Sorry to hear that bro. Im in the same boat right now. I had a really bad wreck on my dirt bike on april 2nd. Acl, meniscus, mcl, lcl and partial patella tear. Major bone brusing. Only thing that was full tear was acl. I had bone-patella-bone acl reconstruction a week before my 34th birthday on 4/21.
I am now 9 weeks post op. I am in that zone where im getting around real good but my graft is still weak. I pushed my PT to get me a don-joy brace after a 3 weeks so I would have protection while at weddings, floating the river on a raft, walking the archery range or being in crowded places. This has been a life saver, that not many people get initially. We measured the custom brace to be a little big on my quad so I could grow into it.
This is my second ACL reconstruction. 1st one was 13 years ago. Tore is ski racing in college. My knee wasn't quite right for about a year but since then it has been realativly good as long as I stay in top shape. I continue to ski and race at a very high level, pack 100lb loads in the mountains, race dirtbikes, mountain bike, hike just as hard and far as most, huck cliffs on skis. I think you get the point... I like to get after it and I have never let my 1st acl reconstruction hold me back one bit. If you are one determined Mother- FU$ker you may come out of this stronger and more in touch with your body than before you were hurt. Make sure your physical therapist understands your goals.
This current knee is my 6th orthopedic surgery in the last 13 years so unfortunatly I am a pro at this shit. The doctor could not repair my meniscus so they had to cut 50% of my laterial out. Because of that I was weight bearing right away. In the beginning I did all the little exercises and worked on my range of motion constantly all day. Now that I am pushing heavier weights I need recovery days. Its important to listen to your body and not over do things because it will set you back. This is a very fine line because you need to push it a bit each time to get stronger but not too much.
I am focusing on eating healthy and taking in lots of protein to help muscle recovery, I am also taking creatine to help with the strength. This stuff all seems to help my recovery time, so that I can get back to training. I never miss a day of training even if its just spinning on the bike, stretching, and doing a few hip exercises and working on range of motion. Every day you miss adds up and screws ya down the road.
I will be bow hunting for elk here in Montana in mid sept. I will be 5 months post op. While I wont be packing heavy loads and will be using trekking poles at all times I don't think I am going to be hindered a ton. The nice thing about sept is there will not be any snow to contend with. You will need to be very carful in December snow and slipping around on buried sticks and shit can be sketchy.
Keep your head up man! Everything happens for a reason.... Train like its your job and you will be stronger than ever!
