Training legs after knee surgery

[StevenGFH]

Well last Thursday I went under for knee surgery.

When the doctor got inside he found/did the following:

- Big Hematoma in the knee....nice and bloody when he went in.
- Synovial fat pad thickened and hypertrophic with evidence of impingment - Trimmed
- Medial meniscus radial tear, degenerative - Trimmed,
non repairable
- Lateral meniscus radial tear, degenerative - Trimmed,
non repairable
- ACL stretched.

Doctor said...no more heavy leg training...next step with the meniscus is to remove it.

anyone have any experience...guess I have to rethink leg training...maybe a lot of pre exhaust for the quads.

 

[Iron4Life]

Damn I do not have experience bro but saw your title and was interested. Have a slight tear myself about to get repaired. Wish you a speedy recovery.

 

[BBeagle]

Well last Thursday I went under for knee surgery.

When the doctor got inside he found/did the following:

- Big Hematoma in the knee....nice and bloody when he went in.
- Synovial fat pad thickened and hypertrophic with evidence of impingment - Trimmed
- Medial meniscus radial tear, degenerative - Trimmed,
non repairable
- Lateral meniscus radial tear, degenerative - Trimmed,
non repairable
- ACL stretched.

Doctor said...no more heavy leg training...next step with the meniscus is to remove it.

anyone have any experience...guess I have to rethink leg training...maybe a lot of pre exhaust for the quads.

did you start your rehab? is your knee on some cold therapy?

when you get back to the gym you can warm up in the bike or other cardio machine and pre exhaust easy at the leg extension machine, not too much weight and from 70-60º to 5º.
In the past had some knee mild injuries and what worked great was composite sets after the warm up and mild pre exhaust.
Basically leg press + leg extensions back to back sets. 3-4 sets with 2' rest . Then move to reverse lunges or walking lunges, normal sets. Obviously you can't handle your usual lbs but you'll be on fire by that time without serious stress on your knees.
When doing leg press or lunges what you have to pay attention is to keep the range of motion at 90º and to maintain your knee joint always coincident with your ankle joint.
This avoids anterior tibial motion and keeps ACL under normal stress.
Also keep in mind that hamstrings mimic the action of ACL, so train them and stretch properly.
Take care and good luck!

ps: no squats! :naughty:

 

[AshopRep]

I had surgery along time ago and still have to be careful training legs.

 

[bigbumpkin2003]

Had me knee replaced ...and six discs damage in back and cyst...still do deads, squats etc...just light heavy reps

 

[Phattony]

First off a few questions...

Age? How were you injured? Previous injuries? Any prescribed physical therapy?

My background: three reconstructive ACL surgeries, blown MCL, 70% meniscus removed over the coarse of three surgeries. All on the right knee. Last surgery was 2002. After 2 surgeries which i was not satisfied with i found a new doctor which is amazing. He fixed it up as good as he could but told me that my next surgery would be knee replacement... The same doctor worked on major pro athletes. He knew his shit. He hooked me up with some serious physical therapy. These guys blew my mind! They had me doing shit that I would have said was impossible to do on that knee within a week!!! Like 1 leg half ball squats with minimal assistance, 30min recumbent bike with Full range of motion. 200lbs hack squats. It was amazing. The secret to rehabbing these types of injuries is intense functional training while maintaining stability. You will not regain stability and functionality laying in bed! You have to test your pain threshold pushing the joint as far as possible without incurring farther injury. Most non sports doctors or therapist do not get this!!!

Since these injuries and subsequent repairs:
I have pain, slightly limited range of motion, and mild arthritis...
In spite of this I have played countless hours of basketball and other sports. Regaining a 27inches of vertical leap at 310lbs. I have squatted over 500lbs for reps, leg pressed 2600lbs, participated in strong man training and full contact MMA training and taken legit leg kicks! No substantial re injuries or worsening of my condition. Why? I believe it's because I had excellent physical therapy and I have never stopped using it. Along the road I have found a few supplements that help like glucosamine, chondroitin, and msm, Curcumin, and Cissus. Look into these types of joint aids and experiment with them. Many people find substantial relief with supplementation. Stay away from anti inflammatories. They will negatively effect the outcome of the healing process.

Yes my knee swells sometimes. Yes it hurts sometimes. Yes it's always a risk of injury... But don't let a doctor tell you you can't train hard and heavy! I do it! You can too...

-The first step is a serious rehab regimen.
-slowly work up to heavier weights while concentrating on control and stability.
-learn your limits and weaknesses and train to improve them! Do not ignore or avoid them!!!
-do these things and can safely train legs heavy and hard!

 

[readyset]

had a very similar surgery a year and half ago.

have trained legs consistently and hard since about 2 months after surgery (when i got the OK) - went to PT, trained hard, did everything they told me and I'm still nowhere near where I was. It's a long road, but you can do it. Heavy is a relative term, form is everything, switch it up, be careful, be safe, and youll never be able to tell a difference. I had major atrophy (in my eyes), but its slowly catching up.

I just started squatting HEAVY again, but damn if I still don't feel weak in my right leg.

Anyway, moral of my nonsensical rambling is yes you can do it. but don't be stupid. Keep form in check, LISTEN to your knee. We all know to work through the pain, but when your knee is telling you something it's a very different pain and you need to back off (IMO). When my knee starts to "give" I stop, Reevaluate, and don't stress about it. It's not pussy, it's just safe. High reps are GREAT for getting back into it, super sets too. Make sure to stretch and foam roll. Don't neglect your hamstrings.

The good things that came out of all this for me is that I learned to really slow down my rep range, had to do research to find alternatives, and really really developed a mind/muscle connection. Also humbled me up a bit. I don't go chasing heavy weights and I'm not afraid to leave my ego at the door.

I hope it helps somewhat, but it's going to be a time where you really need to learn to listen to your body.