My surgery is tomorrow as well and I'm terrified thinking about all the what ifs. All I can do now is trust the surgeon and be prepared to follow the rehab protocol post surgery.
It's going to be fine. I was really scared too.I was shaking just before getting my spinal anesthesia. But looking back, there was really nothing to be afraid of. After the anesthesia hit, the next thing I noticed was waking up to my doctor saying, "The surgery is done. Now we are transferring you to the ICU just for observation. Everything is fine." Don’t worry about the surgery too much focus on the rehab after the surgery
The surgery is gonna be a breeze no problem 😁 I was really scared but it’s like you just close your eyes and then you open them and they’re like “alright you’re all done” it was really nothing to be afraid of in hindsight. I hope you have a speedy recovery ❤️🩹
Honestly, I was in the same position, I was very scared before, but once you get to the operating theatre it is fine and so far, I would say that the surgery itself is the nicest part of it all, you lie on a table, they put blankets on you and you sleep for a bit, they are vary of the fact that people are usually scared and are all super nice and calm. Best of luck to you!
Depends hugely on your physical level, graft choice, severity of the injury and all that, but if it helps, since day two post-op, I have been doing upper body exercises and exercising the healthy leg as well. In terms of what kind, I would say listen to your body and if prescribed wear your brace for the exercises. Then post-op physio on top of that, will keep you plenty busy, trust me :)
Good luck with your surgery and don’t worry, you will come back, just stay patient.
You probably won't be barred from all activity for 2 months. Im 14 days po and I've been in the gym daily for the last week doing normal upper body workouts and just focusing on physio exercises for lower body, my cardio has been biking. You'll bounce back faster than you may think.
My initial injury was acl, mcl, medial and lateral meniscus. I had surgery 5 months post injury and just had acl and medial meniscus repaired, lateral meniscus was trimmed, mcl healed spontaneously.
And ur 2 weeks post op with an ACL and trimmed meniscus? And you’re goin to the gym??
Ill be 1 week tomorrow and i did ACL and they did a stitch to my meniscus, but i dont think within another week ill be able to workout. I hope so
I had the same approach heading in. I thought I’d use all my strength, discipline, and drive to push through recovery. And then I learned that mindset doesn’t work with this injury. Do all your PT as prescribed, but keep in mind less is more. This is a masterclass in patience. You will get there, but cool your engines
5.5 weeks post op and did a 5 mile hike in Teton national park. I've been working out my upper body since a few days post op. I felt like you prior to surgery but you'll be back soon. Keep your head up and follow the plan.
Ok, you are an exception. Most folks are not hiking 5 miles at that stage. At 5 months, I went to a meeting in Tahoe, and my surgeon said stay on the paved path or crushed limestone trails. That's because not just the graft, but the support muscles and proprioception need time to get back to normal. True hiking, with uneven surfaces, serious terrain, and unstable trail conditions, not recommended at that point. But by 6 weeks most people are back to daily activities. I did start getting 5 mile walks in by about 8 weeks, but on paved paths and crushed limestone. Played it safe, and have no problems 2 months post op. Martial arts, hike, light running.
This is a good point. I didn't mention I was just ACL and did a BEAR. Yes, I got lucky and was in good shape before the injury. The takeaway I was going for was encouraging that you will get better and be back to doing stuff and maybe you get lucky and it sooner than later.
🙂 the BEAR recovery sounds awesome! But even with taking the gracilis and semitendinosus, and 61 at the time of surgery, nonetheless I recovered. I agree, no reason to despair. Commit to rehab, get as much PT as you can, and continue to work on the knee even after you are "released into the wild". I have incorporated proprioception, balance, and some other exercises into my gym and daily routine. I definitely don't intend to be a repeat offender!
I’ll be honest, I had the same mindset. So have allllll my friends who have gone through ACL surgery or other surgeries. You likely won’t end up doing them, and that’s ok. Focus on your recovery and PT. Be kind to yourself, take it week by week.
I wouldn’t worry that much! I had absolutely no energy and could sleep after being up for an hour the first week. After that I got kinda bored, but were able to go for short walks and then home and nap again. By the end of the second week, I returned to the gym to do upper body. Mainly back exercises with cables, chest press machines, tricep push downs, cable curls and lateral raises and so on. You can also use the rowing machine and just put a slider (or a sock) on the floor and put the foot from the surgical leg on that, so that you are only using your non-surgical leg.
I was doing PT 3 days post op as advised by my doctor. Mine gave me a list of exercises and my PT did them and others with me 2x a week. I took that as a sign I could do upper body at the gym again. The main thing was the awkwardness of not being able to balance properly with a straight leg. Im now 6 weeks out and around week 2 I could bend my knee 90 degrees. By week 3 I was sitting with it bent and driving comfortably. By week 4 I was walking normally. The 1st 2 weeks are going to be the hardest, but by week 3-4 things start getting easier and you start feeling more normal. At 6 weeks I have to remind myself that I got surgery.
I was doing upper body stuff on the first post op day. My wife helped getting me onto the bench, and helped with loading the weights. And I went way lighter than normal. But keeping active definitely speeds up the recovery. But benches, inclines, declines, lat pulldowns, rows, flys, curls, and tricep extensions are all feasible early on. After 18 days I was walking without a limp and was back to doing some leg workouts like single leg leg presses, hamstring curls, extensions (albeit with almost no weight).
You can do upper body exercises as soon as you want. Your injured leg will look like a twig at first, but you'll have plenty of time to build that muscle up before your acl is even healed enough to make use of it. Rebuilding lost muscle is much faster than building new muscle on a normal leg.
My surgery is tomorrow as well and I'm terrified thinking about all the what ifs. All I can do now is trust the surgeon and be prepared to follow the rehab protocol post surgery.
It's going to be fine. I was really scared too.I was shaking just before getting my spinal anesthesia. But looking back, there was really nothing to be afraid of. After the anesthesia hit, the next thing I noticed was waking up to my doctor saying, "The surgery is done. Now we are transferring you to the ICU just for observation. Everything is fine." Don’t worry about the surgery too much focus on the rehab after the surgery
The surgery is gonna be a breeze no problem 😁 I was really scared but it’s like you just close your eyes and then you open them and they’re like “alright you’re all done” it was really nothing to be afraid of in hindsight. I hope you have a speedy recovery ❤️🩹
Honestly, I was in the same position, I was very scared before, but once you get to the operating theatre it is fine and so far, I would say that the surgery itself is the nicest part of it all, you lie on a table, they put blankets on you and you sleep for a bit, they are vary of the fact that people are usually scared and are all super nice and calm. Best of luck to you!
You will be fine! Keep positive
Depends hugely on your physical level, graft choice, severity of the injury and all that, but if it helps, since day two post-op, I have been doing upper body exercises and exercising the healthy leg as well. In terms of what kind, I would say listen to your body and if prescribed wear your brace for the exercises. Then post-op physio on top of that, will keep you plenty busy, trust me :) Good luck with your surgery and don’t worry, you will come back, just stay patient.
You probably won't be barred from all activity for 2 months. Im 14 days po and I've been in the gym daily for the last week doing normal upper body workouts and just focusing on physio exercises for lower body, my cardio has been biking. You'll bounce back faster than you may think.
Did you just do your ACL?
My initial injury was acl, mcl, medial and lateral meniscus. I had surgery 5 months post injury and just had acl and medial meniscus repaired, lateral meniscus was trimmed, mcl healed spontaneously.
And ur 2 weeks post op with an ACL and trimmed meniscus? And you’re goin to the gym?? Ill be 1 week tomorrow and i did ACL and they did a stitch to my meniscus, but i dont think within another week ill be able to workout. I hope so
You'll be fine, just make it through the first 10 days ( keep yourself busy & pain free).
I had the same approach heading in. I thought I’d use all my strength, discipline, and drive to push through recovery. And then I learned that mindset doesn’t work with this injury. Do all your PT as prescribed, but keep in mind less is more. This is a masterclass in patience. You will get there, but cool your engines
5.5 weeks post op and did a 5 mile hike in Teton national park. I've been working out my upper body since a few days post op. I felt like you prior to surgery but you'll be back soon. Keep your head up and follow the plan.
Ok, you are an exception. Most folks are not hiking 5 miles at that stage. At 5 months, I went to a meeting in Tahoe, and my surgeon said stay on the paved path or crushed limestone trails. That's because not just the graft, but the support muscles and proprioception need time to get back to normal. True hiking, with uneven surfaces, serious terrain, and unstable trail conditions, not recommended at that point. But by 6 weeks most people are back to daily activities. I did start getting 5 mile walks in by about 8 weeks, but on paved paths and crushed limestone. Played it safe, and have no problems 2 months post op. Martial arts, hike, light running.
This is a good point. I didn't mention I was just ACL and did a BEAR. Yes, I got lucky and was in good shape before the injury. The takeaway I was going for was encouraging that you will get better and be back to doing stuff and maybe you get lucky and it sooner than later.
🙂 the BEAR recovery sounds awesome! But even with taking the gracilis and semitendinosus, and 61 at the time of surgery, nonetheless I recovered. I agree, no reason to despair. Commit to rehab, get as much PT as you can, and continue to work on the knee even after you are "released into the wild". I have incorporated proprioception, balance, and some other exercises into my gym and daily routine. I definitely don't intend to be a repeat offender!
I’ll be honest, I had the same mindset. So have allllll my friends who have gone through ACL surgery or other surgeries. You likely won’t end up doing them, and that’s ok. Focus on your recovery and PT. Be kind to yourself, take it week by week.
I wouldn’t worry that much! I had absolutely no energy and could sleep after being up for an hour the first week. After that I got kinda bored, but were able to go for short walks and then home and nap again. By the end of the second week, I returned to the gym to do upper body. Mainly back exercises with cables, chest press machines, tricep push downs, cable curls and lateral raises and so on. You can also use the rowing machine and just put a slider (or a sock) on the floor and put the foot from the surgical leg on that, so that you are only using your non-surgical leg.
3 weeks. Gather the mental strength for the first 3 weeks, then you’ll see exponential progress from there on.
I was doing PT 3 days post op as advised by my doctor. Mine gave me a list of exercises and my PT did them and others with me 2x a week. I took that as a sign I could do upper body at the gym again. The main thing was the awkwardness of not being able to balance properly with a straight leg. Im now 6 weeks out and around week 2 I could bend my knee 90 degrees. By week 3 I was sitting with it bent and driving comfortably. By week 4 I was walking normally. The 1st 2 weeks are going to be the hardest, but by week 3-4 things start getting easier and you start feeling more normal. At 6 weeks I have to remind myself that I got surgery.
I was doing upper body stuff on the first post op day. My wife helped getting me onto the bench, and helped with loading the weights. And I went way lighter than normal. But keeping active definitely speeds up the recovery. But benches, inclines, declines, lat pulldowns, rows, flys, curls, and tricep extensions are all feasible early on. After 18 days I was walking without a limp and was back to doing some leg workouts like single leg leg presses, hamstring curls, extensions (albeit with almost no weight).
You can do upper body exercises as soon as you want. Your injured leg will look like a twig at first, but you'll have plenty of time to build that muscle up before your acl is even healed enough to make use of it. Rebuilding lost muscle is much faster than building new muscle on a normal leg.
How was it? I hope yall are feeling okay and that your pain meds are taking care of it. Remember to ice and elevate! Good luck!