Torn ACL need some advice

[Shlade]

MRI showed that I have completely torn my ACL, have bruising on the bone, and irritation and whatever other medical terms in my meniscus and

Long story short I'll be seeing doctor very soon and hopefully a surgeon to get this taken care of. From several people I've heard recovery process is anywhere from 4-9 months or longer (I'm in pretty decent shape and young so hopefully recovery will go without a hitch)

I need some advice on exercises I could do to stay active. Last thing I want is to get too comfortable and gain weight and so on.

Has anybody dealt with this before?

[Thaco]

toldja excersize is bad. lazy aint torn my ACL

[Shlade]

Originally posted by Thaco
toldja excersize is bad. lazy aint torn my ACL

Dude, what? Lol

[outsider]

That would be a better question to ask your surgeon. I went to the U of C knee clinic http://www.sportmed.ucalgary.ca/serv...aedic-surgeons

The one thing he told me was to never do Leg extensions ever again as they can blow your ACL very easy. The first thing you should do is ask for a prescription for a knee brace. Get it ASAP under any and all of your coverages that allow. This is because once you have had your surgery, most if not all coverage will deny you because the "injury" has already been taken care of with surgery.

Not so much help that you wanted with exercise but, really your be in physio for your leg a few weeks after.

[AndyL]

Go to physio... Get your exercise assignments from them.

Follow their directions and don't overdo it...

[s_havinga]

My surgeon told me to never wear a brace after surgery as your body gets used to the extra support. He was one of the surgeons who worked with the Stampeders so he was all about quick recovery times I have been very happy with my knee since surgery (about 8 years ago) and my diagnosis was pretty much identical to yours.

In my experience the bike became my best friend. good low impact work without putting much stress on the knee. After surgery it really helped with getting mobility back as well.

As for recovery- it depends what you mean. I think I had a week or two off work where I was pretty much parked on the couch. Probably 6-9 months before I was playing hockey again. I found that for years after my surgery I could immediately noticed if I skipped going to the gym for more then 3 days in a row. Everything would feel great and then I would miss a few workouts and my knee would start to get stiff an sore again. This doesn't happen anymore but probably for the first 3-4 years it did.

I played hockey and worked out right up until my surgery, I was basically told to just listen to my body. Definitely had a few time I twisted it funny and would drop like a bag of potatoes and be out for a day or two- fun times...

All round I am glad I got it done. I was only 22 at the time, I cant imagine going through the last 8 years always having to be careful and hope nothing happened to my knee.

Again, listen to your surgeon, this is just my experience.

[Shlade]

Physio will be done and provided. The injury happened at work so it's all covered luckily. Mainly looking to see what other folks did during this.

I'll hopefully be speaking with a surgeon soon to figure out what the game plan is.

[NoPulp]

Just follow the directions of professionals, ask them questions.
I have friends that have had their ACL torn or other significant injuries, a lot of people figure they're professionals or go by what the internet says and end up hurting themselves causing the process to be longer than it needs to be.

[sexualbanana]

Originally posted by s_havinga

In my experience the bike became my best friend. good low impact work without putting much stress on the knee. After surgery it really helped with getting mobility back as well.

Not a doctor, but as someone with chronic knee pain, I'd imagine that all low-impact will be good for you: bikes and swimming are the obvious options. Maybe yoga?

[AndyL]

Elliptical > bike

You won't have ROM at first, possibly won't have stability to do it - and tracking of patella can be way off if there's still inflammation.

Bike you can easily unconsciously compensate for the weak leg (especially with toe clips), leading to an overestimation of ability.

You don't typically bear weight on the bike - with ACL injury you need to build the little muscles all around the knee to compensate without bearing weight that doesn't happen.

Follow physios direction, don't just go on your own.

Do ask about water exercises, that's not one of the usual protocols but can be awesome if appropriate.

[revelations]

I went to see the Flames physio for a PCL issue, some of the ideas are the same for ACL:

- build muscle around the affected area
- low impact training (bike, x-country sky, swim)
- I had to change my jogging style from a heel strike to a mid-forefoot strike to lessen knee impact.
- no braces once you've recovered enough

[wintonyk]

Tore my ACL July 2015 started with physio right away. Prehab will pay off on the back end. Bike was huge as it was the only way for me to get my cardio in (I hate swimming). You will learn all about your Vastus Medialis Oblique (VMO). It's the muscle just above the knee on the inside and weakens almost instantly. I used a muscle stim to help reteach me how to activate it.

Surgery was September 2015 for me. I took a total of 3 days plus a weekend... take more. Buy a cryocuff and ice the shit out if it. As long as there isn't much other damage you should be able to put weight on right away (with crutches). Extension extension extension, my default was 5 degree of hyperextension and they wanted that post surgery.

I was jogging after 3 months, running at 6 and playing aussie football again (with tackles at 9). Hockey and snowboarding started for me around the 6 month mark as well (skiing is a bit longer because of the stresses it causes).

Banff Protocol for ACL is probably your best resource.

[Shlade]

Originally posted by wintonyk
Tore my ACL July 2015 started with physio right away. Prehab will pay off on the back end. Bike was huge as it was the only way for me to get my cardio in (I hate swimming). You will learn all about your Vastus Medialis Oblique (VMO). It's the muscle just above the knee on the inside and weakens almost instantly. I used a muscle stim to help reteach me how to activate it.

Surgery was September 2015 for me. I took a total of 3 days plus a weekend... take more. Buy a cryocuff and ice the shit out if it. As long as there isn't much other damage you should be able to put weight on right away (with crutches). Extension extension extension, my default was 5 degree of hyperextension and they wanted that post surgery.

I was jogging after 3 months, running at 6 and playing aussie football again (with tackles at 9). Hockey and snowboarding started for me around the 6 month mark as well (skiing is a bit longer because of the stresses it causes).

Banff Protocol for ACL is probably your best resource.

I've heard good things about the Banff location as well. Since this is all WCB related I'll have to see what my options are for surgery locations

[klumsy_tumbler]

Originally posted by wintonyk
Buy a cryocuff and ice the shit out if it.

This. These things are worth their weight in gold. Keeping the swelling down does WONDERS for pain, ROM, and general healing.

[AndyL]

Originally posted by Shlade


I've heard good things about the Banff location as well. Since this is all WCB related I'll have to see what my options are for surgery locations

Banff has a long wait list. Limited wcb openings (I waited 2yrs for a wcb consult with them). I see they've brought on 5 more surgeons, Dr Heard was awesome - but very strict and very black/white. (We parted ways over weight loss - hard to loose weight, when you spend half the month on crutches or laid-up, because the knee is unstable - however he did significant consults with the surgeon and physio he referred me on to)

Mackenzie - the stamps Orthopaedic surgeon, is one of your more likely options. He seemed to favor the outside AHC procedures... But yeah, you wont have much choice with WCB. It'll be who can have you on the OR table first.

[RickDaTuner]

May I ask how all you guys tore your ACLs?

[AndyL]

Carrying tools on ice was my first - slipped knee went out fully sideways. Done, full MCL, partial ACL significant PCL.

Got butchered by a now retired wcb surgeon, had 2 more surgeries within the year to fix the first. But had become unstable.

Didn't fix until a hop off a pickup bed blew it out again - massive tears of everything but it was strong enough + damaged enough and I'd gotten educated enough - that it got repaired correctly just through physio.

[Seikencube]

I tore my left ACL and lateral meniscus bucket tear 2009 playing competitive basketball back in the high school days. I got a big blow to the knee from an opponent, I tried to jog it out down the court and couple steps after knee gave out and i heard a rip.

I tore my right ACL and lateral meniscus bucket tear in 2011 playing competitive Volleyball during an alumni game. Jumped off the side of the wall to save the ball and landed awkwardly. It was a crucial point but I still regretted it.

Prior to surgery:
Yes Running, Stationary bike with increased levels, squats, lunges and leg press I did before surgery date.

Words of advice: Take the surgery and do not do the patella graft. A couple of my friends had it and has complications with ROM down the road. Listen to your surgeon and be on top of your physiotherapy. It is very important to get your ROM in.

For exercises it really depends on your physiotherapist. Going on the bike or squatting will come in a month or two after. It is more ice rest and flexing your quads and calfs.

Moreover, I recommend LifeMark location near mcloed location. Dr. Timmerman did both my knees and till this day I have no complications what so ever. He did professional MLB players acl's as well. Look up on his bio!

[RickDaTuner]

Originally posted by AndyL
*snip

That just sounds painful Andy, I can imagine doing it once, 3 times... ouch!

Originally posted by Seikencube
*snip

See I ask because the older I get the more I start to see my body starting to hate me, and ACL pain from sports activities is starting to rear it's ugly head.
I should start looking into ACL physio excersises to prevent a tear before it actually happens.

[Seikencube]

Originally posted by RickDaTuner


That just sounds painful Andy, I can imagine doing it once, 3 times... ouch!




See I ask because the older I get the more I start to see my body starting to hate me, and ACL pain from sports activities is starting to rear it's ugly head.
I should start looking into ACL physio excersises to prevent a tear before it actually happens.

If you did not have any major blows to the knee or ligament tears as per say, usually it is just wear and tear of your meniscus that's causing pain as you age. Also genetics can be a factor.

If you are flat footed look into custom made insoles from a professional it helped me a lot and eased the pressure of my knees!