It has been a while since my last update mainly due to progress being slow. Unfortunately I picked up a virus last week and as a result have not done much in the last few days apart from rest. I have managed to walk a bit and also do a 25 minute ride on the exercise 3 days ago but apart from that have not done much. Now that I'm feeling better I'm looking forward to getting back in a groove at the gym over the next 3 days.
I also haven't gone for a run in nearly 2 weeks. I'm looking forward to going for approx a 2.5km run either tonight or tomorrow night followed by another run on the weekend. Another thing to look forward to is seeing my physio next Thursday (May 5th) and hopefully he will give me some more plyometric type exercises to work on. Until my next update I hope everyone is doing well!
April 26, 2011
April 11, 2011
Day 193 - Good progress
It has been nearly 200 days since my orignal op and time has flown by! The last week has been a good one and I've put in plenty of hard work. I've done the following over the last week:
Monday - 10 minutes on the excercise bike, chest workout followed by abs, also did some side to side hopping 3 sets) & 3 sets of step ups
Tuesday - rest day at the gym, ran 2.5 kms at night
Wednesday - Back workout followed by leg workout (leg press, hamstring curls, 3 sets of side to side hopping & 3 sets of step ups). 20 minutes on the exercise bike at home
Thursday - Shoulders workout & abs. Ran approx 2.5 kms at night
Friday - Biceps, Triceps and legs workout. For legs I did hamstring curls, seated calf raises, 3 sets of side to side hopping & 3 sets of step ups.
Saturday - did 40 minutes on the exercise bike (approx 14 kms)
Sunday - rest day
Hopefully I have another similar week this week!
Monday - 10 minutes on the excercise bike, chest workout followed by abs, also did some side to side hopping 3 sets) & 3 sets of step ups
Tuesday - rest day at the gym, ran 2.5 kms at night
Wednesday - Back workout followed by leg workout (leg press, hamstring curls, 3 sets of side to side hopping & 3 sets of step ups). 20 minutes on the exercise bike at home
Thursday - Shoulders workout & abs. Ran approx 2.5 kms at night
Friday - Biceps, Triceps and legs workout. For legs I did hamstring curls, seated calf raises, 3 sets of side to side hopping & 3 sets of step ups.
Saturday - did 40 minutes on the exercise bike (approx 14 kms)
Sunday - rest day
Hopefully I have another similar week this week!
March 30, 2011
6 months post op!!
Tomorrow marks a big milestone in my road to recovery - 6 months since my original ACL reconstruction! It's been quite a journey so far and I've still got a long way to go... in all honesty I am only half way there due to the early complications with infection and also due to my body shape / weight i.e. 6 ft 5 and weigh 97 kgs. I say this as my physio says it's hard for taller people who usually weight more to come back as the knee has to cope with and support more which makes sense.
Today I saw my physio for the first time in 5 weeks and he re-iterated that I am on track with my rehab program. He also said that I am around half way there but that I have caught up with most other people who would have had a knee reco around the same time last year which is encouraging to hear. He asked how my running has been going and I said that it has been good as I've been running twice a week (2-2.5 kms at a time) along with doing leg weights twice a week. He introduced me to two new exercises:
1) Hopping from side to side on my operating leg but supporting my weight by holding until something i.e. desk, table or bed. So I finally get to do some plyometrics!! I did this exercise in front of him and he said that it was noticeable that I had much more spring in more good leg which is to be expected at this stage. He wants me to do 4 sets of 30 seconds every day if possible.
2) Steps Ups (on a step or bench) - He noticed that when I did a couple of bridges on each leg that my glutes on my operated leg where lagging behind my good leg. So he wants me to do 3 sets of 15 steps ups. When it gets easy I will progress to holding 5 kgs dumbells in each hand
I will be doing the above 2 exercises for the next 5 weeks along with continuing with running and leg weights. He has also encouraged me to do more bike running and lots more walking. When he sees me next he will assess if I am ready to take the next step which is running between cones (weaving). I'm looking forward to the next few weeks and to progressing further hopefully!
Today I saw my physio for the first time in 5 weeks and he re-iterated that I am on track with my rehab program. He also said that I am around half way there but that I have caught up with most other people who would have had a knee reco around the same time last year which is encouraging to hear. He asked how my running has been going and I said that it has been good as I've been running twice a week (2-2.5 kms at a time) along with doing leg weights twice a week. He introduced me to two new exercises:
1) Hopping from side to side on my operating leg but supporting my weight by holding until something i.e. desk, table or bed. So I finally get to do some plyometrics!! I did this exercise in front of him and he said that it was noticeable that I had much more spring in more good leg which is to be expected at this stage. He wants me to do 4 sets of 30 seconds every day if possible.
2) Steps Ups (on a step or bench) - He noticed that when I did a couple of bridges on each leg that my glutes on my operated leg where lagging behind my good leg. So he wants me to do 3 sets of 15 steps ups. When it gets easy I will progress to holding 5 kgs dumbells in each hand
I will be doing the above 2 exercises for the next 5 weeks along with continuing with running and leg weights. He has also encouraged me to do more bike running and lots more walking. When he sees me next he will assess if I am ready to take the next step which is running between cones (weaving). I'm looking forward to the next few weeks and to progressing further hopefully!
March 17, 2011
Hamstring soreness!
In the last couple of days the hamstring of my operated leg has been quite sore along with some knee soreness as a result of a 2km run I did on Wednesday night. Whilst I'm really happy to have come so far it just shows how long I have to go! Despite running on soft grass once again and walking laps in between running laps I felt the impact of running the longest distance I have to date. In the last 3 weeks I've been running twice a week and have been building up the distance slowly as advised by my physio.
I've also been doing my usual gym routine - upper body weights, leg weights, cross trainer and excercise bike regularly. On Sunday I went to the pools for the first time in a couple of weeks and it was great to be back in water once again. The low impact activites helped and the knee felt a lot better after it which is a reminder for me that I should be spending more time in the pool! One of the highlights from Wednesday's run was running a lap with the boys at soccer training. They were happy to see me running and gave me lots of encouragement. It gives me a lot to look forward to and to continue to train hard towards.
Tonight I'll be doing another gym workout followed by 10-15 minutes on the cross trainer. I hope to go for another run on the weekend and hopefully pull up better this time around. I'm seeing my physio next in two weeks time and hope to be running 2.5 kms by then. Hopefully I will be cleared to do some direction change type running shortly along with plyometrics.
I've also been doing my usual gym routine - upper body weights, leg weights, cross trainer and excercise bike regularly. On Sunday I went to the pools for the first time in a couple of weeks and it was great to be back in water once again. The low impact activites helped and the knee felt a lot better after it which is a reminder for me that I should be spending more time in the pool! One of the highlights from Wednesday's run was running a lap with the boys at soccer training. They were happy to see me running and gave me lots of encouragement. It gives me a lot to look forward to and to continue to train hard towards.
Tonight I'll be doing another gym workout followed by 10-15 minutes on the cross trainer. I hope to go for another run on the weekend and hopefully pull up better this time around. I'm seeing my physio next in two weeks time and hope to be running 2.5 kms by then. Hopefully I will be cleared to do some direction change type running shortly along with plyometrics.
March 2, 2011
First proper run
I went for a proper run on Saturday for the first time and it went really well! My physio has advised me to start slowly and to run one lap followed by walking a lap so I followed his protocol. I ran a 400 meter lap to start with and straight away I could see how much fitness I have lost as I was breathing quite heavily at the end of it. I then walked a lap, ran another, walked another lap, ran a 3rd lap and walked one more lap completing this all in approximately 20 minutes. So overall I ended up running around 1.2 kms and walking around the same distance also. My physio wants me increasing the overall distance by 800 meters every 10 days and wants me running approx 2.5-3kms by the time I see him next (in 5 weeks time).
It's also worth mentioning that I ran on soft grass around an oval and that definitely help so my knee didn't complain too much and I didn't have a bad reaction at the end of it. I'm looking forward to running next (most likely tonight) and getting my fitness back up!
It's also worth mentioning that I ran on soft grass around an oval and that definitely help so my knee didn't complain too much and I didn't have a bad reaction at the end of it. I'm looking forward to running next (most likely tonight) and getting my fitness back up!
February 23, 2011
Clearance to commence running!!
So it's been a few weeks since my last update mainly as everything has been going to plan. I've continued my rehab program going to the gym Monday-Friday doing upper body workouts, leg weights, cross trainer, exercise bike and shuffling/jogging once a week. On Saturdays I've also been walking around the Botanical Gardens (the tan) and occasionally have gone to the pools although not as much as I would have liked!
I saw my surgeon this morning and I got the news I've been waiting for - I am now officially cleared to run! I'm very excited as I can now increase my rehab intensity although obviously being sensible about it and following what my physio advises. My surgeon was very happy with my knee and said that I have now caught up to all his other patients who were operated on back in October. He said that whilst I could probably return in 2-3 months to full sports he wants to take a cautious approach due to my early complications (staph infection) so therefore said I can return between 9-12 months from my first operation (4-7 months time).
So I'm roughly half way there! I mentioned returning to cricket (pre-season commences in September) was my goal and he said there shouldn't be a problem with that. I'm obviously very excited and will be interested to see what the physio has in store for me when I see him later today.
I saw my surgeon this morning and I got the news I've been waiting for - I am now officially cleared to run! I'm very excited as I can now increase my rehab intensity although obviously being sensible about it and following what my physio advises. My surgeon was very happy with my knee and said that I have now caught up to all his other patients who were operated on back in October. He said that whilst I could probably return in 2-3 months to full sports he wants to take a cautious approach due to my early complications (staph infection) so therefore said I can return between 9-12 months from my first operation (4-7 months time).
So I'm roughly half way there! I mentioned returning to cricket (pre-season commences in September) was my goal and he said there shouldn't be a problem with that. I'm obviously very excited and will be interested to see what the physio has in store for me when I see him later today.
February 7, 2011
February 2nd – 4 months post op
Yesterday was the four month anniversary since my original operation although I did have a 2nd op 10 days following the original one due to staph infection. Considering the early days and where I was at I’m very happy and thankful where I am currently at. Since my last update (last Friday) I have continued to do quite a bit – on Saturday I walked 4.3 kms in the morning followed by some rehab work in the pool in the afternoon, Sunday I took a well deserved rest day and for the first two days this week I’ve been doing my usual work in the gym.
Last night I attended soccer training and walked laps of the oval as well as doing some jogging/shuffling every 50 meters for 10-15 meters. I’ve been doing this once a week as well as walking on Saturdays for the last 3 weeks so I am in a good routine right now. Basically my standard week looks like the following:
• Monday – chest & leg workout at the gym, exercise bike at home for 20 minutes
• Tuesday – back workout & cross trainer for 10 minutes at the gym, walking/jogging at soccer training for 45 minutes
• Wednesday – triceps & exercise bike for 20 minutes at the gym
• Thursday – shoulders & leg workout at the gym, 15-20 minutes on the exercise bike at home
• Friday – biceps & cross trainer for 10 minutes at the gym, 20 minutes on the exercise bike at home
• Saturday – walking 4.3 kms (around the tan) in the morning & pool work in the afternoon
• Sunday – 20-30 minutes on the exercise bike
As mentioned in an earlier post I am seeing my surgeon on the 24th of February where I hope I get given full clearance to commence running again!
Last night I attended soccer training and walked laps of the oval as well as doing some jogging/shuffling every 50 meters for 10-15 meters. I’ve been doing this once a week as well as walking on Saturdays for the last 3 weeks so I am in a good routine right now. Basically my standard week looks like the following:
• Monday – chest & leg workout at the gym, exercise bike at home for 20 minutes
• Tuesday – back workout & cross trainer for 10 minutes at the gym, walking/jogging at soccer training for 45 minutes
• Wednesday – triceps & exercise bike for 20 minutes at the gym
• Thursday – shoulders & leg workout at the gym, 15-20 minutes on the exercise bike at home
• Friday – biceps & cross trainer for 10 minutes at the gym, 20 minutes on the exercise bike at home
• Saturday – walking 4.3 kms (around the tan) in the morning & pool work in the afternoon
• Sunday – 20-30 minutes on the exercise bike
As mentioned in an earlier post I am seeing my surgeon on the 24th of February where I hope I get given full clearance to commence running again!
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