Final X rays - Healing week 8

Alright, folks, here they are. The 8 week x-rays. I had 2 docs tell me that they looked really great. It's healed very well. They said I must be eating well (which is true and I've been taking a lot of calcium/magnesium as well as a liquid vitamin/mineral supplement) and being good wearing the boot the whole time. These x-rays look much better than the 4 week. It appears that bone has healed completely over. The dark lines you may see are the top and bottom of the new bone, not a fracture line, it's just the angle of the x-rays. There is also a slight bridge (bump) on the outside, but it shouldn't affect me.

You can see the 4 week x-rays to see the difference. I'm really happy and relieved.

Now I guess it's a good thing no one noticed that my "days till I can run" ticker had finished because you won't see me running right now. I need to take this week to wean off the boot and into my running shoes. I wasn't expecting that, but it makes sense. I'll go 3 hours on/3 hours off between the boot and shoes. Then next week I can start running. Doc wasn't very specific, which was frustrating because I felt like I needed it, but also understandable because my recovery will be based on my own pain level. As I start running he suggested starting every other day with 6-7 minutes after a good walking warm up, then a walking cool down. I can have pain/discomfort that evening, but if it remains the next day I've done too much. He thinks I can increase the running time at 20-30% per time (I think he meant session, maybe week though).

Basically, what it comes down to, is I have to consider myself a brand new runner. My bones, foot, and leg have weakened, so if I jump right back into stuff I could get a stress fracture. I do not want that happening. The word of the day is Gradual. Gradual in kicking, cycling, running, weights, etc. If I get up to 10 miles a day a month from now, great, but it has to happen gradually. I don't anticipate getting to that mileage that quickly, I'm just hoping to be 10k ready in 6 weeks.

Thanks all for your support. Your comments mean a lot to me. The mind is a powerful tool that I feel I've made good use of so far, but this next journey is an important one to proceed into with caution. That said - I can't wait!