When I was in the Walk Run for 2 miles in Mt. Shasta I thought everything was fine. Then I noticed a pain in my right knee. I had made a mistake and didn't realize just how serious it was yet. Wearing Crocs on the pavement in a Walk Run in Mt. Shasta on 4th of July turned out to be a very serious mistake for me. Normally, I wear crocs but ONLY walk on trails on dirt. Dirt is much softer than pavement (whether it is asphalt or cement). So, when I used crocs to do the walk run I somehow injured my knee walking on pavement because I never do this.
MY knee has slowly gotten worse and has swollen up. Then last Saturday I went to see Mamma Mia 2. When I got up from the restaurant it was so painful I thought I might just pass out. Since then I have only been out of the house once to go to a restaurant yesterday to get out of the Coastal fog to see some sun inland where it is hotter. Mostly it has only been between 60 and 70 here at most where I live on the Northern California coast. In fact, the last 3 days we have had to turn the heater on as the house got below 67 degrees (we like it closer to 68 or 70). So, having to turn the heater on is very strange even for here in July. The heat inland is creating strange reactions to the weather even here on the northern California coast.
Finally yesterday we heard from a friend of ours who made the mistake a few years ago of wearing crocs on a backpacking trip and had serious planter fasciitis on his feet for 1 1/2 years. So, I realized that where you wear crocs has to be specific I guess. I realized likely he compressed the shoes with the back pack and likely this caused his feet problems. Likely he would have been better off with hiking boots well made instead for the extra support.
So, I'm having to think about when Crocs might be helpful to me and when they might not be.
Even though I have been wearing them so I could have my feet massaged as I walk in order to keep feeling in my feet so I can ski and walk and snorkel and drive a car. I hiked last fall about 6 miles at 9000 feet all the way over to Squaw Valley from where the old Ski Bowl was at the end of the pavement on Everitt Memorial highway on Mt. Shasta. But I wore my German made Lowa extremely well made hiking boots for that. One of the reasons I like to wear crocs is that they are water shoes too in that you can walk into lakes and streams or brooks or water or mud and then just wash them off.
So, I guess I will have to rethink Crocs somehow after this last week of being in so much pain in my knee that even leaving the house or driving a car wasn't practical.
As each of us ages we all have to re-evaluate often the usefulness of all our decisions ongoing.
Life is a chess game that eventually we all lose even if we are 100 at the time.
However, for now, my knee is getting better every day and I'm looking forward to long walks in the forest and along the ocean soon once again. Walking every day is a way to lengthen your lives to 100 or more of you are lucky. A Good diet helps too!
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