|   ACL surgery | Shady
Dec 10, 2001 12:02 AM | | I tore my ACL in a skiing accident about a month ago and I have to have surgery in mid january to replace my ACL with my patella tendon. How much time before I can excpect to be back mountain biking over difficult terrain? |
| isn't that something you'd want to ask your physical therapist? | ibismojo
Dec 10, 2001 1:59 AM | | |
| isn't that something you'd want to ask your physical therapist? | Shady
Dec 10, 2001 1:25 PM | | Of course, i've asked both the PT and the doctor, but they arn't serious mountain bikers. They told me I would be on the bike in about 2 months, but I am wondering about how long until I can clear all the stuff I used to and not have to worry about hurting it if I fall. |
| re: ACL surgery | yokota_raven
Dec 10, 2001 2:04 AM | | I had my ACL replaced 29 Nov 2000 with a graft from my hamstring. I was back on the bike for neighborhood rides in Mar and trail riding in Apr 2001.
Of course, I took a serious header in late April (not related to or caused by the knee) and had a Stage 2 tear in my right shoulder. Was off the bike for another 6 weeks because of that.
I can't win :-( |
| What ibsmojo said, plus | Coolhand
Dec 10, 2001 5:59 AM | | Ditch those clipless for a while after the ok. Platform will be Much safer after the ACL. Maybe some road biking too. Talk to you doctor first, and don't be stupid. Better to heal, then to have to start over. Oh and sell the skis!
Coolhand |
| That depends on SO many factors | kristian
Dec 10, 2001 7:11 AM | | I was riding the waterfall on South Mountain in Pheonix three months to the day after my surgery (patellar tendon graft) but at the time I had come off a season of XC racing and had fantastic leg strength. I think that helped my recovery a lot because the muscles held everything together. Since then I've lost a lot of strength and I think it would take me longer now.
Your therapist is probably going to tell you to stay off dirt for 6 months. Provided you aren't crashing and don't dab on that side, that's a long time IMHO. The thing is, one fall and you could screw yourself up again. Don't ride until you are either ready to deal with this or until your threapist gives you the green light. Good luck.
Talk to your OS about a continuous passive motion machine for your leg. I woke up on one after my surgery and was on it 22 hours a day for about 5 days afterwards and I think it drastically reduced my recovery time. |
| re: ACL surgery | MikeNice
Dec 10, 2001 7:25 AM | | I tore mine skiing in January 2001. I saw an orthopedic surgeon in February, and he had me road riding to strengthen the knee before surgery. I was told this helps to speed recovery. I had the patellar graft in April. I was cleared to do road rides in July. I stayed off the dirt until November this year.
Definitely heed the words of your phyical therapist. Tell him your goals, and the PT can help tailor a program for you. I feel I can ride stronger now after physical therapy than I was before I got hurt. I went to therapy religiously two days a week from May until September. My knee is rock solid now, and I got a cool scar. Chicks dig 'em. |
| re: ACL surgery | rh2334
Dec 10, 2001 8:13 AM | | I had ACL with meniscus transplant surgery last January and I was back riding by April, just in time for the Fruita Fat Tire Festival. My rehab was pretty tough due to the meniscus transplant, with just an ACL reconstruction I suspect you could be back within a couple of months as long as everything goes smoothly. My advice, do what the PT tells you to do and be aggressive in your rehab. |
| Your ACL and you... a friendly primer on dealing with ACL recon | gonzostrike
Dec 10, 2001 10:25 AM | | Hey Shady, EVERY person is different in ACL recon rehabilitation. Some folks are ready to ride fairly quickly after surgery, others have to wait 6 or 9 months.
It depends on a lot of factors --
1. Pre-surgery fitness/strength
2. Aggressivenes of MD's treatment and rehab
3. Your willingness to work hard and to do your PT exercises correctly
4. Your willingness to NOT ride before it's ok'd by your MD
5. Quality of your MD's surgical technique
6. Quality of your own body tissues - how strong is your graft tissue, how quickly do your bones and tissues heal?
7. Whether stationary cycling is a critical part of your rehab
I had my left ACL repaired Jan 1999. My MD and PT put me on the stationary bike 2 days after surgery. They work with a lot of cyclists and my PT is a Cat II road racer. They knew that my goal was riding in Spring 1999 and skiing by Christmas 1999. They said those were realistic goals, and set up my rehab for those goals.
I worked EXTREMELY hard on my rehab and was on my roadie in March 1999. I was riding my mtb in April 1999. However, I was VERY cautious on the mtb and rode mostly fire roads, etc. On the road bike, I just focused on spinning in an easy gear.
I would say that I rode serious technical terrain in late June, but still was conscious of the knee and a need to ride cleanly.
I didn't start riding without thinking about the knee until the Fall of 1999. And yes, I did ski by Christmas 1999 -- in fact, I was skiing in late November. |
| re: ACL surgery | Suds
Dec 10, 2001 10:29 AM | | Shady -
Its been about 10 years since I had the surgery (patella tendon ACL reconstruction) but if memory serves me right - you should be back on the dirt with 3-6 months depending upon many factors. I was cleared to play basketball at about the 5-6 month mark. As stated before - the stronger your leg is going into the surgery, the quicker it will heal. Get on that trainer (or stationary bike). Let us know how it goes.
-Suds |
| re: ACL surgery | Shady
Dec 10, 2001 1:26 PM | | Thanks for all the responses! Hopefully the surgery goes well and i can make the fat tire festival in fruita this spring. i am definitely strengthing it on the stationary bike and in the weight room right now. i'm gonna get out on the roads while i'm home in vegas before the surgery too. thanks again |
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