UKC

Hi All! 
I had ACL surgery back at the start of June. I’m now 4 weeks post surgery and I’m up and walking now. I do want to get back into hill walking again however I wondered for others that had the surgery, how long it took you to be able to straighten out your leg? I know it’s a log process, just wondered what everyone else’s experiences were.

It's a long time ago for me....ruptured mine parachuting and had the surgery with some new stuff put in there. Took a while I recall but definitely worth doing what the physios tell you to and not overdoing it. I think I was about 3 months before I started pushing it properly in terms of resistance work. The swelling was the problem for me which took a long time to fully resolve even when I had full movement back. Good luck....my one bit of guidance would be to not rush it!

I had ACL surgery back in December, climbing and just about back to full strength now. Leg straightening fully took maybe 7-8 weeks.

Cheers! I think it’s the swelling that’s the issue. Went down fast for the first 2 weeks then completely slowed down. Thankfully, walking doesn’t hurt, it’s just more straightening the leg out. I am now able to sleep without my support pillow now so hopefully physio will work it’s magic! 

Hi

Is it a pure ACL recon or did you have meniscal repair or any other restricting ligament surgery?

If it’s a pure ACL WITH no other restrictions on knee extension imposed by your consultant, the number 1 goal along with reducing the swelling is gaining full hyperextension at the knee similar to the non op side. 
If allowed, sit on a chair with your heels on a stool, relax and compare the two legs. You are aiming for it to equal the non op leg.

Have you not seen a physio yet? It’s crucial along with compliance with the exercises.

If allowed, do your static quads exs with your heel on something firm and leaning back in order to unload your hamstrings which can prevent extension of the knee.

Also prone knee hangs are good for extension.

Double check your exs from the hospital and any restrictions. 
good luck

I had knee surgery about 13 weeks ago. Not a meniscus repair, so different surgery. You can get Knee Ice pack wraps from Amazon which help reduce swelling. Apply for about half an hour. Just be careful you don't leave it on too long.

I had a ACL reconstruction years ago now, I can't remember the exact timeline of being able to fully straighten the leg, but after Surgery Feb I did my first (short) post op hill walk in June (Rhunnsival on Rum) and a mellow alpine trip in September.  Also cycled up through the Western Isles in July as a knee friendly holiday with my Girlfriend.

Best advice - get a good physio that fully understands your end goal (I found NHS physios I was sent to were very focused on getting you back to "everyday" activities (walking to the shops etc) but not so much on getting you back into sports, esp outlier sports like climbing / alpinism.  I ended up going private with the physio and it made a huge difference to my recovery.  Not to say that there aren't plenty of good physios in the NHS, I'm sure they are - just make sure that they fully understand what you need to get out of it and are able to support that.

From memory, you'll be coming up to a dangerous point in the recovery where you are starting to be able to push quite hard on the physical recovery, but the new ligament goes through a drop in strength (assuming hamstring used for reconstruction?) which was about the 6-8 week mark from memory.  Physio dialled my exercises back for a couple of weeks which was very frustrating, but I guess worth it in the long run to prevent re-injury!

Cheers,

Stu