Took warmups with my team on Sunday. Did some laps, some stretching, took about 10-15 shots and then sat on the bench. Man, it was nice being out there again.
It was totally fine except that when I’d butterfly, I totally underestimated the amount of weight you actually put on the inside of the foot, specifically up near the toe area, while in that position. That made getting up really hard because my other leg is not yet strong enough to get a very good push, so I end up also shoving on my "back" foot a bit to stand. I used to do this a lot when I first started also, before I built up my leg muscles a bit.
When I go to stretch I usually do my laps, then get to just inside the blue line on the players bench side, stop down to about 5% speed, then butterfly and slide the rest of the way. No real reason, that's just how I do it. Apparently I let out a loud enough "ARGH!" for a couple guys to stop and check on me. So, that sucked. But honestly, unless I'm just going to sit at home in that position (which I suppose is something I should try) I'm not really sure of the best way to help with that besides just doing it. I didn't wear any kind of brace, though.
With that said, I'm playing a pickup tonight. I had absolutely no problem skating or even stopping hard on that leg. So I figure AT WORST, I just play like a 1950s stand-up style goalie if it's too much. And since it's a pickup, it doesn't matter (it's not like I'm letting my team down).
I'm thinking next weekend I'm going to do the same thing, doing warmups with my team. Maybe...MAYBE... play a period. If we're either up or down by a lot in the 3rd then I may go in. My planned return to the crease in a league game is still Oct 2nd.
But man, it felt amazing to be back out there!