I am a grieving 55 yo man who is facing the end of my cycling life and want to cry but will vent here instead. I discovered MTB about 8 years ago and went all in. I love pedaling in the woods and had massive improvements in my fitness and it also was hugely helpful to my mental health (no surprise to anyone on this forum). However, I made the mistake of ignoring warning signs of what has turned into a health nightmare. I thought I just had sciatica when I would get pain in my left leg and foot after an hour on the trails. But it was easy to ignore for about 2 years - it didn't bother me with usual activities until the popliteal artery thrombosed completely just before Christmas 2024. At that point, I couldn't walk to the bathroom without terrible pain in my left calf and foot. After evaluation, I was diagnosed with popliteal artery entrapment, which is a very rare congenital condition where the artery is constricted by calf muscle fibers. So all that time I was having ”sciatica," I was actually damaging the artery.
I had a femoral - tibial artery bypass surgery on Feb 7, 2025. The problem is that the graft has failed now for the 3rd time. They were able to open up the graft the first 2 times it had closed off (lasting about 6 months each time) and I did spend months last year feeling really good. I cycled 340 miles in March 2026 (my record, a combination of tarmac and MTB). Unfortunately, it clotted off suddenly again for the 3rd time on April 9th. I am being told that it is no longer fixable without a redo bypass surgery, which is a high risk procedure. So my vascular surgeon doesn't recommend it except in the case of limb salvage.
So now I am facing a lifetime with a handicapped leg. It is not as bad as Christmas 2024 when I couldn't walk to the bathroom without pain. Now the pain starts after walking a block or so. I can ride a bicycle on flat terrain at a slow pace, but probably won't ever be a real cyclist, hiker, or skier again. I need to find some other way to get cardiovascular exercise since I can't generate enough power (without pain) to get my heart rate much above 120. Running is impossible. Elliptical machines and rowing machines are both worse than cycling (I have tried them both in the past 2 weeks). I am hopeful that I can go swimming, but I am worried about water temperature tolerance in the foot.
I know that I should feel grateful that I am not losing my leg, but I grieve the loss of function and the activity that I won't be able to do in the future. I had a Trek Travels trip scheduled in August to Alaska, but that doesn't seem possible at this point (I did buy trip insurance). Maybe I will take up whitewater kayaking if I can find a way to keep my foot warm. But any suggestions are welcome.