Week Number 5

This week by far has been the best since ACL surgery. The swelling is getting scarce, I can walk with out my brace more. Life has been good. So, at this point my knee is in the middle of healing. It takes 6 to 13 weeks for the ligament to fuse, and start to get stronger. At that point, you still have some work to do to get to better form, but at least you can work out, and put your body thru a more rigorus work out.  So, for now I will have PT tomorrow, and we will see what Will has in store for me. I have been reading up on Hydroworx, which seems to be controversal because it's a constant work under water, like running, plyometrics, and other intense work outs. If I was guranteed no ingury during my workout, then I would so go for it, but for now, i plan on working in some more underwater workouts as this would take the pressure of your surgically repaired knee. Well kiddies, till next time. On a serious note, I want to send out my consolences to Steve Hickman, to his family. God Bless from #5, and all the AEFL family....

ICE ICE Baby

So, now on to the dog days of recovery. These are the days in between where you are not actually in the PT's office, but you are still getting your workouts in. Today was the most involved day that I have had since knee surgery. My older sister who is almost due to give birth texts me today that she thinks she is going into labor. So, I am out getting a haircut, since I have not had one in 4 weeks. I rush to her house, and she is putting on make up, so down to the important thing, her new PC died, so we rush to best buy, exchange it for a mac. During this time my knee is pretty sore from walking around. I get her home, she goes off to the hospital and I come home. For those who are wondering, it was false labor. I come home, take some naproxen, and fall asleep. Wake up, get in the gym and get a good work out in, come home, and do my PT work out, eat and watch some NBA playoff action. Now, I'm ready for a shower, and I notice my knee is pretty sore, and swollen. Now, its back to the same routine, ICE, moisturize my incision, and elevate. That is life at this point, ICE, heat, and elevate every chance I get. It's mundane, but trust me, it helps not only relive pain, but the healing process. Right now since you can not be as active, you need to help your body heal by eating healthy, resting enough, and icing, heating, and moisturizing. Trust me, i am a gym rat, i would rather be out squatting, working on my throws, or most importantly getting ready for wild card weekend tomorrow in the AEFL, but instead, I am at home Icing, playing XBOX, and doing a modified workout routine. In due time I will be out running, lifting, throwing, and getting back to my normal form till them. Its icing, heating, and PT. Till next time, ill update you on some of the games from tomorrow, I will be in attendance, I hope.

FAZ #5

PT Week 2

So, Tuesday I made it in for my weekly PT appointment. My extension, and flexion more importantly is getting better. I was able to unlock my brace, and it has been great. I was told I can sleep with out my brace which has been a god send. Since these post op braces are heavy, and uncomfortable. As far as work outs go, they have me on the bike with no resistance. Then they had me stretch my leg back as far as I could with some bands. This was a bit painful, but I got thru it. Then I had a chance to do modified squats on my back with no weight, these felt OK, I busted thru these and allowed to do leg lifts with out my brace. Finally I was able to walk backwards on the treadmill backwards, which proved to be tougher that it looked. Finally, I had some stem work, and a 10 minute icing. The one other thing I did forget was that I have not been work out my scar, this is very important, work that scar. So, this week I will do non braced leg lifts, quad sets, bike (stationary with no resistance), and my normal workout routine which includes back, traps, shoulders, biceps, forearms, and abs. From what I was told next week, I will start more gated workouts, I am looking forward to those, but I know this is a process.

Week 3

So, this week has started off with more promise than last week. With my first week of rehab nearly complete. I can notice my quad muscle firing better, and growing some. It's amazing how with just leg lifts, and other various workouts your quad will fire, and get bigger. I finally put my heard handedness, and self pity away for good. It's really easy to fall into that type of thinking when you are laid up on the couch medicated. I am looking forward to a productive week at work, and in therapy. I am confident my extension is getting better, and with any luck I will be close to -2 tomorrow. I have also been getting more intense workouts at the gym in my upper body, and look forward to stepping it up this week as well. One thing that has been weighing on my mind ever since this whole thing started was when, and if I will ever strap on the pads again. I know, I am no spring chicken anymore, and well, I am not 30 yet, but I will 28 this year, and after this major knee surgery, I wonder if I have it in me anymore. Sure, I can, and will build more muscle. I will get my legs stronger, I will get my speed back. Is it worth it? I don't know if it is anymore. Maybe it's time to hang up the pads for good, and coach, train, and compete at something else. I will always have a love for the game, its the best in the world, but I don't know if I can go at it anymore. Not as fast as I want to, as hard as I want to. Sure there are some older people that play, but I want to be able to walk and run when I am 50. I will make sure and blog about rehab tomorrow, and let everyone know how my knee is progressing.

FAZ

PT you get what you put in

Week 2 has been filled with surprises, I went to my first PT appointment. Will, my therapist is awesome for those in need of a good PT center visit http://vistarehab.com/scr/index.html. My flexion is at 130 degrees. Which for 1 week out of surgery is awesome. My extension on the other hand was not very good. So, we designed an exercises plan to address these issues, and to get my quad and hamstrings firing alot better. I have full confidence is Will, he was really upbeat, and was an open book of knowledge. Being an athlete, I want the best for my body, so this is very important to me. Pain is starting to be less and less, now, its all about not getting sloppy doing the work, and getting my body stronger. This task is something I take very serious. I have been killing it at the gym as much as I can, and getting in my meals, and my PT exercises. For anyone who has had this procedure, and is looking for a list of exercises email me, and I will hook you up. Another thing I will stress, if you plan on working out during rehab, and healing from surgery make sure you eat, and rest. Your body is going working double time healing, and building muscle, so eat, rest, and get your sleep. Till my next post.

FAZ
#5

Week 2

This week started off kind of weird, I went to my sisters house for a baby shower, and had a horrible time, I was neausiated, dizzy, and throwing up, I made it back home, and laid on the couch and rested. Monday came around, and I decided to try to make it back to work, being tired of sitting at home, I soon came to the conclusion that maybe I rushed back to work too soon, the plan was to work from home for the week, and well, I think I will be doing that. On a bright spot, Iwill be starting physical therapy tomorrow, and well from what I hear it will be a painful expirience, I say bring it, what ever gets me back to normal I welcome with open arms. Pain is only temporary in my book, plus that is why you have pain medication. I will check in tomorrow, and blog about how everything went. On a side note our football season ended last weekend, and my team did not do too well, for all my team-mates, I hope to see you this fall, congrats on a hard fought season, there is always next year...

FAZ #5

Week 1

So, today is day 9 of post acl reconstructive surgery. I had my post op appointment last yesterday, where my wounds were cleaned, and the stitches were removed. This has been my first surgery, and for it to be a major reconstruction of my left knee, it was a pretty scary thing to deal with it. I am 27 year semi professional quarterback from Dallas. For those who are wondering that actually means, here it is. Our league is made up of 8 to 12 teams from the local DFW area, we have players from different levels, some played high school football, some played college ball, and some well, never played before at all. In December I was participating in offensive drills with the team trying to get the offense clicking. One of the drills, I came took off on a run, and had a collision with one of our LB, My knee was caught in the turf, and my body was pushed in the opposite direction. I heard a small pop, and some sharp pain, and that was it. My knee did not feel right, I was not in pain, but I had some soreness. After a few unsuccessful attempts at trying to re-hab, I suffered some real instability in my knee. Now, I do alot of researching online, so I had a feeling my ACL was no more, but being the optimist, I tried to re-hab, and tried to keep going on my knee, till one throwing session, I planted on my left knee, and it buckled on me. So, I made an appointment with Dr. James Walters in Plano Texas. One Lachman test later, I was on my way to an MRI exam. Here is where it gets tricky, my MRI exam report showed my ACL to be in tact, and found defects in my meniscus. So, it was back to Dr. Walters office for further examination. Now, after the follow up with the good doc, he re-confirmed that his diagnosis was correct, ACL tear, and recommended surgery... My family was really weary about surgery, I had no doubt in my mind, I was going under the knife, so I made my appointment and was ready for it. The day of the surgery, I arrived at the hospital at 6:45, my procedure was to start at 8, being a big gym rat, It was hard for me not eating anything the night before, I have a workout routine of 2 hours a day, and then have protein after my workout, so this threw me off a bit the night before. After visiting with the doc one last time, the drug doctor shows up, and injects some anti nausea meds into my system. Then I was wheeled into the OR, and was put on a table, all I remember from there was being told to breathe. I woke up with a sore throat, and a nurse asking me if I wanted ice chips. The procedure was 3 hours long. I hung out in recovery for 1 hour and was allowed to come home, with minimal pain. The next week was frustrating, with some pain, and agitation. I was used to working out daily, but could not, getting around on crutches was a nightmare, because I was so worried about ruining my surgically repaired graft. I decided to go with the patella graft, since it was explained to me as being the gold standard as far as grafts. So, the pain was a bit more than for those who do hamstring grafts. Nonetheless, here I was laid up on the couch for a week, all I could do was place my leg in the kinetic machine 6 hours a day, and having to put my leg in the full brace to get around, I could not get what I wanted or needed on my own, and to top it all off, I had really bad sinus pressure. So, I slept alot, and researched alot. One of the things that helped me out alot, was putting a stem machine on my quad as often as I could. This helped my quad fire faster. That is the biggest issue with walking with out crutches, after surgery, your quad, and hamstring are not firing, so, being able to walk is tough when your upper leg is not working. That and religious use of the kinetic machine is what I credit to being able to walk with out crutches in seven days. I am lucky to have people around me that care about me, and will put up with my stubborn ass, but after my follow up visit I made a appointment at the rehab center, and began my first upper body workout in 8 days, it felt great. I can't also help to think that a good diet, and exercise plan before and after the procedure helps your body get back to normal. I still have 4 to 8 months of grueling rehab work to do to get back to running the 40 in 4.6, or throwing a screaming laser down the middle of the field while being rushed, or throwing a 75 yard bomb down the field, but I would not think twice about ACL surgery if I had to do it all over again. Over the next year, I will try to keep up with this blog, answer questions for those who have questions about this procedure, My intention is to help motivate, and help as a support system for those athletes who are worried about this major surgery.. Till next week

Fernando Zavala
#5