I know I have been MIA these past few weeks so I thought I'd put up an update.
Things have been going really well lately with recovery from surgery and I am finally feeling normal again. It is very deceiving because I am told that between 6-8 weeks post surgery is apparently when the graft for the ACL is at its weakest. As a result of the graft being weak at this point, this time is a common point for re-injury because people are feeling good, there is no discomfort, and are starting to return to work, etc. So I am being cautious, but still enjoying finally having more freedom of getting around.
I was surprised at how slow I was to get off crutches. I was starting to get concerned because I was told that I needed to wait until I could walk normally before I was allowed to go without crutches, but I felt like I wasn't getting there. By week 3, I could get around the house without them easily, but for anything out of the house, I took my crutches just in case. At physio that same week I bugging my physiotherapist asking when I could finally lose the crutches and he just repeated to be patient and it will come. Thankfully by the end of week 3, I was able to forgo the crutches, but I still was very slow when walking because I just didn't have the confidence yet. If I took too big of steps or tried to quicken my pace, my hamstring muscle would hurt where they took the graft from. So slow and steady with short steps was the key, and it took forever to get anywhere!
Even without the crutches, I still walked with bent legs, but they started to straighten out slowly over the next few weeks. I had to do little things when walking like squeeze my quad muscles to straighten my leg every step to encourage my gait to be normal. It seems like such a silly thing, but I would think I was walking quite straight and then see myself in a mirror or watch my shadow and see that my legs were still bent. It was frustrating, to be honest.
Finally, by about halfway through week 5, I was walking 95% normal again. Now I occasionally have to correct myself when my right leg gets a little lazy and I start to walk with it bent.
I am not running yet, but I am on the spin bike practically every day. The spin bike started out very slow, where I was just putting myself through the motions to get the range of motion back. At first, the spin bike was very boring and frustrating because if I accidentally started to go too fast, my legs couldn't keep up so I would have to slow back down to below turtle speed. That being said, within a matter of about two an a half weeks, I was back to pedalling just like before surgery and it actually felt like a good cardio workout. Right now, the spin bike is my only form of cardio, but I am ok with that. I actually look forward to the day I can start running again! I was told I can start swimming in a couple weeks. As everyone knows I hate swimming, so I'd rather shoot myself in the foot; but if I have to, I guess I can work on it. Maybe I wouldn't hate it if I didn't suck so much at it!
At physio by week 5, I was given the go-ahead to start with a few weight lifting exercises. Not too much but squats with a bit of weight, lunges with dumbbells and leg press. It was a slow start, but I was happy to start getting some muscle back. I didn't realize just how weak my leg muscles became after surgery. Right now for weights, I can maybe do 15-20% of what I could lift before surgery. I was told to aim for 4 sets of 8 reps and once I can do 10 reps easily, then up the weight.
It was a bit disgruntling at first to start with weights because I know in my head what I am capable of doing, but physically I am unable to do it. When I first got the ok to do the leg press, I had to start almost at the lowest weight, which hurt my ego. It's a bad habit to let it bother me, I mean I did just go through surgery and I knew that I had to start somewhere.
With the way things have been going and how much I've already improved, it won't take long to get to where I was before surgery, I already am lifting more and more over these last couple weeks, which is a great boost of confidence. Actually, I am impressed with how quick I was able to move up the weight once my muscles remembered what they were supposed to do!
So right now for exercises, I am doing the spin bike, weighted lunges, hamstring curls, leg press, and squat variations such as one-legged off a bench, body weight and with a dumbbell.
I am finding hamstring curls are difficult at this time, they are still healing from having a piece taken out of each so they are still quite weak. My quad muscles are coming along quite easily and I am starting to see a little bit of definition. For my squats, right now I can do with a dumbbell quite easily, but with a barbell, I am doing the squat with a bench just to help with my form for now.
I am so far enjoying the process as much as I possibly could. It is neat to see how far I've come along just in the past 3 weeks. Considering I was hardly walking properly 3 weeks ago. Also going from not able to lift any weight and barely able to do a squat to doing squats with weights is a great feeling. It is pretty cool what the body is capable of if you push it the way it needs to be pushed.
Things have been going really well lately with recovery from surgery and I am finally feeling normal again. It is very deceiving because I am told that between 6-8 weeks post surgery is apparently when the graft for the ACL is at its weakest. As a result of the graft being weak at this point, this time is a common point for re-injury because people are feeling good, there is no discomfort, and are starting to return to work, etc. So I am being cautious, but still enjoying finally having more freedom of getting around.
I was surprised at how slow I was to get off crutches. I was starting to get concerned because I was told that I needed to wait until I could walk normally before I was allowed to go without crutches, but I felt like I wasn't getting there. By week 3, I could get around the house without them easily, but for anything out of the house, I took my crutches just in case. At physio that same week I bugging my physiotherapist asking when I could finally lose the crutches and he just repeated to be patient and it will come. Thankfully by the end of week 3, I was able to forgo the crutches, but I still was very slow when walking because I just didn't have the confidence yet. If I took too big of steps or tried to quicken my pace, my hamstring muscle would hurt where they took the graft from. So slow and steady with short steps was the key, and it took forever to get anywhere!
Even without the crutches, I still walked with bent legs, but they started to straighten out slowly over the next few weeks. I had to do little things when walking like squeeze my quad muscles to straighten my leg every step to encourage my gait to be normal. It seems like such a silly thing, but I would think I was walking quite straight and then see myself in a mirror or watch my shadow and see that my legs were still bent. It was frustrating, to be honest.
Finally, by about halfway through week 5, I was walking 95% normal again. Now I occasionally have to correct myself when my right leg gets a little lazy and I start to walk with it bent.
I am not running yet, but I am on the spin bike practically every day. The spin bike started out very slow, where I was just putting myself through the motions to get the range of motion back. At first, the spin bike was very boring and frustrating because if I accidentally started to go too fast, my legs couldn't keep up so I would have to slow back down to below turtle speed. That being said, within a matter of about two an a half weeks, I was back to pedalling just like before surgery and it actually felt like a good cardio workout. Right now, the spin bike is my only form of cardio, but I am ok with that. I actually look forward to the day I can start running again! I was told I can start swimming in a couple weeks. As everyone knows I hate swimming, so I'd rather shoot myself in the foot; but if I have to, I guess I can work on it. Maybe I wouldn't hate it if I didn't suck so much at it!
At physio by week 5, I was given the go-ahead to start with a few weight lifting exercises. Not too much but squats with a bit of weight, lunges with dumbbells and leg press. It was a slow start, but I was happy to start getting some muscle back. I didn't realize just how weak my leg muscles became after surgery. Right now for weights, I can maybe do 15-20% of what I could lift before surgery. I was told to aim for 4 sets of 8 reps and once I can do 10 reps easily, then up the weight.
It was a bit disgruntling at first to start with weights because I know in my head what I am capable of doing, but physically I am unable to do it. When I first got the ok to do the leg press, I had to start almost at the lowest weight, which hurt my ego. It's a bad habit to let it bother me, I mean I did just go through surgery and I knew that I had to start somewhere.
With the way things have been going and how much I've already improved, it won't take long to get to where I was before surgery, I already am lifting more and more over these last couple weeks, which is a great boost of confidence. Actually, I am impressed with how quick I was able to move up the weight once my muscles remembered what they were supposed to do!
So right now for exercises, I am doing the spin bike, weighted lunges, hamstring curls, leg press, and squat variations such as one-legged off a bench, body weight and with a dumbbell.
I am finding hamstring curls are difficult at this time, they are still healing from having a piece taken out of each so they are still quite weak. My quad muscles are coming along quite easily and I am starting to see a little bit of definition. For my squats, right now I can do with a dumbbell quite easily, but with a barbell, I am doing the squat with a bench just to help with my form for now.
I am so far enjoying the process as much as I possibly could. It is neat to see how far I've come along just in the past 3 weeks. Considering I was hardly walking properly 3 weeks ago. Also going from not able to lift any weight and barely able to do a squat to doing squats with weights is a great feeling. It is pretty cool what the body is capable of if you push it the way it needs to be pushed.
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