Dec 26, 2014 - 7 weeks after surgery

7 weeks after surgery and I am now doing yoga and spin class. YAY! I have done two yoga classes and one spin class. I would say that I am able to do about 30-40% of yoga. I didn't try to do any of the standing poses that would put pressure on my knee. As for spin class, I mainly used it for companionship on the bike and to keep me going for 60 minutes. Its really hard to stay on the bike in a gym or at home for more than 30 minutes.

Walking - I am still stiff in the morning and when I sit for long periods of time, which results in limping, but generally, I am walking normally.

Biking - Like I said, I am riding for 60 minutes, but not standing up in the pedals or putting on big resistance.

High Heels - Same - I am wearing occasionally a 1.5 inch heel.

Range of Motion - I have full extension and am almost at heel to butt status, still.

Scar Tissue - Scar tissue is going away. My long incision is almost healed. What is taking so long?

Physical Therapy - OMG, so many exercises now. Here is how a typical physical therapy session goes:

• warm up on the bike for 10 minutes
• therapist massages my hamstring, works on my flexibility
• stretching exercises for both my calf and my hamstring
• using a stretchy band around my right knee, moving my knee back to lock my leg
• squats where I am now squatting down so my butt hits a bench, basically to 90 degrees
• mini lunges while leaning forward
• leg lifts with a stretchy band in all directions on both legs
• step overs, so stepping up with my right foot and then stepping down with my left
• lateral movement across the floor (side stepping) while knees are bent - WITH A STRETCHY BAND
• marching across the floor
• balancing on my right leg on a soft balancing pad so that I have to stabilize
• leg presses with both legs and just with my right leg - increased weight this week
• bridge pose - not sure what this is helping with...
• 10 minutes of icing to finish up my session

Dec 22, 2014 - 6 weeks and 3 days after surgery - allowed to do YOGA!!!

Can I just say how happy I am!!!!

I was at physical therapy today and my new exercise was bridge pose which made me think, 'Hmm, can I do yoga?' So, I'm not shy. I asked and my physical therapist said 'yes, just be careful and stop any pose if it does not feel good.' Yippee!!!

So, off to my first yoga class this evening and my recovery hits another new milestone.

Just another note. At physical therapy today was another ACL patient who had surgery at the beginning of September. He ran 7 miles last week. SEVEN MILES.... did you hear that? Oh, so, I am thinking in February and perhaps at the beginning of February, I will be able to run! Meeting him was really inspiring and encouraging!

Dec 19, 2014 - 6 weeks after surgery

6 weeks after surgery and after my little set back, I am back on track. Here is a look at where I am.

Walking - It still does not feel natural on the inside, but I look mostly normal on the outside.

Biking - I am now riding with more resistance and getting my heart rate to the low end of the aerobic zone.

High Heels - I am wearing occasionally a 1.5 inch heel.

Range of Motion - I have full extension and am almost at heel to butt status. I did not get measurements this week.

Scar Tissue - Scar tissue is going away. My long incision is STILL healing. What is taking so long?

Physical Therapy - OMG, so many exercises now. Here is how a typical physical therapy session goes:

• warm up on the bike for 10 minutes
• therapist massages my hamstring, works on my flexibility
• stretching exercises for both my calf and my hamstring
• using a stretchy band around my right knee, moving my knee back to lock my leg
• squats where I am now squatting down so my butt hits a bench, basically to 90 degrees
• mini lunges while leaning forward
• leg lifts with a stretchy band in all directions on both legs
• step overs, so stepping up with my right foot and then stepping down with my left
• lateral movement across the floor (side stepping) while knees are bent
• marching across the floor
• balancing on my right leg on a soft balancing pad so that I have to stabilize
• leg presses with both legs and just with my right leg - increased weight this week
• 10 minutes of icing to finish up my session

Dec 16 - Whew! Everything is okay.

So, I went to physical therapy today after having spent the last couple days icing my leg and only getting on the bike for 10 minutes each day to stretch my leg. My physical therapist spent about 30 minutes massaging my muscle, told me to take it easy for a couple days and then had me do all the same exercises and even added more! So, note to self, be careful about twisting. And, don't overdo it!!!

Dec 13, 2014 - Hold On... Not so fast!

So, it has happened! I have slid back just a bit. I went to the gym in the morning and rode the bike for 45 minutes, did the rowing machine for 30 minutes and did all of my physical therapy exercises along with sit-ups and my upper body workout.

I was feeling really good, and then I was getting into the car, and twisted my upper body and left my foot planted and had an acute pain in the back of my leg at the bend of my knee. I am pretty sure it was a strain to my hamstring muscle and have been icing and will obviously resting until it feels better.

Interestingly, my muscles feel fine with my leg extended and with my leg bent, it is the in between where I feel the strain. Walking is tender because I going through that in between position.

I knew this was the "danger zone" for me. I start to feel really good and then do too much. Was it the extensive work I had done in the morning or just a freak movement in the evening? I do not know. But, it just reminds me that my muscles are tender and to be careful!

Dec 12, 2014 - 5 weeks after surgery

Oh hi! It has been 5 weeks since my surgery and since I like to compare it to last time, here we go.

Walking - To outsiders, I am walking normally, but I can still feel all the mechanics involved.

Biking - I am now riding with more resistance and getting my heart rate to the low end of the aerobic zone.

High Heels - I am wearing occasionally a 1.5 inch heel.

Range of Motion - I have full extension and am almost at heel to butt status. I did not get measurements this week.

Bruising - All gone. Yay!

Scar Tissue - I still have scar tissue on the 3 little incisions and the long incision is still healing and am using Maderma for the scars.

Physical Therapy - OMG, so many exercises now. Here is how a typical physical therapy session goes:

• warm up on the bike for 10 minutes
• therapist massages my hamstring, works on my flexibility
• stretching exercises for both my calf and my hamstring
• using a stretchy band around my right knee, moving my knee back to lock my leg
• squats where I am now squatting down so my butt hits a bench, basically to 90 degrees
• mini lunges while leaning forward
• leg lifts with a stretchy band in all directions on both legs
• step ups with my right leg, making sure my right leg is locked and lifting my left leg like I am marching
• step downs with my left leg, touching down with my heel first
• lateral movement across the floor (side stepping) while knees are bent
• marching across the floor
• balancing on my right leg on a soft balancing pad so that I have to stabilize
• leg presses with both legs and just with my right leg
• 10 minutes of icing to finish up my session

Dec 5, 2014 - 4 weeks after surgery

It has been 4 weeks since my surgery and like last time, I want to summarize where I am.

Walking - Not quite normal, but almost there. I actually think I am farther along than I was in my previous surgery.

Biking - I am allowed to ride the bike with resistance. I actually rode this morning and had my first sweat and increase in heart rate to an aerobic zone. I am really thankful for that since that is the only way I am going to stay in shape.

High Heels - Not so much. I did wear boots with a 1.5 inch heel and it was ok for a very limited amount of time. Day 55 after surgery was how long it took last time. I expect the same this time.

Range of Motion - I have full extension and am about 1.5 inches from my heel hitting my butt. My PT told me that 6 weeks is the goal for complete flexibility. This is definitely ahead of where I was last time.

Bruising - Mostly gone, just a little discoloration is left.

Stairs - Oh, this is fantastic. I am walking up and down stairs with one foot on each stair. I have been doing this for over a week.

Sleeping - Oh, how do I love to sleep! And now, it is so much easier. It was about the middle of the week that I was able to start sleeping on my stomach. When I sleep on my side, I still feel tenderness when my knees touch.

Scar Tissue - I still have scar tissue on the 3 little incisions and the long incision is still healing.

Physical Therapy - The latest exercises are marching with step ups, lateral movement across the floor (side stepping), squats, mini lunges, leg lifts in all directions and balancing.

I am really happy with my progress so far.