ACL pop, surgery, and beyond...

**Kellie** · 05-22-2005, 10:25 AM

My doc wanted me weight bearing asap as well - was off in under a week. Ice and elevation will be your friend for awhile; I"m almost 2.5 months out, and still icing/elevating a few times/day. Sounds like you've got good PT and will make good progress. I wouldn't beat yourself up over missing a day here and there - it will happen

**Mtn Man** · 05-23-2005, 02:20 PM

Strange day at PT today. Had a pretty productive week with all the exercises and cold therapy, been doing them religiously and pushing it. Was getting 70deg on the CPM on a regular basis the last two days. Even walking around on one crutch with the immobilizer on. So I go to PT this morning, thinking that I've got to get 90-100deg on flex. Well, after much stretching, exercising, and finally pain and cursing, he only got it to 82deg....2deg better than last Wed. Wasn't happy with that outcome. The plus side is that I got to 5deg extension, better than the 11deg from Wed. I think I could have made it to 2-0deg if I really pushed it, but he didn't want me to almost pass out like I did while he did the flex.

More CPM right now, but my leg is hurtin' from PT, felt like he was going to rip my knee off

PT guy says you have your good days and bad days. So we'll see how I do on Thursday.

B)

**Mtn Man** · 06-01-2005, 06:47 PM

3 weeks post op.

I had 5deg and 95deg on Tuesday, went back to work yesterday and the leg is not liking it at all. Not being able to elevate and ice all day took it's toll and it was pretty inflammed by the end of the day. Hopefully, it'll get used to it by Friday. PT tomorrow morning, hopefully that will get me over the hump. I saw the bill for the Donjoy Legend Brace, good lord!!! I hope the insurance covers it.

Actually got to Killington over the holiday weekend to pack things up from the ski house and move it out for the summer. Went to a few good parties included our own house closing party. The drive back sucked, knowing that we won't be back until November.

B)

**Kellie** · 06-01-2005, 10:00 PM

I feel your pain on that one - all too familiar memories. Once you get into the rythm of work and your body recovers from the surgery trauma, I am sure your knee will cooperate. I definitely have continued to find benefit with ice and elevation . . . and as much as I fought it, resting is probably the best "treatment" . . .

Best of luck

**Mtn Man** · 06-02-2005, 08:42 PM

Gotta admit that things sorta clicked today. Had PT this morning and we stepped it up to the bike, squats, and a few more additions to the initial post op exercises. Finally got my own E Stim handheld to use at home, so that's a big plus too. At the end, I was hitting 4deg and 105deg, woohoo!!!!

Leg wasn't as bad today at work, starting to ice it while there and it's helping. Was actually walking around the house without the crutch for the first time this evening too. Granted, I've read accounts of people getting off crutches a lot earlier, or getting much more extension and flex quicker, but I'm just happy to see this progress today. My hyperextension was pretty severe and the PT guy keeps telling me that it'll take longer than others, but I just keep pushing it.

Today was a good day

B)

**Mtn Man** · 06-06-2005, 07:28 PM

Had a pretty hard weekend on the knee, spent most of in packing boxes and cleaning my place up. I gotta move in a couple of weeks, so started packing now. Did do most of the exercises and electric stim through the weekend though, so that helped a little.

Hit PT today and it was really rough. Knee was inflammed big time from the weekend and work on Monday, and it just didn't want to bend a whole lot. After all the exercises, he got it to 110 and 4, which I was pretty happy with after cursing my head off during it. The bike and squats seem to help it out, so I'll probably do more of that on my own.

Heading to SFO tomorrow for a validation seminar during the week, may have to find a few of you mags to down a bev or three whilst I'm there. Prolly drive out to Tahoe for the weekend, then conduct an audit in Vacaville, CA before heading back to the EC.

B)

**Kellie** · 06-06-2005, 09:25 PM

Glad to hear you're progressing, despite a few setbacks . . . if your drive from SFO to Tahoe/Vacaville takes you through the east bay (Walnut Creek), let me know - we can swap war stories.

PM for digits, etc.

**altagirl** · 06-06-2005, 09:55 PM

Originally Posted by Kellie

I feel your pain on that one - all too familiar memories. Once you get into the rythm of work and your body recovers from the surgery trauma, I am sure your knee will cooperate. I definitely have continued to find benefit with ice and elevation . . . and as much as I fought it, resting is probably the best "treatment" . . .

Best of luck

Yeah - that was the hardest thing. I'd get into a groove of really pushing myself at PT and doing all the extra rehab I could and all of that, and then I stopped making progress - and what I needed more than rehab was rest. And then I busted through the plateau no problem. You've got to find the right balance.

**Mtn Man** · 06-07-2005, 09:10 AM

Originally Posted by altagirl

Yeah - that was the hardest thing. I'd get into a groove of really pushing myself at PT and doing all the extra rehab I could and all of that, and then I stopped making progress - and what I needed more than rehab was rest. And then I busted through the plateau no problem. You've got to find the right balance.

That seems to be a theme in my life, overworking. I told the PT guy that going in, I have a problem slowing down and have a high threshold for pain. He's definitely found that threshold on a few occasions, almost making me pass out ( I was seeing stars during the last session). But moderation is a fine line with everything, including sports, mental health, work, and rest. I tend not to put a lot of emphasis on the last one...

B)

**Mtn Man** · 06-10-2005, 08:55 AM

Originally Posted by Kellie

Glad to hear you're progressing, despite a few setbacks . . . if your drive from SFO to Tahoe/Vacaville takes you through the east bay (Walnut Creek), let me know - we can swap war stories.

PM for digits, etc.

PM sent, hope all is well! We need an update

B)

**TonyR** · 06-13-2005, 01:12 AM

Man do I wish I had mine in the age of better arthroscopy! Had a triad injury back in mid 80's, ultimately got operated in '87. 5 days inpatient, 4hr demerol IM's (no pain pump, no knee anesthetic catheter), fully open procedure with cadaveric tendon graft. Hurt like hell for the first 48hrs then on to no/partial weight bearing for 10 - 12 weeks. Swore at the time that if I ever had to do it again I would pass. With todays less invasive surgery the recovery seems way better. My only advice is rehab as hard as the orthopedic surgeon & PT will allow.

**Mtn Man** · 06-15-2005, 08:17 PM

Thought I'd give an update:

Off the crutches last week, but took one with me during a bidness trip to SFO. Only used it when I needed to, but it blew up pretty big after walking the hills in SF for a couple hours. Totally off them the last three days and then hit PT today. Getting 5 and 115 assisted, 105 unassisted. I've been keeping up with the exercises and E-stim everyday, but I think I haven't been icing and elevating it enough. The PT guy is recommending to the doc, 3 times a week instead of 2, I guess I'm not moving fast enough. Don't know what else I can do, he almost made me pass out during the stretch and compression, actually had me cursing pretty loud near the end when he cranked the knee in half one last notch or two. Of course, I joked around about it afterwards, but DAYUM I thought he was going to pop the kneecap across the room like a bottlecap. The one plus is that I do feel it flexing quicker and with less pain while in my range. I thought I was making progress until he did the measurement. I don't have a whole lot of feeling on the outside part of the knee, but that sounds normal from other people's accounts.

So I guess I'll step up my exercises at home and ice it more, maybe that'll help. I really don't feel like going 3 times a week, it's tough mentally and physically. But I'll do what the doc says. Got an appt on Tuesday, so we shall see.

B)

**Mtn Man** · 06-22-2005, 07:53 AM

The doc seemed to be happy with the progress, but took the PT guy's advice and gave me the option of 3 times a week as needed. Still some swelling in the knee, so I can't quite get the ROM needed to do full revs on the bike. I have been getting reverse revs occasionally with pain though.

PT on Monday gave me 4 and 120deg, 105 unassisted. I got 98deg unassisted at the docs office without warming it up. Another PT session tonight.

B)

**Mtn Man** · 06-29-2005, 08:11 PM

Back from PT, getting 1 deg and 127deg flex, so we're on our way. I went back on anti inflammatories again, using Mobic. I think it's helping because the swelling has gone down some in a week. Getting fairly good reverse pedals on the bike after warming up for a while. Still can't get forward motion though.

Moving day in 1.5 days, been packing all kinds of boxes. Funny thing is, I may get that interview out in CO next week. If I actually get the job, I would be moving twice in the same month....with a bum knee

PT tomorrow at 7am, time to rest up for more torture...

B)

**Mtn Man** · 07-07-2005, 08:54 PM

FINALLY got full revolutions on the bike yestday and today. It's about damn time. I think I can hobble faster than the slow bus right now, go figure. Anyway, hitting 1deg and 130deg right now and can do full revs after warming up for a couple of minutes. Moving residence and work has been beating the living shit out of me, so that could be holding my recovery back a little. Hopefully it'll calm down a little, would love to start hiking soon, we'll see.

B)

**Mtn Man** · 07-24-2005, 07:54 PM

Things are definitely picking up now. Been doing 30-45 minutes on the bike fairly regularly with only a little stiffness in the first 30 seconds. Getting 1deg and 132deg extension right now. Still having trouble with steps so I'm trying to take stairs more often now just to torture...I mean train myself. Started strength training last week and it's kickin my arse....and I'm loving it. I can't wait to get this puny left leg back to the size it used to be. Being that it's my dominant leg, it should be a little easier....hopefully. Picked up some yoga stuff as required in the gimp forum, I hope to start that this week too. PT guy says I'm track for opening day, CAN NOT WAIT!!!

B)

**Mtn Man** · 08-10-2005, 08:45 PM

Thought I'd give a little update to keep this thing flowin'.

Doing PT twice a week now and hitting the stationary bike almost everyday for at least 30 minutes. Getting 135 flex and 1 deg extension. Went off the Mobic (anti inflammatory) for a while and the knee stiffened and swelled a bit the whole week, so I'm back on it again. As per maggot suggestion, started power yoga and it feels pretty good so far. Damn do I work up a sweat and I'm not even moving that much!

Going up steps is a still a little tough but doable, going down steps is still a problem and can't quite get the flow yet, doing a half hobble/hop thing.

When were you guys cleared for biking, hiking, rock climbing? I have to wait until Aug 29th for my next doc appt to ask. PT won't give me their opinion because they don't want to be liable. A new climbing gym just opened up near me and I'm dying to try it out!

B)

**here2day** · 08-30-2005, 04:16 PM

I'm 14 weeks post-op. I was on vacation at 12 weeks and spent an hour every day out on a road bike. It was f'ing great; I didn't ask my PT (he wasn't around). I can't stand in the pedals yet and avoided steep hills. Other than that I had no issues and the workout was good for my leg and my mind (hours on a spinner inside is becoming very dull). Now that I'm back home I've got to get stronger to get back outside as the hills around here are pretty intense.

**Kellie** · 08-30-2005, 05:44 PM

Stoked on the roadie and spinning . . . definitely the way to a strong recovery and happy knee . . . keep after it!

How's your recovery MtnMan?

**Mtn Man** · 09-02-2005, 07:09 PM

K, it's update time. Went to the doc's and asked a butt load of questions. It looks like my recovery is right on track, he was pretty happy about the movement, flex, and stability of the ACL. I can start road biking, but will have to wait until 6 months out to mtn bike, climb, ski, etc. That kinda sucks since I wanted to start climbing soon, oh well. He told me that I would put undue stress on my ACL since my quad is not back up to strength yet. I'll have to wear the brace doing athletic activities until 1 year post op. I may try to do some light hiking this weekend since I'll be up at Killington, we'll see how it goes.

He did give me a little more insight on the pics that were taken inside my knee. It looks like my interior meniscus is perfect, no damage whatsoever. But the outside meniscus before surgery was pretty nasty looking. They had to take a chunk off and shave the part that was left.

So the magic date is......Oct 31st. One of my favorite days of the year. Can't wait for that doc appt!

Edit: Hitting 2 and 140deg right now. Lots of weight training right now.

B)

**Vinman** · 09-03-2005, 06:08 AM

Congrats on your rehab so far. Sounds like things are going well enough. But I kind of agree with your doc. 4 mths is a bit too soon to start doing some of the more advanced stuff especially if your quad is not stong enough yet. Keep up the hard work. 10/31 will be here before you know it.

Pretty common for the lateral meniscus to get torn up a bit. I had 3 meniscal(2 lateral, 1 medial) tears after the 1st ACL tear and 1 during the second (lateral). And I prolly have a tear in my left lateral meniscus right now but it doesn't hider me much except for the fact that I can't fully squat on that knee.

**Kellie** · 09-03-2005, 09:57 AM

Glad to hear of your progress . . . you have made it to 4 months, and the next two will fly by. I think that's the way it's been for me. Was your doctor worried that you still don't have full extension, or did you mean -2 instead of 2 degrees? I haven't had mine measured in forever . . . maybe I should go back to PT one more time, just to see what they say . . .

Good luck on the hiking - you'll kill it on the way up and be brought to your knees (no pun intended) or your ass, if you're anything like me. It amazes me how hard it is/was to walk downhill!!! Slow quad control has been a challenge for me.

Ski season is just around the corner, and it sounds like you'll be ready

**Mtn Man** · 10-16-2005, 10:37 AM

The sun finally decided to come out, so I figured it time to test out this knee. Did a short but steep hike in Bear Mtn state park. It's one of my favorite short but sweet hikes that I take a lot of people to, Popolopean Torne near Bear Peak.

The knee felt pretty good on the approach up. It doesn't quite flex as well as I'd like, and I had to compensate for that since parts of the hike are more scrambling than walking (scramble=one level lower than rock climbing a 5.5). It was extremely windy up top, prolly around 40-50 mph gusts that I was leaning into. But it was just good to be on a peak under my own power again.

The hike down was a bit challenging, but the knee held up well. Had to do a few crab walks over a few steep or wet areas, but I was leaning on the cautious side this time around. All in all, very pleased with the day.

Took a few pics at the top with the camera phone, please excuse the quality.

View of Bear mtn bridge, not a whole lot of color yet:

I'm not a fan of graffitti at all, but I though this was an appropriate pic at the top:

God damn it's good to be back!!!

B)

**Mtn Man** · 10-30-2005, 08:54 PM

I guess I'll add my TR, it was a great weekend and the knee is doing great!

Tyrolean Skier and Phantom joined me in Bay 1 on Friday around 1030am. We hiked up Bunny and Chute to the top of Snowdon. On our way, Lamb stated that Upper Flush was pretty sweet so we headed that way. And he was right! Stood at the top of Middle Flush and a "Reserved" sign was up already. I told them to go and I would go around on Bunny or Mouse Trap. After seeing Ty and Phantom make the first few turns, I made the executive decision to go for it. It paid off, prolly the best turns of the day. We decided to head over Racer's Edge and try Highline from there. Racer's had a few waterbars, but not too bad. Highline was fairly untracked and you had to do a few hop turns and keep your speed before sinking to the bottom (kneeish deep heavy stuff). Near the end, linked 4-5 turns that were sublime....just brought a big grin to my face. We headed back to the car for our first official Bay 1 beer of the season and did it taste like the nectar of the gods!

The rest of the crew showed up that evening to hit the lifts early Sat morning. The gondi started about 20 minutes late, so everyone was chomping at the bit. The snow up top was sooooo nice and fluffy. They have a few problems with the Glades triple so we spent most of the day over at Snowdon. We proceeded to do the circuit (Vagabond, Northstar, Great Bear, Chute, Bunny, Mouse trap, Highline, etc) until my knee stated to bother me from the small bumps on Northstar. I decided to play it safe and call it a day around noon. Gsmashed and I headed back to the car for a Bay 1 bev and people started showing up every 10 minutes. Needless to say, we didn't leave until around 3pm because it was so sunny and beautiful out. Eventually, everyone headed to Jurrasic Park for happy hours and stories were shared through out the night. Port was consumed before hitting the hay.

Woke up with an extra hour of sleep (woooohooo) and had hearty breakfast of eggs and pork products. Hit the mtn a little after 8 and the lift lines were non existent the whole morning. The bump line were becoming bigger and I was starting to get the hang of them again (granted, I took them very slowly and didn't zipperline). Eventually, I decided to check out the Light since it isn't that long of a woods shot. It was like paste, the sun was baking it and the snow on the trees made it into a rainforest. Cascade was soooo nice though after that. Chalky soft bumps all the way down, I enjoyed every turn down before heading back home.

Here is the link for the pics from all three days (slideshow in my folder):

http://www.killingtonzone.com/forums...=slideshow.php

Damn, it's good to be back! The Gimpinator is officially retired!

B)

**Mtn Man** · 11-08-2005, 12:53 PM

I'VE BEEN CLEARED TODAY, WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!

Granted, I didn't tell the doc I already skied three days, but that's besides the point. The doc cleared me after 6 months. I have to wear the hard brace for 6 months while doing heavy exercise. He said it's ok to use both the soft and hard brace at the same time too. I just have to keep up the quad strengthening exercises and I should be good to go.

Now where's that damn cliff.....

B)