Turning grapefruits into oranges

By Jeff Hage (Contact) | The Daily Journal

Published Friday, December 26, 2008

The grapefruit is probably my favorite fruit.

That’s a good thing, because some old knee injuries have been flaring up and my left knee has been swelling up like a grapefruit.

The problems started in my high school days while playing soccer for Burnsville High School. Things didn’t get much better when I moved up to the club team at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

I remember the situation being bad enough that I could only run at full speed for about a half. To win a game we almost always had to build a big first-half lead because I was put back in the goal for the second half.

In 1996, I had a serious cartilage tear in my left knee on production day while working at the Mille Lacs County Times in Milaca. Someone called my name. I turned around to reply, but turned on my knee, not my foot.

I tore the cartilage in that knee a second time in 2003, while living south of Des Moines where I was the managing editor of a chain of 17 suburban weekly papers.

I was scheduled for surgery on that knee on Dec. 22, 2003, after returning to the Chippewa Herald in Chippewa Falls, Wis.

But a funny thing happened in the days leading to my surgery. It was my birthday, Dec. 14, and I thought I was receiving the best 40th-birthday present a newspaper reporter could receive.

There had been an explosion at a gasoline terminal as I was on the way to my birthday party. I headed on over, excited as all heck, and then twisted my right knee — the good one — on some ice while trying to favor the bad left knee.

The cartilage was shredded and nine days later my orthopedic surgeon at Luther Hospital in Eau Claire, Wis., was switching around medical records and was cutting into my right knee instead.

We did get around to repairing that left knee, but not until February 2004, when Doc’s schedule allowed.

Since late October. I’ve been having trouble with the left knee again. Seems it’s been buckling because there is a lack of ligament support to hold all the pieces in place.

Combine that with the fact that cartilage has been removed twice, I’m getting real close to having bone rubbing on bone as my knee moves. Arthritis has set in where the cartilage once was and my most recent visit to the orthopedic specialist revealed that my knee caps have shifted out of their tracks on both legs, causing some new challenges.

Hence the reference to the grapefruit. It seems these days my knee is continually swollen beyond recognition.

But part of that is a good thing.

The folks over at Lake Region Hospital have given me a rare opportunity to build my knee and leg strength through a program myself and some other media members are participating in leading up the the hospital’s annual Men’s Health Night, to be held next year in February.

We’re working with a personal trainer through Athletic Republic at the Mehl Center and let me tell you, the first few days of our personal workouts have been nothing short of grueling — and at the same time, embarrassing.

I think because of my knee injuries I have spent a lot of time — maybe even decades — steering away from physical exercise and telling myself things can’t be done because of pain.

After our first two weeks of training I have just one thing to say: “Hell, yeah, it hurts!”

The morning after our first workout I would have liked to climb to the top of the biggest mountain and scream out in pain. That’s because I haven’t done as much as a sit-up in 20-some years.

But you know what?

When it comes to your body things hurt before they get better. And despite any pain I might be feeling, I’m going to tough this thing out.

And who knows? With any luck at all the grapefruit-sized swelling might someday turn the size of oranges, and then lemons.

If you're interested in following our progress you can do so online at http://www.fergusfallsjournal.com/weblogs/mens-night-challenge/.

I hope you follow along.

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Jeff Hage is the managing editor of The Daily Journal. Reach him at jeff.hage@fergusfallsjournal.com.