Originally Posted by
skidder
Any +50r's ever ahve bllod clots in your leg(s). Irecently cam down witht he condition and its going to knock me off my bicycles for a few months. Anyone ever had this condition and have any input about timelines for getting back in the saddle and on the road? FWIW: My condition was just the natural odds of getting it - no precursor conditions or lifestlye choices that would incease the odds of it occuring (regular exercise/bicycling actually decreses the risk
).
Regarding the timeline ...
I first developed the clot in mid-June 2009, but I didn't know it then. However, I struggled to do even simple tasks and it was getting harder and harder to even walk around our house.
I was hospitalised at the end of July for 2 weeks. My left calf was full of clots from top to bottom, and there were some in the thigh as well. During that time, the nurses encouraged me to go for daily walks, and at first, I had to rest about every 50 steps.
Mid-August we went to Tasmania for 3 weeks, and I walked whenever possible, determined to get back some strength.
At the beginning of September, I got back on my bicycle again. Some people warned me about the potential for bleeding with the Warfarin, but my Dr explained that my blood clots quickly and the Warfarin would just bring it back to what most people consider normal. So he encouraged me to cycle, walk, and do whatever sports I wanted to do.
It was slow going, but I did my first 100 km ride since June in November. Unfortunately, after that, I found doing longer distances to be quite a challenge although I did manage to do some centuries, a 200K or two, and a 300K over the next few months, and I made several attempts at more, but had to DNF. We attempted a 400K, but I just couldn't do that distance.
I was on the Warfarin a full year ... it took a while for my INR level to stabilise and because I have a genetic predisposition toward developing clots my Dr wanted to be sure it was all taken care of. About a year later, I saw a blood specialist, and fortunately he recommended that I go off Warfarin.
What a difference!! While on Warfarin, I felt like I was moving through deep water all the time. When I went off, my energy levels improved immensely and I felt so much better.
Since then ... I need to keep active. I am not supposed to sit anywhere for more than about 1 hour. I'm supposed to walk lots because walking flexes my ankles and encourages the blood to flow. Cycling is fine too, but the walking is important to include as well. So I've been walking anywhere from about 10 to 30 km/week.
I need to use compression stockings if I'm going to be sitting or standing for long periods of time. So when I fly, I wear the compression stockings.
I need to have Clexane injections when I fly, which has changed how we travel a little bit. We still travel, but the Clexane knocks me around quite badly, and for 2 days after we arrive anywhere, I'm useless. So we can't hit the ground running anymore.
And I do have ongoing issues with my left ankle swelling. It wasn't too bad for a couple years, but has started to become more of a concern lately.