Surviving the Injuries

Everyone has had an injury of some sort.  Right now I'm struggling with a brutal one that is limiting me like no other injury has.  No running, no lifting legs, no lunges, no real squats.  I can safely say this completely sucks.  My kneecap is off track and out of place and every "lateral" muscle I have in my right thigh is so tight it keeps pulling my kneecap even further out of place if that is possible.  On top of all that, the compensation that has been going on in my hips to save my knee is now so wound up and tight it is now pulling my lower back out of alignment.  Really?
Unfortunately yes.  While going to physical therapy twice a week is helping, it is not curing the issues and it is not working quickly.  What I am not, is patient.  Especially when it comes to my injuries and recovery.  What I am now learning is I do have to be patient.  With an MRI and X-rays for my right hip on the books for tomorrow I am stressed and sad.  This is the time I need my exercise the most.  I am so grateful for the strong support system I have around me from family and friends to coaches (especially Coach Lauren from CSF).  With this bout of injuries they have had to proverbially slap me around to make me snap out of my own head and take my injuries seriously.
What this HAS done for me is made me refocus on my nutrition (yes, I slip every so often too) and the things I CAN do.  I can still walk, I can still do some core and some upper body.  This has also made me realize how much I take for granted when my body is healthy.  The hips and lower back are so important in all motions and movements and I neglected to make sure I was properly taking care of them.  I must stretch, I must make sure my fascia is not wrapped in knots around my muscles pulling my body out of alignment, and  I must feed my body properly so my muscles can properly protect my joints.
There are a few ways to do this but I believe if I diversified my training better after my ankle surgery last year, I would not be in this predicament now.  All I worried about was getting to the gym, getting my cardio done and lifting my weights as I always  had.  What I wasn't doing, and needed to do, was incorporate alternate forms of exercises like yoga, stretching or pilates.  Even doing a Spin class over a long run every so often would have saved wear and tear on both my hips and knees possibly alleviating some of the issues I now have.
My point today is even if you feel strong right now, it doesn't mean you are as strong as you feel or that everything is working how it should.  Our bodies can hold out for quite some time even when it t is not in proper alignment before something gives.  So take care of your body in all aspects, just getting to the gym isn't enough, what you do there is so important.  Stretch, roll out your body and change up your exercises and forms of exercise every so often to continue to strengthen and challenge your muscles.  Keep ALL parts of your body strong and healthy.