Knee Update : 50% and ALL!

Recent headline making scientific news is the discovery of a "new ligament" in the knee called the ALL (Anterolateral ligament).

A short summary is that majority of ACL injuries also tear this ligament, and this ligament controls the pivot shift or rotational torque which a traditional ACL reconstruction will not account for. Studies of NFL football players have shown those that have torn their ACL once, have a 50% higher risk factor of re-tearing it again. Even with a strong patellar tendon graft, the knee is still more susceptible to the pivot shift since it is not "fixed".

I brought this article to inquire with my orthopaedic during a follow-up visit, and, once again, confirms that doing the diligence to research helped me in choosing the BEST orthopaedic! He confirmed that the additional procedure of adding the extra-articular augment is in fact the ALL ligament. I am doing the limping happy dance!!

I have hit the 3-month post op mark, my 50% point of recovery. Rehab has been tough, especially with incorporating it with work and family schedule. Rehab is still painfully sore, but gets easier and the knee gets stronger every week. I do rehab EVERY SINGLE DAY. I think of it as not a choice, but something I have to do... just like brushing your teeth. It's hygiene... knee hygiene. I stand on one leg and do half squats while washing dishes, brushing my teeth, or.. yes.. even while I'm in meetings at work! I am not allowed to run yet, but I am allowed to incorporate light weight while doing squats now. I'm almost able to go down the stairs without assistance (hand rail or holding the wall). If I keep at this for the next 3 months, both the doc and PT thinks I'm on track for a 6-month recovery of 100%. That's the goal. If all continues smoothly, I can start light running and top-rope rock climbing in a month. I've been given the okay to do Pilates Reformer classes and easy weight-lifting (front and back squats).

For my future reference, this is my current exercise list for strengthening the knee and surrounding muscles:

EXERCISE LIST:
20min bike (L9) - incorporate 4x 1min intervals
10min incline walk (L10 @ 3.2)
20min elliptical (L10) - incorporate 4X 1min intervals
band exercise --> leg raises (4 sets x 30 reps/leg)
band exercise --> one-leg squats (3 sets x 5x)
wall-sits --> (5 sets x 60 secs)
250 body-weight squats --> (5 sets x 50 reps)
stationary lunges/dips --> (5 sets x 15 reps/leg)
side step-ups --> (5 sets x 15 reps)
side bridges --> (5x - hold)
bridges --> 5x @ 90sec, one or two legs
bolsa ball --> 1 leg stance/hold (3x)
bolsa ball --> squat fast wobble (3x)

50%!! The past 3 months, on one hand, seems to have passed by fast, though also feels slow. 3 more months... soon... very soon! =)

Knee Update : "No Pain, No Gain!" @ 14.75% Recovery

The saying "No Pain, No Gain" is true! I am at week 3 post-recovery, 14.75%. Surgical cuts are healing, bruises are gone, and swelling is down.

Let me tell ya, it has been a very slooow and painful 3 weeks. Slowly, but surely I am making progress, with each knee-workout session to bend that knee past the point of comfort and then some more, as much as the pain is tolerable.

The doc has a detailed protocol and outline of where my knee should be each week. I started off a little behind the curve at week 1, with a 60 degree knee bend. I had a target of 90 degrees by week 2, and did due diligent with extra pain sessions from the PT and from Ryan, the knee was able to flex an additional 30 degrees to hit 90 in 4 days time. Those were 4 insufferable days. End of week 2 was uplifting to see the progress and a little bit of leg strength coming back, enough that I felt comfortable (at home or work) to walk about without the robo-leg brace on.

However, the suffering must continue. Week 2, I continued the due diligence. PT prescribed 10 reps of leg lifts. I did 25 reps/3x a day. I did multiple sessions on my own to work on range of motion to increase the flexion. In addition, I do 1-2 hours of rumble rolling a day. Yes. This is a full time job. Week 2 was, like the prior week, difficult. My ROM did not budge from 90, even with all the additional rehab I was doing. I was stuck there. Not only did I not see progress, but even these simple exercises of bending the knee and leg lifts, by the end of the day, the knee was so sore and painful, that I could barely walk. Week 2 was tough to not see the same progress as week 1.

First day of Week 3, I hit a minor break through. Ryan continued to do nightly pain PT sessions with me and last Thursday, I finally broke through to 102 degrees flexion. This Monday I measured 112 degrees flexion. Getting past the 90 was key. Now sitting is a little bit more comfortable. Moving about is a little easier. The surgical cuts are healed and scar lines now remain. Bruising is almost gone and swelling is now only in the knee area. The focus has shifted from ROM now to getting the quad to fully activate. It is still sub-par. Quad muscle is currently below the curve, while ROM is now above the curve. In addition, PT has been working on breaking up scar tissue that has formed in the knee area. PAINFUL! There is this torture cupping device that uses suction with the intent to "lift" up the surface layer skin and to break up the scar tissue that keeps the skin from moving around the knee. PAINFUL! I feel sharp twinges as the various scar tissue is snapping underneath the skin.

I look forward to when I can finally have a full night's sleep without waking up with knee pain to change out the ice pack. I'm hoping that'll be the next break through... in the meantime, I'm going to keep chugging away at rehab with the motto "No pain, no gain".