MTB giveth, and MTB taketh away.

Matt, glad to hear you're progressing so well! Chiming in: while hiking this weekend, I thought of your situation, & the things I'd tell my 2005 self, freshly post-ACL surgery. One, that the knee will never be the same. Not because of the physical repair, but because you'll THINK about it, all the time at first, less & less as years go by; but every so often, aching /swelling will make you ponder, what's going on in there? This isn't necessarily bad, though; doing a mental/physical inventory once in a while is a good thing, yes? A great feeling for me was the first time I went on a hard ride or hike and DIDN'T think about it -that's when I knew I was back! Two, make sure you don't hurt other parts (other knee, hips, back) while getting back in the full-on exercise groove. I noticed this esp. when I first started backpacking again; I'd favor the repaired knee on steep rock staircases, and stress my 'good' knee /wonk my hips in the process. 'Sounds like you're really paying attention to your gait -smart man! Third, I found yoga significantly helped in my recovery, esp. the balancing stuff (tree pose, warrior III, etc.). Lots of muscles atrophy after surgery, and sure, quads & hammies are the most important for power, but all those little ones really count when it comes to stabilization! Don't just take my word for it -you've already heard the recovery tale of that hellion-on-a-bike /yogi, Mountaingirl Sara! Good luck in 2020 -personally, I'm looking forward to the first group ride with Matt 2.0!

 

Great post! Thanks, brutha.

 

Get your motor running,
Head out on the highway......

This is me driving myself to PT today. Holy $h!t that felt good. Free at last, free at last. PT went well. They were stoked and surprised to see me walk in without crutches. Got to 120 flexion. Probably just one visit away from being cleared to hit the stationary bike. Walked w/o brace and crutches, and got cleared to ditch the brace at home. Brace stays on when I’m out and about, mainly to protect from outside forces. Progress.

 

Well shite, you’re progressing fast!!! Awesomeness!

 

Finally... a smart one in the bunch!
I can’t tell you how many of my yoga students talk about their injuries and recovery and how much yoga has helped! Especially heated yoga

 

I’m a believer for sure. When I had my first shoulder surgery 10ish years ago I got to a point in the recovery where I was told the ROM I had was as mush as I was going to get back due to the amount of time that had passed and I’d plateaued on progress. There was a noticeable deficit though. Just two sessions of hot yoga got a significant portion of it back, with more in smaller increments with subsequent sessions.

 

This is so true. With my torn Rotator Cuff, yoga has helped with the range of motion and pain relief more than any of the stretches the Doc gave me. So now I just stick the Yoga as rehab...and can see the improvement.

 

Only 71?! Come on?

 

@buggravy
Pretty much exactly what I’ve experienced for my recovery, and what I hear from my students( make and female). PT isn’t heated, but it should be, the it makes a huge difference in the ROM come back game.
Good on you guys stepping out of the box! So many men shy away from yoga for no good reason, my husband included

 

@buggravy makes up for the 71 mph with 155 mph music....I think he's compensating for the silent car so he can be heard.

 

I don't do the heated Yoga...but...
For the guys out there thinking about Yoga...the ladies are in good shape....just saying....

 

Y’all....this man is not lyin’

 

Another small victory, Matt. Those win wars.

 

Where's your tachometer?

Is that strange gauge on the left related to your knee recovery?

 

Truth. And as pumped as I am about this quick burst of progress over these last few days, I'm not in denial about the long haul, and/or the fact that it may not all go quite this smoothly. But yeah, I'll take the win for now.

Actually, maybe I'm a little in denial. But I'm aware that I'm in denial. Whatever that means.

 

Haha, yeah the "gauge cluster" was an adjustment, for sure. And this is the "classic" layout. There's an "e-tron" layout that's even further removed from what the automotive brain has come to expect.

Yes, that's the optional TENS unit that's hardwired in.

 

Another good PT visit. 15 days out from surgery. Officially cleared to use the stationary bike. PT added leg press (super light weight) and body weight squats to the repertoire. 125 flexion. Can walk up and down stairs without having to go one at a time. Done with the brace other than out in public, and then strictly to protect against outside forces, and done with crutches completely.

 

AYE! The main danger at this point might be getting cocky resulting in a setback. Manage your extremely high standards, buddy, and let your body catch up with how you feel. What was that formula about re-injury? Happens well out from surgery or something? Anyway, you are young, so pace it, bro.

 

Kick some ass Bug! And do it in a recliner with the leg up on a pillow! At your schedule, I was still over 2 months from any weight bearing on mine. Bask in the progress, but respect the process. We’ll celebrate in June!

 

Thanks, fellas. I appreciate the sound warning. It's as much of a reason for this thread as anything. As much as I'm hyped on this early flurry of progress, I do have my head pretty well wrapped around the fact that there are 2 things healing here. I know that this progress is more the muscle and supporting structure bouncing back, but the graft healing will be more a function of time. Please remind me of that in a couple of months though. I'm letting my therapist be the guide, and I'm not pushing through any flagrant discomfort trying to be a hero. It just legitimately started feeling better quickly once I started putting weight on it. I'm mainly just stoked on the hope that this fast progress will mean an expedited return to the more low impact stuff like riding the cruiser bike, and hopefully followed shortly after by being able to ride fire roads to get some actual fitness going. Anything that gets me outside and back to some sense of normalcy. Again though, I value the admonition from those who have limped the path before me .

 

Lots of wisdom in this thread! Keep up the good work Matt!

 

Measured progress over the last week. Just a couple degrees shy of "normal" ROM as of last Friday. Doing some decent strength training in PT, and the therapist says I'm way ahead of schedule. That said, a hopefully small hiccup, and part of why I post now, is that I developed some clicking in my knee cap, and a catch deeper in the knee. Maybe the same thing manifesting in different locations, but it first surfaced just past the top of the down stroke on the stationary bike, and then I began noticing it when I would extend my leg under a light load. PT said is was normal and nothing to worry about, but in the same breath asked when my next follow up with the surgeon is, saying I should mention it to him as well. I'd be lying if I said that didn't get my wheels spinning. She gave me two possible causes, which again she termed as common or normal (tight patellar tendon not allowing the knee cap to slide properly, and ACL not unfurling quickly enough to keep up with the muscles after retracting), but in the mean time she told me to stay off the stationary bike. Curious if any of you who had your ACL done experienced something similar at this point, or any point really, in your recovery.

 

My knee clicks feel great! Ortho says it’s scar tissue breaking up.

 

You overachievers really ask a lot of your busted up, chopped up, drilled out, healing selves.

I didn't have any distinct noise but noise in general. But I was not way ahead of schedule, either.

 

I just need my physical body to man up and handle what my feeble mind and fragile emotional constitution can not. Doldrums will be my unraveling.

 

You nailed it...but I hope not! These damn brains of ours...what a PITA sometimes.

 

I sure did, the exact same thing. And my PT asked me to do the same re letting my Dr know. It finally went away maybe 1-2 mo later. But I still get funky clicking, popping, and even strange “catches” in that knee.
Great news about your progress Matt..keep it up!!!!!!!!

 

"Doc - it hurts when I do this..."

"Don't do that..."

 

Right? If I was only allowed to do things that didn’t hurt I’d never even be able to get out of bed in the morning. Come to think of it, I wouldn’t really be allowed to lay in bed either.

 

^^^^^
This is an accurate assessment of life