Those who know me know I’m a bit of a workout fanatic. A former ultramarathoner, I no longer run those insane distances (thankfully!), but I do still enjoy running and I’m an OrangeTheory devotee. I also hike daily with my dogs. So “active” is definitely a word that describes me.

My left knee has been feeling off lately. I thought it was my IT band that was really tight but my knee would also buckle from time to time – it only happened once or twice a day and I was always able to recover so I figured it was just a bit of strain. I spent two weeks biking instead of running and when my knee felt better, returned to running. My knee kept buckling, usually once per run, but every time I could correct it and keep going so I didn’t back off, didn’t take a break, didn’t listen to my body. [Que haunting music that hints at foreshadowing.]

I’m a bit notorious for doing this – pushing through the pain instead of listening to what my body is telling screaming at me. And the moment I seem to feel better, I go right back to full intensity. [Music builds.]

Last Monday I was at my OrangeTheory gym, in the second half of my workout. We were on the treadmill doing all out sprints. I’m not as fast as I used to be, but I still usually run a 7-min mile pace or faster for the all outs. The first two were okay though I had a moment where my knee twinged a bit. But then it went away. So of course I kept going. It was during the third all out that it happened. Suddenly, my knee buckled completely and I nearly went down, grabbing at the side rails to haul my body up, and hit the stop button so I didn’t fly off the back of the treadmill like a cartoon. [Dramatic music crescendos!]

I sat at the back of the treadmill and tried to bend my knee. Nope. I tried to stand. Nope. The coach got me an ice pack and a friend helped me hobble to my car. After showering — okay, taking a bath because I couldn’t stand — I headed to urgent care.

The nurse practitioner was great…until she told me it sounded like I had likely torn my LCL and PCL. The LCL is the ligament on the outside of your knee and the PCL is the ligament on the back of your knee. She fitted me with a brace and crutches, and an appointment in a few days with the sports medicine doctor who could order the MRI and determine the extend of the damage – would this be a rest and recovery kind of injury or surgery?

The next night I had an in-person poetry reading and I clomped up to the front of the room and read.

The poetry reading went well and the organizer joked that my injury might provide some inspiration for a poem or two.

On Friday I saw the sports medicine doctor and she had some good-ish news – she thinks it’s a minor tear that may not require surgery. But of course she can’t confirm that until she sees the MRI and I can’t get an appointment for two weeks. She did give me permission to get rid of the crutches and knee brace and I’m allowed to do anything that doesn’t hurt my knee. So for the next two weeks I’m taking it easy, listening to my body (I swear!), and taking a bit of a break. And who knows, maybe I’ll write a poem or two.