Torn meniscus - how can I stay active?

Honestly, it's probably smart to wait for after surgery to do anything weight bearing. I went through this myself. You don't want to make it even worse.

I dealt with this two times over. I had a torn meniscus when I was much younger and had it "scoped". A few years later, I had the meniscus replaced. Just this last year, I had to go in and get this replacement meniscus cleaned up too.

My doctor basically instructed me to do what I am comfortable doing, and to listen to my body. If I experience too much pain or inflammation, I probably went too far.

On a side note, the knee brace may or may not be effective for a meniscus tear/damage. That knee brace is probably going to be more effective if you are feeling instability in your knee joint, possibly as a result of ligament damage or knee cap misalignment. In all my years with meniscus issues (and being on the way to a knee replacement in the future), a knee brace has never been more than a placebo. Please note, I am speaking from my experience and from information I gleaned from my specialist (your experience may differ).

I tore my ACL several years ago, and my meniscus almost two years ago (same knee both times). Every PT I saw and my ortho were all in agreement that knee braces aren't a great idea because they don't let you strengthen the stabilizing muscles you need to keep from damaging your knee again.

If you're waiting on surgery, can you get a prescription for pre-surgery physical therapy? You're going to need it post-surgery anyway, and it may help you bounce back faster. At the very least, call your insurance, get a list of all the covered physical therapists in your area, and start researching them. You want a really good PT, because that will make a huge difference in your recovery. My biggest regret after my ACL surgery was not finding a better PT, because the PT I had after my meniscus tear was amazing, and in fact he helped me address issues that stemmed from my initial ACL tear several years earlier. A good PT will also give you home exercises, as well as help draft a plan to get you back up and running safely.

I feel for you. I've been down with a foot injury for a month and I'm not able/allowed to do any of my normal activities: swim, bike, walk and jog. This has really impacted my mood and ability to focus, and like you said, all of my health and athletic goals.
What's helped: focusing on strength and flexibility. I lift as often as I can (check with doc first about what's OK and what's off limits). I also found this video from another MFP post about cardio seated/in bed: https://youtu.be/LtrciwU4Fbo
It's nothing like my normal workouts and it doesn't help me get to work like my bike does, but at least the above activities keep me from going insain.
On good days I'm able to remember that this is an opportunity for me to focus on things I wouldn't normally focus on, so I've created some mini goals for myself. That might help things. Best of luck!

Linzjohnston wrote: »

Packerjohn wrote: »

Linzjohnston wrote: »

I've been on a really good path for a while. I was training for a half marathon, I was working out 6 days a week and my food consumption had never been better. Then I went on vacation and blew my knee playing beach volleyball. I've been told by my doc I've got a torn meniscus. I am waiting for the various procedures including scope and eventually surgery. Its become painfully obvious this is going to be a long road to recovery. I bought myself a good knee brace restricting lateral and bi-lateral movement. I can still walk. I need some help and suggestions for cardio and weight training. Obviously my marathon is out the window, and I have had to quit bootcamp. I still swim twice a week but what else can I do to burn some calories?!

Did the doctor or another medical professional recommend the brace? Unless you're a medical professional how do you know some random brace is "good" for your situation?

Ask a medical professional about the appropriate activities given your condition before surgery. Best of luck.

Packerjohn: I did talk to my doctor and they said there are specific braces designed for meniscus tears with metal side hinges. This is what I bought. It gives me the stability without feeling my knee will give way to the sides if I move wrong which allows me to move more freely.

Glad you have a doctor recommended brace. I see so many posts on boards like this where people are asking for brace recommendations for something they can pick up from amazon or the super center with no medical input. Can't think anything good comes from that

As was mentioned, get with the pt and do as much to strengthen the injury prior to surgery. I did this with a shoulder issue and I was told it really sped up the recovery

Best of luck.