It seems after I hit 3 months post op, progress has slowed down and there are only incremental changes from month to month. So there are small improvments but things just seem to move very slowly.
Physical Therapy: I am restricted to the same exercises I listed in the last post until month 6 when I can add a few things. Here's some examples of what I'm able to do in the gym now:
35 minutes on the stationary bike on level 8
10 minutes on the elliptical
1 leg hamstring curls and leg press (I use the lightest weight on the machine when working my bad leg)
4x way SLRs w/5 lb ankle weight
Swimming-I only feel comfortable doing free style stroke since there's minimal bending of my leg. I use my good leg to push off the wall. On a good note, I'm up to abut 20 laps and feel no discomfort in my knee
Treadmill walking-10 minutes at 2.5
Pain/Stiffness/Swelling: I have no pain doing the above workouts. When I walk I still have a twinge in the graft area that I feel intermittently. The stiffness is still there especially when I wake up in the morning. But this has improved a lot over the last 2 weeks. I think in another month the stiffness will be gone. There's no position I can't do with my knee now. I can kneel on it and bend pretty much anyway I want now. It still feels a little less flexible than my good knee but I'm very happy with the result so far. I still have some swelling above the knee.
Stairs: Stairs are still my nemesis. Going down is much easier than going up. When I go up I still use one leg at a time. I think this is mostly due to weakness and I'm only allowed to do small step ups in physical therapy. I feel normal stairs are too big and might be too much for the graft at this point. According to my PT protocol I can do larger step ups at month 6 so i'll be more comfortable going up steps at that point. When going down stairs I can do them continuously alternating legs but I hold on to the handrail for dear life. With the weakness in my leg, I just feel very unstable.
Other Thoughts: Overall I'm happy with the progress so far. I feel good enough to go to Las Vegas on a New Years trip with friends...although there will be no dancing yet. And I'll still be wearing flats with my New Year's dress. Anyone who's been to Vegas knows how big the hotels are and there can be a lot of walking. I'm okay with getting around and walking through the hotels but for any significant walking down the strip, we'll probably take a cab.
