Racing injured?? Would you do it?

Racing sore or tired?  Yes, all the time.

Racing injured?  No, sorry to be blunt, but that is flat out dumb.  Why risk making something worse or damaging it permanently?  Aside from the fact that you'd have a crappy race.

Have the surgery, rest and heal up, doing the re-hab and PT and come back stronger and motivated to do more!!

There are always other races you can do after you recover. 

But if you race injured there is a risk of hurting it more, then you'll have to wait longer to or even unable to race again. 

Your decision. 

Since your doctor seems to think you'll be OK, I'll be a little less negative than the previous posters.  I might get a second opinion from a sports med. specialist or something along those lines, just to be sure that your brace really is going to be adequate at stabilizing the joint for intense physical activity, and that if you get jostled/kicked hard in the swim or crash your bike, that you don't risk ripping your meniscus or something.

But, will you really enjoy your first tri if you do it on the injured knee?  Or will you be in pain or worried about further injuring yourself?  In the end, it's your call, but it would suck to have a miserable experience during something you've been so excited for.

ETA:  Personally, I wouldn't even try it.  I would just get the surgery as soon as I could, go for the rehab, and see if I could get something lined up for the tail end of next season. 

Edited by kat_astrophe 2009-06-23 12:51 PM

It is not being negative, it is seeing the forest from the trees. There will always be more races, but she only has two knees.

I blew out my ACL third quarter 2006. I torn the ACL in half. I had several business trips going on, etc, and talked my Doctor into letting me wait until Thanksgiving before surgery. He stated "be careful with it, but it should be fine". After surgery, he explained that they replaced the ACL, and also repaired two meniscus while they were in there. Do note, neither meniscus were damaged during we took the MRI. I did that AFTER I had torn the ACL. Plus, I did NOTHING but walk around on it carefully. No races, no running, no cycling, etc., just walking.

The bad news is it will take 12+ months to recovery from it 100%. That sucks; however, you will have more motivation than ever to work that PT, slowly get back into training, and then prepare for the next race. To me, it would not be worth it, and I freaking love to train.

If you do go forth and race, then do not even think about a time goal. The goal should be to finish, and have fun during it. Take your time, get the brace on, etc.

My question is why not confirm with an MRI, then fix with a scope?

Edited by Coldfire 2009-06-23 1:06 PM

I guess my feeling on the subject is that only she and her doctor know her full medical history, and that her doctor's opinion combined with the second opinion of a sports medicine specialist is probably worth more than the opinion of anyone on the Internet who can't really see the full story.  Maybe she already destroyed her meniscus the last time she tore her ACL, or maybe they know it to already be damaged.  Plus, the OP says she can't confirm with an MRI because she has already torn it once.  An MRI will always show that ACL as being torn, since I don't think that the material used to repair the ligament will show up on the scan.

Edited by kat_astrophe 2009-06-23 1:11 PM

What everyone else said - don't do it.

If you don't let your body heal now when healing is viable - you may never get back to 100%. I pushed my injuries when I was younger - didn't give them time to heal, didn't follow doctor's orders .. now I'm paying the price. I've probably lost this whole season - second in a row - because I'm BACK in physio with a buggered up hip from an injury I sustained 8 years ago and pushed to heal. ;-(

Be smart. There will always be other races - other seasons ... there will not be other knees.

Ah, I read that wrong about the non-confirmation.

On a side note, the last time I had my knee X-rayed you could see the screws. Sorry for the derail.

I have a question for myself and would appreciate any input I have a nagging pain in my lower back left side more like upper Buttock and I only feel it when I stand straight and lift my left knee up to horizontal or if i lift my left leg out horizontal.I can bend over and touch my toes and nothing.I notice it mostly when I get in my low car.It feels worse 1st thing in the AM.I think it started when I was on my motorcycle all day a couple of weeks ago and now running aggravates it.It feels good today I am icing it off and on for 10 mins and getting a massage on Thursday.Now for the ? LOL

 I have my 1st Tri this Sat a sprint in wakefield 1/4 mile swim,13 mile bike, and a 5k run. I really want to do this it is 5 mins from my house. I swam today and was going to do some transistion practice tommorow and ?? something on Thursday and take Friday off. Ohh and I have a Physical conveniently enough on Thu as well that I booked 7 months ago.

 I will welcome any advice Stretching,Resting,Help exercises etc... I am nervous enough for this tri and want to be as good as I can be. Thanks in advance..................................Stephen

 Anyone have any reccomendations

I had ACL replacement almost exactly two years ago, as the result of one of many aborted (mostly by self-neglect) attempts to get into shape.  My doctor sent me to a very good sports specialist, who mostly deals with pro athletes and dancers, but is friends with my doc (only way I got through that door!).  Bottom line:  I listened to his every word, and did exactly what he said.  I asked him what HE would do, and did that.  (Ironically, he had had his own ACL replaced just a couple of years earlier so he had personal as well as professional experience here.)  That's what I recommend you do.  Don't ask him what is possible.  Ask him what is BEST in the long term.

As for recovery, there are lots of factors, including your age.  My doc told me that a 19-year old dancer will recover from this surgery in a few months, and be full strength within a year or less.  A 40-year old overweight and out of shape guy (=me) takes longer.  I worked my a$$ off in PT, and a little less than a year post-surgery I started running (and stuck with it for the first time in my life), and 6 months later I ran a decent marathon for a first timer (3:20 and change).  However, I am not yet fully recovered -- doc says it'll probably take 3 years for my two quads to be the same size and strength.  I'm on year 2, and they are getting close...

I love these questions.  It gives me a chance for a literature review.  It looks like the latest data is more worried about the state of your medial meniscus than the ACL.

Meniscal Injury

why risk injuring yourself worse.... me, I'd have to say no.. had an achilles injury in 08.. close to rupture.. doctor said no race (registered for race the following sunday)... i really wanted too.. but i didn't much healther now.. achilles is fine..



Edited by momo 2009-06-24 1:01 PM

My non MD experience tells me that an injury like that can lead to other injuries.  I.E. you running with a gimpy gait may irritate ankles, knees, hips, etc.  Growing up I played every sport I possibly could and never could sit still for long even when coming off injuries I wished as an older person I had taken better care of.  Then again you aren't sure exactly what the nature of the injury is yet if I read you right.  I would tread carefully... or rather my wife would make me tread carefully.    

One of the main reasons you repair your ACL is so that your knee doesn't move like a drawer and destroy your meniscus. That's nothing new. Having said that, I'd never in a million years race (or do anything athletic) on a torn ACL. ACLs are easy to fix (over and over if needed), and the recovery is relatively easy. But if you trash your meniscus, you're in for a lifetime of problems.

tough spot and I feel for you.

I would get the surgery, doing a tri with a torn ACL is not going to make you feel much better, IMO....

get better and you do your first race you'll be ready

I don't have an injury serious enough to need surgery... but it took me away from running for 4 weeks. I'm just now getting back to running... but my miles are down big time.

I had a 25K scheduled for July 18th, but I know I won't be ready for that in a month, so I'm not doing it. I was looking forward to this race (since it's the ONLY race all year that starts at midnight)... but I also know my performance will suck (I wanted to PR from last year's time) and it will be a long, miserable race. So I'm sitting it out (I get to watch my boyfriend race ).

If I were you, I would pass on the race. Obviously, I'm making a similar decision... and I'm not as injured as you are.

I've had 6 knee surgeries on my right knee, have nearly no cartledge left, and have a fake knee cap from a motorcycle crash. I'm "broke" enough that I have my "premier parking" (permanent handicap) license plates. My doctor said the next step is to completely replace the joint. I train and race broke/injured. Dumb, maybe... In my instance though, I weight the risks (having to get total knee replacement a little sooner) with the positive health benefits of keeping in shape, flexibility, leg/knee strength. My surgeon agrees I can continue with triathlons, just to let my body tell me when to not push so hard. Sometimes this means walking if my knee is really hurting. I also have special arch supports and a lift on my left foot to ensure my hips are "level", as the right side of my hip is about 1cm higher than the left side. I also have a lift and supports for my bike shoes to correct this on the bike. I've done a half marathon this year, and am doing a half ironman in August. As long as I build up to the distances, and listen to my body, I'm OK.

The most important part of this is to make sure your doctor knows your plans and has no issues, and to listen to your body, pain is a very powerful indicator that you are doing too much or pushing too hard.

For me, here is so much more to the triathlon experience than simply the 'race'. The adventure of a new city, the prospect of meeting old friends and making new ones. I'm not going to bring home any hardware, probably never will, but I've raced 'hurt' and my memories and experiences are just as satisfying as the events in which I was healthy and fast. I say go, have fun but be responsible with your knee.

I would. For a couple of reasons....
1-you have really been looking forward to it
2- the doctor gave you clearance
and 3- the goal before an ACL operation is to have you back to all the activities you were doing prior to the injury.

No. Plus you say this is your first tri and you want to do it before a 9 -12 month rehab. The thought ofme doing something like that personally that freaks me out. What if it gets worse or surgery and rehab doesn't get you back to where you want to be? I'd rather be a moderate exerciser for the rest of my life than end up sedentary.

That's not the goal here in the ACL repair capital of the world. Here, ACLs are repaired immediately unless there is another knee injury that is not going to be repaired with surgery, and that is better off resolved with PT which is not delayed by the ACL surgery. (EG. a partial MCL tear).

ACL tears generally do not "get worse". They're either torn or not. The lack of knee stability without a functioning ACL can damage menicus which can't be replaced like an ACL can. Many (maybe most) ortho docs believe that a brace can temporarily act as an ACL during strenuous activity, but other ortho docs do not have that belief.

I personally would not take the risk (unless of course I needed a knee replacement anyway). As I said, ACL repairs are relatively easy recoveries and docs up here are very aggressive at getting patients back into activities like cycling.

No. I've raced injured, because I really wanted to, and paid for it in a longer recovery. Not worth it.