ACL recovery - 1.5 month post op

Time for an update of my "diary" ...

Next week I am due for another trip to the Cleveland Clinic to see Jack and Julia. Frankly, I am nervous because I am now in the "danger zone" I had talked about several posts ago regarding the structural integrity of the graft. It's time to remain focused.

Things are all business the past several visits with Rob and his colleagues over at Dynamic. They are wonderful people. I come in, the Tour de France is on the television for that extra bit of motivation, and I have done the routine so many times by now that it's as if I go into autopilot. Lunges? Check. Time on the bike? Check. Squats? Check. And on it goes ...

A sports medicine doctor at Dynamic told me yesterday that I was doing really well. There's been some talk lately that I might be getting closer to some spurts of light running on a treadmill and some new agility exercises. I try not to think about this too much because I don't want to become too excited and not have it happen for some reason. Rob said on my cardio days I can bump up my walking to 1.5 miles along with cranking out 20 minutes on the stationary bike; at least that's something, right!?

I have been asked what rehabilitation protocol I am following. It's called the MOON ACL Rehabilitation Program. The program is built up in five sequential phases where both time and patient progression are used to determine the pace of recovery. Right now, I am just getting ready to look at starting Phase 3.

Swimming lessons are going well. Yesterday, Sarah Quesen (a great swimmer, by the way) told me that I have been using the term "pool buoy" wrong. It's "pull buoy", because you use the buoy to "pull" your lower body through the water. Here's what one looks like:

Yesterday was an interesting day in the pool. Beth (the swim coach) had me squeeze the pull buoy between my legs and dog paddle the entire lap of the pool. This includes the vaunted deep end which I had never been in. With her encouragement pacing the side of the pool, I was able to do it but I was stressed out enough that I think I had the pull buoy squeezed down to a wafer by the time I completed the lap! Later, we even tried some freestyle swimming with the pull buoy. I think I was good for 6 yards - ha! Try it, all you swimmers, if you never have. It's tiring! I wonder what this "swimming" will be like when I can actually use my legs?

I've been surprised at the amount of time all this is taking on any given day. Somedays I am rehabbing/exercising for easily over three hours. However, as I just told a student this morning, my health and recovery come first and that's just the way it will have to be this summer and fall.