ACL Recovery Log #14 – 3 Months Post Op

Last week marked 3 months post ACL reconstruction surgery! Three months marks a few big milestones, one of which is starting plyometrics in PT (light hopping and jumping), as well as a follow-up appointment with the doctor. Last week he cleared me for walking easy hiking trails, as well as some easy mountain biking. I must admit I haven’t done either yet.  I’ve been a little reluctant to get on my mountain bike for obvious reasons. However, I have been riding my gravel bike a lot recently.

Over Memorial Day Weekend I had a goal to ride at least 50 miles over three days. Done! I rode a total of 55.5 miles! My legs were tired, but it felt excellent to do a long, hard bike ride again. I have missed it so much.

This past weekend I rode 35 miles over the course of two days. Yesterday my friend Aubrey and I went to explore Cherry Plain State Park. They have a few gravel roads that are perfect for gravel riding. BUT THE HILLS!! It was NOT flat, just either UP or DOWN–we climbed 1800’ of elevation in 15 miles. My legs were toast. My knee felt pretty good, but I could feel it on the climbs. I had to get off and walk a few times, but oh well. I can’t avoid steep climbs forever. Plus, it’s good for my leg strength.

PT got bumped down to once a week, but I’m still doing my leg workouts at home about 4x per week. I’ve been using the Fitbod App which has been amazing for generating workouts with a quad, hamstring, and glute focus. I’m so glad we invested in a TRX and BOSU ball for our home gym. Who knew I’d be months into serious knee rehab when gyms were completely shut down! Here’s one of my most recent leg workouts.

Warm-up:
Foam roll hamstrings, static squat stretches with rotation and single-leg hip bridges

4 rounds:
Stability ball hip bridge x 20 reps
Mountain climbers x 8 reps

Single round:
Banded glute bridge 3 sets of 8 reps

4 rounds:
BOSU goblet squat 12 reps x 15 lb kettlebell
TRX pulse lunges 12 reps

Single round:
Dumbbell sumo squat 4 sets of 12 reps

2 rounds of timed intervals:
Dumbbell step-up 15 lbs x 0:45 seconds
Handleband squat to press 0:45 seconds
Kettlebell swing 25 lbs x 0:45 seconds

Knee Update

Today also marks 5 months since I tore my ACL. It’s hard to believe almost half a year has gone by already. My life has revolved around my knee for the last 5 months. Things are finally starting to feel somewhat normal (even though my knee doesn’t feel 100% normal, especially going down the stairs. Oomph.) I’m almost back to where I was mobility-wise. I still can’t run or do any pivoting/cutting movements or play sports (not that I do that anyway), but per my surgeon, I’m at the halfway point in recovery. Things can only get better from here!