Weeks 10 and 11

Range of Motion/Swelling/Pain:  My range of motion was about 120 degrees.  I could almost sit Indian-style which is my "go-to" sitting position on the couch.  Swelling was probably average.  My knee looked huge when I looked straight down on it when standing but I was told that's due to atrophy and not fluid in the knee.  Pain at the time was minimal and fleeting.

Walking/Brace:  At week 10, I took the brace off myself.  I just couldn't take it anymore.  Ultimately, it was fine and there were no issues with it.  I actually went to the PGA Championship with my brace on! Luckily, I was given really kind treatment and due to my limitation I got premiere seating (could hear Tiger Woods talking to the caddies).  I guess knee surgery can be turned into Lemonade :)

Physical Therapy:  At physical therapy the main benefit was the access to equipment such as the electrical stimulation and Graston, as well as, getting recommendations from my physical therapist for different exercises that I could do.  I could tell that we transitioned from a primarily physician/therapist based form of care to a more autonomous therapy program.  In other words, it was starting to be more "on me" and less on the care of a third party physician/therapist.

Typical Workouts:  I returned to the gym at Week 10.  I was at a point where I could do enough things that it made sense to go back.  From a mental aspect, it felt great to get back to my normal routine.  Who would have thought that I would miss going to the gym at 6:00 a.m.?!  Here are a few examples of workouts that I could do:

Workout 1

• 15 minutes bike & 10 minutes elliptical
• Hip abduction:  15x2 - 115 pounds
• Hip adduction:  15x2 - 115 pounds
• Sitting hamstring curls:  15x2 - 70 pounds
• Leg Press (sitting):  15x2 - 35 pounds
• Bridge - glutes (on your back, legs straight out and on top of a bosu ball)
• Bridge raise with 17.5 on hips:  60 seconds x 2
• Bridge raise with 17.5's in arms for chest press:  60 seconds x 2
• Sit ups with legs on the bosu with 17.5 lifting straight up:  60 seconds x2
• SLDL/Upward row:  60 seconds x 2 - 20's in each hand
• Memory Foam Pad - alternating standing on it single leg; Movement for stability work
• Bicep curls:  15's, 60 seconds x 2
• Tricep overhead:  15's, 60 seconds x 2

Workout 2

• 10 minutes bike & 15 minutes elliptical
• Hip abduction:  15x2 - 115 pounds
• Hip adduction:  15x2 - 115 pounds
• Sitting hamstring curls:  15x2 - 70 pounds
• Loop Bands
• Ankle - side:  60 seconds x 2
• Ankle - back:  60 seconds x 2
• Feet - sidewalks:  60 seconds x 2
• Calf Raises - single:  60 seconds x 2
• SLDS:  20's, 60 seconds x 2 
• Aerobic Step:  step up, one riser, 60 seconds x 2

Post-Operative Appointment:  I had my third post-operative appointment.  Overall, my doctor was pleased with my progress and assured me that any issues I was having were completely normal and nothing to be concerned about.  He also assured me that what I thought was swelling was really more attributable to quadricep atrophy.  My doctor is a pretty firm believer in using your insurance benefits to the fullest extent which essentially meant that he wanted me to keep going to physical therapy for as long as my insurance carrier will pay for it.  So, I continued to keep going twice a week but considered scaling it back in the next 4-6 weeks depending on the progress.  I didn't mind going to physical therapy but sometimes it was just not convenient from a time/scheduling perspective.

This is my knee!  The picture shows my right patella looking at it from the right side of my leg.  The defect was ultimately larger than I thought so I can see why I was having so much pain!

General Observations:  Getting out of the knee brace was by far the most monumental achievement both in terms of physical and mental health.  It felt so good to just freely walk without having to worry about limping and lugging the brace around. Simple things like wearing regular clothes and going to Starbucks suddenly became a mental boost that I'll never forget.  Even going to Court again (I'm a lawyer) felt so great (even if I lost).  I was like "Buddy the Elf" from the movie - everything felt amazing.  I had an appreciation for ALL of the small things - a real master class in gratitude.  Going forward, this was the most encouraged and happy I felt since surgery started.  I finally had the ability to resume some normal life tasks, both personally and professionally.  Who knew going to the grocery store would feel like such a perk :)