So, it's out with the old leg and in with the new.

I've taken possession of the new artificial limb and am currently putting it through its paces. It's very different to the old one. For a start, it's a lot slimmer, as you can see, which means it feels a lot less bulky.

Secondly, rather than sliding on like a slipper, it locks in place with a metal pin, which is attached to the bottom of a silicone leg sleeve. Basically it's a bloody great big condom with a spike sticking out of the end. (For the technically minded, the foot is a Vari-Flex attached using an Iceross liner.)

The main benefit I've noticed so far is that the leg feels a lot more secure and "natural," rather than an attachment dangling off the end of my leg. I even attempted a little run up and down the hospital corridors yesterday -- something I couldn't have done with the old prosthesis.

The main drawback is that it's a pain in the arse to take on and off -- or to "don" and "doff" as the rehab team insist on saying. The silicone liner sticks to itself like shit to a blanket, meaning I have to go through a big palaver of covering the outside with talc before I roll it on.

It's still too early to say for sure what the leg can and can't do -- I still feel like I'm test driving it. I'm going to put it through its paces at the gym this evening.