After my morning post, I took a nap that lasted for THREE HOURS.  I woke up confused and disorientated! Clearly, I needed the rest, so it was a good thing.

 

When I woke up, I discovered that Future Hubby had cleaned the entire house!  Not only did he clean, but he CLEANED TO MY STANDARDS….. i.e. scrubbed the tile, cloroxed the sink, took out the trash, dusted…. OH, how I love him!

 

Linner

 

After rising at 3 PM and discovering a sparkling clean kitchen (yay!), I ate an awkward lunch/dinner ("linner") of chicken+ cheese + pickle sammie on toasted WW bread.

DSCN0041

And a bowl of grapes.

DSCN0044 (2)

Dinner

 

For dinner, Future Husband and I made stacks of roasted tofu, sweet potato, and polenta, all sealed together with some NF plain yogurt

 DSCN0055

We mixed a dab of maple syrup, a sprinkle of pepper, and a bit of parsley into the yogurt to give it some more flavor.

 DSCN0052

There is some intrinsically enjoyable about food piled high!  🙂

DSCN0047

On the side,  I had a portion of roasted brussel sprouts.  I love to drizzle maple syrup on brussel sprouts before roasting them! Delish!

 

And I doubled up on my glucosamine and calcium supplements, as I  missed my afternoon dosage.

DSCN0046

Now we’re going to watch a movie…. I haven’t eaten enough fruit today, so I may snack on a plum later.

 

Research on Chondromalcia 

 

I spent some time this afternoon researching Chondromalcia.  As I mentioned in this post, the orthopaedic doctor I saw on Friday diagnosed me with Chondromalcia, which is an irritation of the undersurface of the kneecap or a "softening" of the cartilage.

 

Reminder: I AM NOT A DOCTOR.  If you have Chondromalcia, you should seek the advice of a doctor… hopefully one that is more qualified and caring than the one I saw on Friday, because he told me there was nothing I could do about my knee except stop running.  Luckily, there’s a LOT I can do to help myself heal!  So, remember, this is just a summary of  my own personal research.  Here’s what I learned:

 

  • Symptoms: The symptoms of chondromalacia include:  a dull, achy pain in the front of your knee; increased pain when you walk up or down stairs (the most common symptom); pain in your knee when kneeling or squatting; knee pain after sitting for long periods of time; a grating or grinding sensation when you extend your knee; and knee stiffness.

 

  • Causes:  The patella (kneecap) is normally pulled over the end of the femur in a straight line by the quadriceps (thigh) muscle. Patients with chondromalacia patella frequently have abnormal patellar "tracking" toward the lateral (outer) side of the femur. This slightly off-kilter pathway allows the undersurface of the patella to grate along the femur causing chronic inflammation and pain. Certain individuals are predisposed to develop chondromalacia patella: females, knock-kneed or flat-footed runners, or those with an unusually shaped patella undersurface.

 

  • Surgery Treatment Options:  Surgery is viewed as the "last option" for treating severe cases of chondromalacia.  Surgery isn’t 100% successful in curing the condition.  Options include:  arthroscopy (surgeon uses arthroscope to remove fragments of damaged cartilage) and realignment (surgery to realign the angle of the kneecap or relieve pressure on the cartilage).

 

  • Non-Physical Therapy Treatment Options: Short-term treatment options include resting the knee, taking 1500 mg of glucosamine, sticking to a cross-training program, putting orthotics in your shoes, and wearing a knee compression sleeve to prevent the patella from sliding.  I just ordered two knee sleeves!  

 

  • Physical Therapy Treatment Options:  Rehabilitation exercises for non-surgically treated chondromalacia patella include:  Isometric Quad Sets; Straight Leg Raises; Isotonic Hip; and Isotonic Hamstring (this PDF has some good examples of similar leg exercises).

 

    Hope this was helpful! Good night, sleep tight!
{ 20 comments }

 

  • VeggieGirl October 19, 2008, 4:55 pm

    Hooray for a long nap, FH cleaning the house, and delectable food (you need to come cook for me, seriously)!!Wow, VERY interesting information regarding Chondromalcia – I had never even heard of the condition before!!

    Good night!! :0)

  • Erica October 19, 2008, 4:57 pm

    Everything looks so good! I love love roasted brussels! I have never heard of using maple syrup with them? Thanks for the tip- i must try this!

  • Meghann October 19, 2008, 5:21 pm

    Kristien was soo proud of himself for cleaning up the apartment, he was showing off his good deed as I was picking Abbie up 🙂
    I think the boys were a little disappointed when I just grabbed Abbie and headed for the door. They were told me you were napping and to take a seat and watch the game. 🙂 I’m glad you got a good nap in! I had too many errands to run so I’ll just be hitting the hay early!

    Have a good Monday!

  • Jen October 19, 2008, 5:32 pm

    You have had a fun weekend! I was wondering what kind of Tofu do you use (brand and firmness) and how do you roast it? Details please? It looks so good…

  • Kath October 19, 2008, 5:51 pm

    Haha – love the distinguisher between “cleaned” and “cleaned to my standards.” Our household has that divide as well 🙂

  • Meg October 19, 2008, 6:44 pm

    What a fun and delicious dinner! Thanks for teaching me about Chondromalcia.

  • Lizzie October 19, 2008, 7:00 pm

    Can’t help but to comment that in your last post your hair looks SUPER SHINY! gorgeous!

  • just me October 19, 2008, 7:05 pm

    ohhhhh…love the long nap! i tried to take one today, but it didn’t work. and go fh for cleaning to your standards! whooo hooo!!!

  • Justine October 19, 2008, 7:10 pm

    I love naps, but then at night I can’t get to sleep 🙁
    Yay future husband for cleaning! Wish my boyfriend would do that without being told! We just recently started living together, so maybe he’ll get the hint and surprise me one of these days 😉

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 19, 2008, 7:49 pm

    erica – the contrast of the maple syrup with the brussel sprouts is great!

    jen – i buy extra firm tofu. i like the whole foods brand and the Nasoya brand. Look on the recipes on the lefthand side -“The Perfect Baked Tofu” is my favorite. Tonight I just sliced the tofu, covered it in pepper and chili powder, and roasted it for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

    lizzie – THANKS! 🙂 i use neutrogena deep conditioner, it’s great.

    justine – hahah well… after 5 years together, we’ve had a couple of talks about cleaning habits! he knows how much i truly appreciate it so every now and then he cleans up! i try to do stuff he likes (like watch football) every now and then as well. 🙂

  • lighterportions October 19, 2008, 7:49 pm

    Aw, a long nap and an already cleaned house? Sounds like a great Sunday to me.

    I’ll have to try maple syrup on brussel sprouts… I don’t experiment with them very often at all so my only experiences so far have been less than delicious…

  • thehealthyhostess.com October 19, 2008, 7:51 pm

    You have inspired me to buy brussel sprouts! I haven’t had them since I didn’t like them, but after seeing how good they look when you make them, I am going to try again! I don’t know if my hub. will go for it, we will see!!
    🙂

  • Katie October 19, 2008, 9:07 pm

    I made the Santa Fe Casserole tonight… loved it!

    I also took a mondo nap this afternoon… what else are sundays for?

  • jenngirl October 19, 2008, 9:34 pm

    I do love naps, however I don’t like that awkward disoriented feeling they give you. Sounds like you needed a little naptime though!

    That dinner looks amazing! What is the tofu marinated/seasoned with?

    Have a great night!

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 20, 2008, 3:50 am

    jennegirl – Tonight I just sliced the tofu, covered it in pepper and chili powder, and roasted it for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

  • Dr. Bill October 20, 2008, 11:32 am

    Hi. I’m an orthopaedic surgeon, a specialist on knee and hip pain, as it happens. You did an outstanding job on your description of chondromalacia patellae (means soft cartilage in Greek), better than many physicians. If you or your readers are interested in more information on CMP, I have a FREE Report on knee pain at http://www.drbillsclinic.com

  • shawna October 20, 2008, 2:18 pm

    Yay for a nap!

    I was diagnosed with Chondromalacia when I was a freshman in high school. Too much soccer playing in the mud was the culprit. Just so you know, I did the physical therapy exercises and all has been well ever since. I had to sit out the rest of that season, but I’m glad I did. So, that’s a happy ending for you 🙂

  • HangryPants October 20, 2008, 4:21 pm

    The stacks look fantastic. I love love love roasted brussels sprouts.

  • sara October 20, 2008, 4:36 pm

    just wanted to drop you a line. i *think* i came down with Chondromalacia when i first started running a few years ago, except i had mine in my ankle. (i can’t exactly remember my diagnosis now, but i remember the doctors telling me it was an overuse injury, the symptoms sounded similar, and i had an MRI which diagnosed it.)

    anyway, i didn’t want to have surgery, so the only other option was to wear a brace. i rehabbed my ankle by quitting running for about 6 months (i was devastated at the time, but it hurt just to walk when my condition was at its worst), and by doing strengthening exercises and wearing a brace when i did start running again. so it looks like you’re already on your way there 🙂

    since all this happened, i’ve run 3 marathons with the brace (and an additional 2 without), so there should be nothing stopping you. my first two marathons i finished with only 3-4 days of running per week.

    good luck and happy running 🙂

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 20, 2008, 6:44 pm

    sara – THANK YOU! that gives me so much hope!

Healthy Tipping Point