The Calm before the "Knee"
Louann and I were walking our precious 5 year old granddaughter Alexa on the two lane private road that circles the beautiful Autumn scenery where her paternal grandparents live near Germantown, TN. In this photo we are coming up on their entrance to their home on the left. Behind us you'll notice that the uphill road curves to the right where it flattens out.
The next morning Louann and I were on the flat part of the road doing our sprinting for short distances exercise. We'd finished and she went on inside. But I stayed out and decided to run some "hill sprints" that started behind where we are walking in this picture. You can't tell the depth or the angle of that hill, but it is about 50 yards and at an angle of about 25 degrees which is pretty steep.
I ran the first sprint with no problems. The second sprint began good, but about half way up, my right foot landed on something (an acorn? a small pine cone? a pebble?) and caused my knee to twist. The pain was immediate. It was sharp and stabbing. No "pop" noise came from the knee. Swelling occurred before my eyes! I hobbled into the in-law's house and had it iced and elevated. It was a rough day and night. I'm not a fan of pain medications, but when there's a definite NEED... take 'em!
When our weekend visit was over and we got back to Plano, I thought the knee would heal if I took "good care" of it by resting it, taking specific supplements, etc. I did that for three months but to no avail. I scheduled an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon who examined it and told me I had a torn medial meniscus, but to find out to what degree he needed to schedule me for a MRI before he could do the surgery.
Long story short, I was scheduled for the surgery. It went well with no complications. I did everything "by the book" during the week of post oprerative care. I then did my own rehab "by the book" with no complications. Today, almost to the year, my right knee feels GREAT! I can do hill sprints, flat land sprints, squats, and any other leg exercises better than ever. The bottom line here is that if you have knee pain that can't be "fixed" over time via the conservative measures, then please do NOT hesitate to look into the option of surgical intervention.
The next morning Louann and I were on the flat part of the road doing our sprinting for short distances exercise. We'd finished and she went on inside. But I stayed out and decided to run some "hill sprints" that started behind where we are walking in this picture. You can't tell the depth or the angle of that hill, but it is about 50 yards and at an angle of about 25 degrees which is pretty steep.
I ran the first sprint with no problems. The second sprint began good, but about half way up, my right foot landed on something (an acorn? a small pine cone? a pebble?) and caused my knee to twist. The pain was immediate. It was sharp and stabbing. No "pop" noise came from the knee. Swelling occurred before my eyes! I hobbled into the in-law's house and had it iced and elevated. It was a rough day and night. I'm not a fan of pain medications, but when there's a definite NEED... take 'em!
When our weekend visit was over and we got back to Plano, I thought the knee would heal if I took "good care" of it by resting it, taking specific supplements, etc. I did that for three months but to no avail. I scheduled an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon who examined it and told me I had a torn medial meniscus, but to find out to what degree he needed to schedule me for a MRI before he could do the surgery.
Long story short, I was scheduled for the surgery. It went well with no complications. I did everything "by the book" during the week of post oprerative care. I then did my own rehab "by the book" with no complications. Today, almost to the year, my right knee feels GREAT! I can do hill sprints, flat land sprints, squats, and any other leg exercises better than ever. The bottom line here is that if you have knee pain that can't be "fixed" over time via the conservative measures, then please do NOT hesitate to look into the option of surgical intervention.
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