[quote]RubberToe wrote:
Lateral ACL tear during a practice session with a noob in 2009. No surgery as the tendon wasn’t torn to the point of major instability, but my knee has been ‘loose’ ever since.
Haven’t sparred or fought in awhile and the extent of my training is bag work. Terrible. No kicks either.
Has anyone experienced a major joint injury and came back in good form to compete again? What do you recommend? My competitive days are likely done but I’d like to resume sparring and training. Any thoughts?[/quote]
First, I recommend getting reevaluated by a orthopedic surgeon or physical therapist, since the injury occured in 2009. You do not know what the extent of the injury is after 6 years. If you have medical insurance, I would suggest going to a orthopedic “sports performance center” since they focus on athletes.
Having said that: I have had the same injury in my left knee (no surgery) and caught a small bit of shrapnel in my right knee( surgery, but, not major). So, yes, I have an idea what you are going through. On the advise of a good PT, I started riding a stationary bike for about three months, then switched over to a “spinning bike”, began incline walks, later added weight for about 3 months, after 6 months started light land mine squats. I was lucky on both injuries and got back to fighting shape. To this day, I am a big believer in keeping your knees (tendons , ligaments) in shape and still use the same routine whenever I can. IMH and uneducated opinion, land mine squats are the safest way to bring a knee up to working order. They worked for me and I now have full range of motion with my MT and TKD kicks.
Sento, who is a regular here, is much more knowledgeable than me on human kinetics and I know he has encountered those injuries in some of his students, so, he may see this and offer you a more professional opinion. Good luck.