5 1/2 Months Post-Op Summary
- I ran my first 5k!! I have really been struggling with cardio, but I had no issues running a 5k at less than a 8:30/minute pace the other night… and my knee did not swell or bother me that night or the next day. Words cannot express how happy I am to have run that far – barely making it to 1 mile since my surgery was really starting to stress me out, thinking I wouldn’t be prepared for my next race – a 4 miler!
- A few days later I ran another 3 miles, but my legs felt like BRICKS. However, my cardio felt great! Just an off day 🙂
- Doing more strength work/ 1-legged jumping in PT
- Icing and/or applying oils to my knee at least 1x a day
- My PT said that when I get back, I might not need to go to PT every week. 6 months is usually the time when ACL patients get released from PT! I said I would go a few times and play it by ear, as I haven’t done as much pivoting/cutting work as I would like. I want to go more as a mental workout, so I can gain more confidence getting back into sports like basketball, tennis, kickboxing, etc.
- Scars are beginning to lighten up!
PT Exercises/Workouts (new exercises bolded)
- Elliptical at the beginning of my workouts to warm up, 5 minutes
- Run 1 mile on treadmill for – 6.7-8 speed
- Jumping onto a box, then stepping off box onto one foot and balancing – 6 times, 2-3 rounds (this helps the PT to see if my knee is caving inward versus staying strong and over my ankle)
- Box jumps – jump up onto middle of box, then jump into a squat, immediately jumping up again and landing on one leg (balancing for a few seconds) 6x, 2-3 sets
- A LOT of One-legged ladder work like this and this and this. The most tiring one was: jump forward 2 squares, then jump back 1 square (one-legged). Go up and down ladder once. Complete 2x
- TRX band – squat jumps – 10, 3 sets
- TRX band – one-legged squat jumps, alternating between hopping on right and left leg – 10, 3 sets
- TRX band – one-legged squat jumps on left leg only – 8, 2 sets
- 4 markers set up on the ground: Run fast up to second marker –> squat down and shuffle as fast as I can to the next marker –> run backwards as fast as I can to the next marker –> shuffle back to the first marker as fast as i can. Repeat 3 times
- 4 markers set up on ground – stand in middle – PT calls out color of marker, and I run either forward or backwards to the marker, then back to middle – about 1 minute each time, 3 times
- Foot work on aerobics stepper – toe taps with feet close to each other, then toe taps with feet wider. 40 times, 2X
- One-legged jump over line, forward and back, 40 times – 2x
- One-legged jump over line, side to side, 40 times – 2x
- Stretching after every workout
- Yoga – everyday for at least 5 minutes
- Running on treadmill or outside for 10-25 minutes 2-3x a week
Ladder Drills
Next Week will be a week off from blogging about my ACL, since I will be in Costa Rica! Next time you will hear from me will be a 6 month update 🙂 Have a great week everyone!
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