Anyone 6-7 months post op ACL reconstruction??

[Silverlining 0]

Just wondering if there are some fellow jumpers out there that I can compare notes with at this same stage of rehab??

Anyone at the same stage (timeframe) and back jumping again?

I'm jogging and can even hop on it (as part of my physio/rehab) at the moment but the physio still thinks that I won't be back jumping till 12 months post op.

I know I just have to be patient but I'm just curious to know what others are experiencing.

I still can't crouch comfortably - to be able to be in a cessna - so I still have that to work on before I would be comfortable to come back.

[eeneR 1]

that is a very difficult question to answer, each person is goign to be different. You need to take a look at your overall progression.

You already said you cannot squat, that will be a problem in most benchless aircraft. Also added to that if you some how boch a landing just a lil bit requiring you to sit on your foot. you will tear all the work they just did.

Range of motion is going to be key, followed by strength, You need BOTH of these to be safe. the sky will be there another day. Take the time to let things heal fully before you go risking doing further damage.

background: ACL done in 93' I was cleared to ski at 4.5 months, and had full range (could squat) and full strength by then. I just had my shoulder done in may, and am leaning towards the cautious side at the moment, as I do not have enough strength just yet in the area key to skydiving....well either i wait or change to left hand deploy I can deploy just fine on the ground, but im not 100% sure with 120mph winds what it will do

anyway, the key here is you need to really make sure you are ready. This sport is more then just physical, it is mental. If you go up worried about your landing, you can distract yourself, and with all that worry, make yourself do something stupid. On top of the physical aspect...you need to make sure mentally the knee is not an issue of concern

She is not a "Dumb Blonde" - She is a "Light-Haired Detour Off The Information Superhighway."
eeneR
TF#72, FB#4130, Incauto

[Silverlining 0]

Are you sure your name is not Steve - you sound like my physio.

I totally agree with the mental side of returning too - and am glad not to be a total newbie under my canopy (although I still have alot to learn!). I am sure it will still get my blood pumping as soon as I have my canopy out.

4.5 months recovery hey - that's awesome. Was it a patella graft or hamstring? Did you do alot of gym work? I had a bucket handle tear in my meniscus too - the dr stiched it up rather than cutting the bit out so I was on crutches with a straight leg brace for longer than a normal ACL. But the up side is I still have all of my meniscus!

Shoulders I feel would be abit more tricky - esp with regards to the rigours of skydiving.

What can I saw but hope you've got a good imagination - as skydiving dreams are a pretty fun substitute!

[eeneR 1]

Sorry my name isnt steve...and actually im a girl...

Anyway, It was a hamstring graft, and I started PT the very next day after surgery. Would have started that night but I was throwing up from the anestisia (sp?). I was at PT for 3 days a week, 2 hours a day. I busted my ass. I didnt have any other significate damage to my knee. I was damn lucky as it had sublexed a good 10 times between the time I tore it and had surgery. Sending me to the ground 80% of the time.

If you do a search on my user name, and put "shoulder update" as the subject there are some posts about what I went thru with it, and pics of how they fixed it. Shoulders are far worse the knee because of the extensive range of motion.

Like I say to many people, and even myself stand by. "The sky will always be there to jump another day"...and "I would rather be down here wishing I was up there, then up there wishing I was down here"

She is not a "Dumb Blonde" - She is a "Light-Haired Detour Off The Information Superhighway."
eeneR
TF#72, FB#4130, Incauto

[Silverlining 0]

Opps! My bad!
So used to this being a male dominated sport that I kinda just assumed - isn't that funny!
Wholly smokes that is alot of PT - my physio bill was enough with the visits that I had!
Cool I will have a look at those other posts - for rehab inspiration!
Yes - definately want to be sure before I head up there again. But I am setting myself a realistic goal - gives me fixed date to work on.
Good luck with that shoulder of yours - but you seem to have all this rehab stuff shorted so I'm sure you'll be up there in no time!

Edited - got to remember to use that spell checker!

[cumplidor 0]

Just a suggestion-

Get a CTI brace for the knee they just worked on. It is a sports brace, very comfortable, and protects the knee from going ways it isn't suppose to.

I jump with one for my knee that is trashed already, and am going to have to get your procedure done soon Id imagine. They told me 1 year no jumping, and being as new as I am to it, was simply not an option.

Good luck with therapy and all-

[Silverlining 0]

Yeah my physio has just shown me how to tape it at my last visit.

Not sure about the brace thing, my physio said by 12 months I should be fine to jump, he just wants me to tape it. Might need one of those for my other leg though!

I got by 5 yrs without op - 2 of which I was jumping, and before that rockclimbing and skiing so it is possible for a while - just not in the long term for me. Was the meniscus that made me get the op done - was clicking and started to get pinched. One time my knee swelled up after getting up from kneeling to pack my chute and I couldn't get on the load! Oh and I didn't want to end up breaking my leg due to my poor landing gear.

Good luck with the op. Rehab, rehab, rehab!

[dorbie 0]

Meniscus did it for me too. Tried to get by without the ACL repair but in the end did progressive damage to my meniscus despite strength training (not skydiving related).

Very true that people are different. I had ACL reconstruction done and meniscus repaired on the 1st of September (100% ACL tear). A patellar allograft drilling through Tibia & Femur (hurt like a MF the first two days).

I was walking without crutches after a week, now 5 weeks later I'm totally fine with no discomfort and full range of motion & good strength as measured by my physiotherapist.

I'm sure there's added risk jumping so soon, but most surgeons tend to encounter skydiving in the ER and think everyone is pounding it in & lucky to walk away from every landing.

I've skydived and PLFd a downwinder on my paraglider (no choice) on a beach (best surface for a downwind PLF if you ask me) and I was fine, YMMV (and your wing). It affects what I fly and in what conditions, but I still try to get a taste of some falling & flying.

[Silverlining 0]

I was walking without crutches after a week, now 5 weeks later I'm totally fine with no discomfort and full range of motion & good strength as measured by my physiotherapist.
***

Wholly moley! 5 weeks!
I was on crutches for a couple of months after my surgery. I think my surgeon was a little bit on the conservative side though (which has advantages and disadvantages).
Must admit though I didn't use all the painkiller that my doctor gave me - I think that pain is there to tell you something sometimes.
I do tend to believe that alot of my discomfort came from where they harvested the hamstring graft rather than my knee - but I don't believe that would be any less painful than the patellar graft. You were definately one of the lucky ones!
I've got 4 months to go with mine before I will be back jumping. Only missing a small bit of flexion - but my physio said I have hyper flexion in my other knee so basically if I was normal I would be back to normal. I am trying to hit the gym again hard for these last four months - to get my strength back to where it was before the op and maybe even a little better wouldn't hurt.
Good luck with the knee - although it doesn't sound like you need it

[dorbie 0]

My surgeon says my particular type of graft (patelar allograft) is at it's weakest in the 8-12 wk range then it starts to strengthen again. I feel very fortunate that my reconstruction has gone as well as it has. I'm concerned more about that window of weakness than other factors like mobility now.

[obligaited 0]

My AFF instructor is about 10 months post op ACL replacement, as well as tearing up a few other things in the same knee and he is back doing tandems, and skydiving. He was back after about 6 months, but was jumping a bigger chute for a couple months when jumping sport and not tandem -- in order to land a little softer under a closer to 1:1 ration vs. his higher performance canopy.

People Too Weak To Follow Their Own Dreams Will Always Keep You From Following Yours.

[Silverlining 0]

Yeah I'm 12 months less a day or two - blue skies here I come....well....as soon as my cypress is back!

Yeah can understand 10 months for an instructor - with experience.

Woho!

[jumpingjo 0]

hey man no worries they give you the worst case scenerio anyways. mine told me 2 years and that was for acl mcl and meniscus (spelling?) i was back in 6 months work hard on it and dont stop working cause a little pain. Youll be back. Blues skies bro.

[marcin 0]

3 years ago ACL, hamstring graft. No meniscus damage.

7-10 day gradual loading with crutches
10 day - little walk without crutches (straight legged, as it was pretty weak)
14 day- first rehab (1 with physio and 2x at home)
17 day - driving (clutch!), 90 deg flex.
35 day - gym (few times a week rehab with physio, other days gym or at home)
2.5 month mountainbiking and heavy mountain hiking
4.5 months my first MTB marathon (got hooked and doing it since, nice side effect of physiotherapy ) Flex around 135-140 deg.
7 months - skiing (my leg felt stronger than before surgery)
8 months - first skydive

Never wore a brace (my surgeon said is mainly for your brain and does not prevent ACL-tearing movement, which is the twisting and not the sideway movement), worked hard as hell for 8-9 months and exercising since.

You'll be fine, just dont rush it. Keep your pain treshold high and keep a diary

[DancesWClouds 0]

Maybe this should be a separate post, but I liked the info that was flowing here...

My situation: blew out both knees a few years back. After the ER (with x-rays) and one Knee Doc visit (who said they were "both too swollen up to diagnose anything— please come again!") I was unable to afford any treatment/surgery/rehab. (Thanks, U.S.) I spent a LONG time just trying to walk without falling over, but eventually, rehabbed myself.

My knees are still not as strong as I'd like them to be, and, quite frankly, I'm still pretty paranoid about getting back into the game again (though I've read lots about butt-sliding).

Question 1: For those of you who had physical therapy, could you explain the types of activities that were used in strengthening your knees?

Question B: Braces might be an option. Curious about the price range and personal stories —successful or not— or, with braces, am I just being a psychosomatic wussy girl?

°

Dances
Muff Brother #2169

"You can take the girl out of the sky, but not the sky out of the girl!"

[DSBlueskies 0]

Interesting thread here. I always gravitate towards other stories of ACL problems. I am 10 years post op on ACL reconstruction of my right leg. When I blew the left one I opted for just arthoscopic surgery to remove the torn cartiledge and left the ACL alone. I've got two hundred jumps since my last surgery and so far so go. I have more problems with my reconstructed knee. Lots of arthritis. I spend half my life at the gym too, sounds like everybody does. I was told that the hamstring is the best fill in for an acl. So if I've only got a few minutes to spend at the gym I do hamstring curls. Plyometric exercises are really good too. They are reptative motion exercises and great for regaining balance and agility. I still say the best thing I've learned is how to do a plf really, really well. Saved my knees more than once. Of course I jump a big canopy too.

Anyway.....this is all pretty interesting. I'm hoping to never have my other acl reconstructed. For me I just don't think it was necessary. Time will tell I guess. I've been jumping without one since February of 04.

Oh, and I wear ACL braces on both knees. One to protect my graph and one to compensate for lack of one. There might be a lot to idea of it being all in my head, but that's fine. I need help there too.
Mine are custom made CTI's and cost about $1,400 a piece. Worth every penny as far as I'm concerned.

[marcin 0]

My experience and doctor's opinion is that ACL reconstruction is only fully successful when the patient is athletic, willing to do the rehab hard and for long months and also continue with leg strenghtening afterwards.

I've seen guys doing pretty bad after reconstruction. But they were those who always complained at the rehab sessions of exercises being tireing and painful. My exercises were also tiring and painful, but I often went home and did another session on my own. It's about what your shape was before accident and how badly do you want to get there again.

It's also about how hard your physio is pushing you. Some are less successful in getting their patient into max shape.

I've seen constant improvement, although in decreasing increments up to 2-3 years post-op. After that you still have to pay attention to exercise that leg, even a bit more than the other leg, as apparently it has the tendency to weaken again if left unattended.

I've been doing dozens of different exercises. Thousands of repetitions within a session. It's probably still not too late for you to start, but you have to understand that some sort of exercise should become a part of your everyday life.

It was basically all sorts of short range repetitive movements in a straight-legged seated position with weights on my ankle. Later squats, leg curls on a mashine or standing with weights, leg extensions on a machine, stationery bike, running, swimming (front/back when your legs stay relatively straight). BTW bike is great for your knees, if you use high cadence/moderate resistance (cca 90 rpm).

Smaller weights - 3x100 per exercise, larger weights - 5x20, bike - 30 minutes, 100 squats (both in narrow and wide stance). It would normally take 45-90 minutes each day. After couple of months you can reduce it to 25 minutes 3 times a week with selected exercises.

If you do a search for ACL rehab on the net you will find some examples of exercises with pictures.

Best luck

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