8 Weeks Post Op - Day 56

I just realized it's been quite a while since I posted an update! That's what happens when you have to go back to work full time. I also came down with a bad cold I can't shake, so I haven't made it into the gym yet.

Yesterday marked 8 weeks since my surgery, and today is day 56 of recovery. I saw my surgeon on Monday and he was very happy with my progress. He said my range of motion is at around 130 degrees flexion. Straightening is going well, I can definitely push to 0 degrees, but I need to keep working on it. The graft is healing well, and so is the MCL. Both are nice and strong. I am still in phase 2, but now doing some exercises to start regaining strength! He told me to do as much as I can on the stationary bike as well because it really gets the muscles going. He wants me to put the seat nice and high to get my going through my range, and getting full extension. I see my surgeon in March for my 6 month follow-up, and he's confident we can start discussing a gradual return to sport then. Working hard now to achieve that.

Here are the exercises I'm doing.

Massage Therapy

Massage therapy works wonders! I had a massage 3 days ago and my knee is feeling great! It could also be because I have been in bed for the last two days, suffering of an awful cold. But I did my physio exercises on Friday, and my ROM was way better than it was on Thursday. I was only getting to about 108 degrees flexion, and after the massage I'd say I was closer to between 115 and 120 degrees.


Massage therapy is the manipulation of the superficial and deep tissue in order to promote deep relaxation and release tension. It helps to soothe injured muscles and stimulate blood circulation.

Complementing physiotherapy with massage therapy is a great idea. My massage focused on the IT band, patellar tendon and hamstring areas. The first two were where my incisions are, since they were a bit lumpy under the surface. The massage helps break up any scar tissue under the surface. My hamstring, and the back of my leg in general, are very stiff so the massage definitely help loosen them up a bit. I'll be doing a massage once a week for the next few weeks.

Day 38 Post Op

I am now into week 6 of recovery, and I can honestly say things are going well! I worked with the athletic therapist this week, and she was the first person to check my patellar mobilization and how the scars are healing. She told me my progress is really good, and I need to keep working on my exercises at the level I am now. She showed me how to move the knee cap a bit, and where to massage the incision so scar tissue doesn't form. Scar tissue could limit ROM, so it's important to focus on this. I still don't have full ROM yet, but I am working on it. There is still some swelling that is present but I started getting massage therapy too, so hopefully it will clear out in the coming weeks.

I can FINALLY do a straight leg raise, and actually activate my quad. That could be a result of them zapping the shit out of my quad with the stim machine. I'm not kidding. I was acting like a baby from the pain, 35mA doesn't sound like a lot, but it is!

My previously goals were to drive my car and to walk straight. I can now do both! I am back to work now, so I try to get up and walk as much as possible. There is definitely a lot of pain when I go from sitting to standing, under the knee cap where the incision is. But as I continue to walk and straighten, the pain goes away. The goal I set now is to be able to walk down the stairs. I can only go one step at a time, but I need to work on building strength before I can progress to going down the stairs.

This week I'll be focusing on ROM and straightening. I got to 1 degree, so almost fully straight!

The incision looks pretty good.