamina sessions.

Maintenance training at Wright Training goes hand in hand with the sports that are in season. We program and focus on the muscles that become inhibited during your sports; like the Gluteus Medias, which is an important stabilizer in the hip complex and alleviates low back and knee pain. Maintaining leg and core strength through single leg exercises or front squatting helps to maintain.