I am new to the forum and wish to thank everyone for your valuable information. I moved from the Iowa to Montana a little over a year ago and had all kinds of ideas of enjoying the mountains. Unfortunately I have not yet experienced a whole lot. On the 17th of July I am scheduled to have L4/5, L5/S1 fused. Guess I am really feeling old these days as am tired of the pain. I'm 47 and used to be very active and athletic. Two years ago I had a partial knee replacement, October of 2011 blew out my disc, March surgery to remove bone and now the fusion. It's very frustrating not being able to do much of anything beyond work as we have adopted a 14 year old young man and I feel as if there is not much I can do to be active with him and my partner. I grew up at a time where it was said, "No pain, no gain." According my my PT that's not how it's supposed to be done. Old habits are hard to break as I have a hard time admitting how much my back hurts. It has been very helpful to read about everyone's experiences and advice. I look forward to adding my success story soon. Until then I continue to "Fake it til I make it!" Thanks for all your input.