Oh, knees, you are so poorly constructed...

Angylgrrl

Hello! Last summer (July 17th, 2011, to be exact), I was on a mission to exercise more and lose weight. During my walk/jog that day, I went to turn around at my half-way point and heard a popping/crunching sound and felt my left knee wobble and give a bit. I thought maybe I just had a creak and decided to walk on it for a while. Bad choice- in about 30 seconds, I was experiencing a lot of pain. My knee was swelling before my eyes, and I had to call my fiance to pick me up from the side of the road. I couldn't navigate the stairs and needed help from a neighbor and my fiance to get into my apartment. I was stubborn and thought ice, rest, and Advil would fix it. Wrong. I had to get crutches that night because I couldn't bear any weight on it. I ended up going to the emergency room two days later when it was still swollen to 2 to 3 times its normal size. No breaks, but I was referred to an orthopedist.

Unfortunately, my MRI showed that my ACL was completely torn and my meniscus was also torn. My doctor suggested surgery for the ACL and to clean up the meniscus and PT. I had laproscopic surgery to clean the meniscal tear (which ended up being on both sides), but opted to leave the ACL as it was because the doctor said it wasn't necessary to fix the ACL unless I was planning on doing a lot of very high-impact activity, and the recovery time was quite long and the surgery was more invasive and included a cadaver graft (YUCK!!).

The surgery was last September, I went to PT for a month, and life went on. My knee improved steadily, and it currently functions normally when under normal situations.

Part of my reasoning for wanting to lose weight has been to put less stress on my body (such as my knee joints), in addition to the obvious health benefits of having 75 lbs less to lug around. When I started using MFP in June, I also started exercising.

I mostly use the elliptical for my cardio work-outs. I sometimes go for a brisk walk outside, weather-permitting, and last week I used the treadmill at my fitness club for the first time.

I must admit that I'm extremely nervous/wary of re-injuring my knee. I do not want to have any more surgery. However, when I am on the treadmill or out for a walk, I get the urge to jog. I have been very careful so far, but I am worried that I will blow out my knee again.

Any suggestions on ways to help support my knee so that I can vary my workouts a bit more? I do strength-train using the machines at the fitness club in my complex, and I try to make sure to do the leg machines to work my quadriceps. What else can I be doing to help build my surrounding muscles? And am I just being a baby and overcareful? I feel like my knee is fine most of the time. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks so much!

Merrysix

I have been rehabilitating a knee with worn away cartilege (arthritis) and by losing weight and doing a lot of exercise it is really improving. I can walk, and my arthritis doctor said by spring I may even be able to run a little bit (3 miles for a sprint triathlon). Anyway, the exercise I find that helps strengthen all the muscles around my knee the best is something called step ups in pilates class. I also find spinning and outdoor bicycling very good for my knees. Also when my knees hurt, I think walking with norwegian walking poles (you can look them up on internet) takes a lot of stress off joints (burns 30 percent more calories too and uses core and upper body). I have seen people jogging with these poles too. There is a great video of the russian cross country ski team running with these poles in the summer on grassy slopes). Hope this helps.

Angylgrrl

Thanks! I will definitely look into the poles for some outdoor walking/hiking. I will also check out the step-ups. I forget about pilates. I really need to do more toning/body-weight exercises anyway.

Angylgrrl

Bump.