MCL Strain

**nhtele** · 10-13-2003, 12:42 PM

So I managed to strain my MCL during an early season ski session at Killington last week.

Ortho says 4-6 weeks off.

Anybody out there have any experience/advice with this injury?
I'm doing PT, taking glucosamine and lifting just to keep my sanity.

**mildbill.** · 10-13-2003, 12:45 PM

Originally posted by nhtele

Anybody out there have any advice?

don't ski on grass.

this session has been a free trial. if you choose to cancel your subscription please check the appropriate box on your next bill.

plus, you're not going to be able to keep up with me on WA either way, so don't even sweat it. i'll wait. that's why i bring my thermos.

**nhtele** · 10-13-2003, 12:50 PM

Originally posted by mildbill.
plus, you're not going to be able to keep up with me on WA either way, so don't even sweat it.

I was on track until this fucking injury - 7 mile runs every other day. Partied with one of the Rufi Sat. night - looks like we'll have ice in a month.

Also, woke up with Unidentified Drunken Injury Sun. morning. Hamlin informed me that it was sustained while wrestling with a 100-lb girl

**Karl Stall** · 10-13-2003, 01:04 PM

Lots of PT and strength training-mine has never healed

**mildbill.** · 10-13-2003, 01:08 PM

Originally posted by nhtele
100-lb girl

fuckin introduce me dude.

dammit. now i'm pissed again.

get in your truck, drive down here, bring whiskey.

**nhtele** · 10-13-2003, 01:15 PM

Originally posted by Karl Stall
Lots of PT and strength training-mine has never healed

Holy shit! What does that mean for your activity level/impariment now?

Was yours a rip or a strain?

**Tavi** · 10-13-2003, 01:38 PM

MCL sprains are a pain in the arse and take a long time to heal. You might want to brace it with a DonJoy Playmaker brace. If it's given a slight varus bend it will unload the MCL for skiing and protect if from getting worse as the season goes on.

KQ · 10-13-2003, 01:43 PM

check out this site - there is some great information in here:

Knee Pain Info. com

Hope you heal fast!!

**Tyrone Shoelaces** · 10-13-2003, 03:07 PM

Closing day at Kirkwood last winter I strained MCL pretty bad. I didn't believe my doc that it was only strain, so I pushed for an MRI, got it, and yup...it was a strain, he was right. heh. There was also some bone bruising which kinda sucked, but anyway...

He kept telling me that these strains normally take approx 6-7 weeks to heal. And he was right there again. I didn't even do PT...he just gave me simple advice which I followed, and it was as good as new in no time.

He said to start off, just hop on a bike and do some light spinning to begin strengthening it. After a week or so of this, he had me begin wall squats (just lean yer back against a wall, go down as low as you can, hold for 10 seconds. do 10 reps. repeat hourly.).

5 weeks later he gave me the ok to start light jogging as long as I had no pain. Around this time I hopped back on skis and did a few BC tours, but kept the skiing non-aggressive (for the most part...heh).

7 weeks later he gave me the ok to start playing soccer with a simple knee wrap as long as I promised to wear flats.

Months later and it's been a busy summer of mtn. biking, soccer, & running....stronger now than when the injury occured I believe.

but anyway, so yeah if your ortho says 4-6 weeks, he's pretty much right on considering my experience above. Good luck.

**nhtele** · 10-13-2003, 04:40 PM

Thanks for the advice guys.

Sounds like my doc is pretty much on the money. He hasn't mentioned biking or wall sits though.

Tyrone - how long/how strenuous did you get after it on the bike?

KQ · 10-13-2003, 04:46 PM

Originally posted by Tyrone Shoelaces
After a week or so of this, he had me begin wall squats (just lean yer back against a wall, go down as low as you can, hold for 10 seconds. do 10 reps. repeat hourly.).

You can do this with a FitBall too - makes it easier to slide down the wall.

Fitball squats allow you to squat safely while holding a Fitball against a wall (using your lower back to press the ball against the wall).

**Tyrone Shoelaces** · 10-13-2003, 05:00 PM

Originally posted by nhtele

Tyrone - how long/how strenuous did you get after it on the bike?

heh....well doc said was, "just spin in easy gears, no more than an hour at a time.".

now on the otherhand, what I swear to god heard him saywas, "go on out & thrash yourself and your bike for hours at a time, mash up rocky, technical climbs in the big ring, and even if you fall and beater...keep your feet clipped in at all times and keep on pedaling even while your lying on your back in a sweaty, bloody pile of rags."

In other words, I did overdo it a little, but it still worked out ok.

**Karl Stall** · 10-13-2003, 05:24 PM

nhtele - I guess it was a partial tear, but I don't let it stop me from shit. I work out harder, I am stronger, and I ski faster - so no real worries.

**nhtele** · 10-13-2003, 06:29 PM

Originally posted by Tyrone Shoelaces
"go on out & thrash yourself and your bike for hours at a time, mash up rocky, technical climbs in the big ring, and even if you fall and beater...keep your feet clipped in at all times and keep on pedaling even while your lying on your back in a sweaty, bloody pile of rags."

In other words, I did overdo it a little, but it still worked out ok.

And here I had images of you on a recumbent in the gym, Time magazine in hand.

**ulty_guy** · 10-14-2003, 02:33 AM

i got a 2nd degree tear in mine 2 years ago from a wonderfully spectacular compression crash in verbier (never 'just let 'em run' in flat light). anyways, it took me 2 months till i could run again and it was another 2 months after that until i really felt 100%, but the good thing is that MCL's do heal unlike other ligaments. the bad thing about MCL's is that if they go, the completely atrophy that little quad muscle just above the inside of your knee. you'll have to do some specific work on that guy (straight leg raises w/ your foot pointed outwards). maybe pick up some glucosamine sulphate too, should help w/ tissue repair.

good luck, you'll be back to it before the first 'real' powder falls anyways

**Mulletizer** · 10-14-2003, 03:14 AM

Originally posted by KQ
check out this site - there is some great information in here:

Knee Pain Info. com

Hope you heal fast!!

Hmmmm, now I know that the injury I got last December was an ACL tear/strain. If I'd found this site or been able to pay to see a doctor I might have known that and been able to do something about it. And saved a lot of down days. Gggrrrrrrr... Nice site, thanks KQ. To all those with injuries: get well soon, have a great season. M

**KrisSkis** · 10-14-2003, 10:26 AM

Hey...let me tell you about that damn MCL...i got a Grade 3 tear last march up at Killington and was out of work 2 months...braced up in extension for 2 weeks...another brace for 6 more weeks and PT like crazy for 3 months til the insurance company said no more...now i do PT at home...not as often as i should but...you know...my ortho said it would take a good 9 to 12 months to heal fully. its now been 7 months and it still hurts like a motherf****er at times. I still have some tenderness if i squat alot...especially at work. My doc says i need a brace once i start skiing again this year...guess i better get one...i dont need this shit acting up anymore. Keep up the PT and keep it moving...it stiffens up quickly i found...good luck.

KQ · 10-14-2003, 10:37 AM

Originally posted by KrisSkis
Hey...let me tell you about that damn MCL...i got a Grade 3 tear last march up at Killington and was out of work 2 months...braced up in extension for 2 weeks...another brace for 6 more weeks and PT like crazy for 3 months til the insurance company said no more...now i do PT at home...not as often as i should but...you know...my ortho said it would take a good 9 to 12 months to heal fully. its now been 7 months and it still hurts like a motherf****er at times. I still have some tenderness if i squat alot...especially at work. My doc says i need a brace once i start skiing again this year...guess i better get one...i dont need this shit acting up anymore. Keep up the PT and keep it moving...it stiffens up quickly i found...good luck.

No doubt this is why my Ortho told me I was "lucky" I'd crushed my tib rather than tear any ligaments.

I was skiing 8 months later.

Keep at the PT Kris!!

KQ · 10-14-2003, 12:25 PM

Originally posted by Mulletizer
Hmmmm, now I know that the injury I got last December was an ACL tear/strain. If I'd found this site or been able to pay to see a doctor I might have known that and been able to do something about it. And saved a lot of down days. Gggrrrrrrr... Nice site, thanks KQ. To all those with injuries: get well soon, have a great season. M

Check this out!!

Thera Cool

I came home from the hospital with one of these puppies - fantastic way to ice your knee!

What they don't show in the pic is a bladder that's shaped like a butterfly. It lies right over your knee and wraps around your leg. You secure it with and Ace bandage, fill the cooler with ice and water then plug it in!

You can ice while you're sitting on the couch watching a game (downing some brews) with no mess or fuss. It's cold but not as numbing as using a bag of ice that never reaches all the areas you need to reach anyway.

**Benny Profane** · 10-14-2003, 03:37 PM

Yeah, 4-6. Be happy it ain't the ACL.

When this happened to me, the first thing I asked the Doc after the MRI was whether or not I should sell my tickets to Jackson Hole 2 months down the line.
He laughed, 'cause he was a skier.