Quad Strength Struggles
Hi all. I never post on here but wanted to vent a little about my experience. Today is 4 weeks since I had single defect MACI surgery along with MPFL reconstruction. I have been doing in person PT twice a week as well as at home exercises on the days I don’t have in person PT. Most days are pain free now, or very little pain but I do have days where the pain and swelling come back hard. My biggest struggle right now is my lack of quad muscle. While I feel slight improvement in my quad strength, I am still unable to perform a straight leg lift. My brace has to stay locked at 0° until I am able to do my leg lift which is not ideal. I know everyone recovers differently/the timeline for recovery is different but I can’t help but feel a bit discouraged, like I am behind on where I should be. It has been such a frustrating recovery and very up and down. I also know that this recovery is a marathon and not a sprint, and that this was going to be difficult but phew it has been harder than I thought. I am just looking for some reassurance that this is normal/hear about others experiences/suggestions on things I can do to help my quad.
I’m 28(F) and am pretty active in my normal life. I love going for long walks, hikes, paddle boarding, tennis. I can’t wait to get back to doing the things I love, with (hopefully) no pain. 💪🙂↕️