ACL Journey

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Physical therapy has its benefits.  I know because I worked in the clinical setting for 17 years.  But what everyone doesn't realize is that physical therapy can only do so much.  They are guided by insurance guidelines.  This means there are standards the physical therapists and staff have to meet to get reimbursement from the insurance companies.  Generally knee patients need to be able to walk up and down stairs reciprocally (one after another not one at a time), get in and out of cars without pain, sleep through the night, functional range of motion and walk at least 300 yards pain free. That is all.  Anything outside of that and the insurance industry feels it is something the patient can do on their own and therefore they will not pay out.  Now there is some bend in the rules depending on where you go to physical therapy (hospital affiliated vs independent facility).  

How does this apply to ACL athletes?  There are major differences between what Innovative Training Solutions (ITS) can do for ACL athletes compared to PT clinics. PT clinics will advance the athlete to jogging, teach them how to jump and land properly, and go over cutting.  ITS is able to do that as well.  PT clinics will work on developing strength and stabilization of the joint as it is necessary.  However, they are limited on the amount of strength they can help the athlete develop due to lack of equipment.  ITS is a functional gym with weights, bars, and functional training tools to help the athlete develop every aspect of their athletic ability needed to return to the sport they love.  Some clinicians will argue that this is unnecessary for post ACL rehab. I agree...for the first few stages of rehab it is.  However, once the joint becomes stronger and more stable, you can add it in.  You are doing no damage to the joint.  All movements at the knee/hip do not go past 90 degrees (ie. squat and deadlift).  The athlete is not lifting heavy weights.  Instead, they are progressively and slowly overloading the joint with light weight allowing their joints to rebuild and become stronger.  ITS can and will guide the athlete through this process.  

Some will question why that type of training is necessary.  And the answer is simple: in order to produce power, your muscles have to be strong enough to generate it.  Body weight exercises do not allow the muscles to create this force.  Sports place big demands on an athlete's body.  To be able to tolerate this stress, the athlete's muscles and joints need to be able to absorb, protect, stabilize, and create power to respond. It's necessary to develop this to help the athlete return to play successfully with no incidences of further injury.  The stronger the muscles are, the more stable the joints are.  The more stable the joints are, the more capable they are to tolerate the forces experienced during cutting and jumping.  The more fluid the ankle, knee and hip work together, the less risk of injury exists.  The more balance there is in strength between the quads, hamstrings, gluts and core, the more stable the joints are and the less risk for injury exists. There is no risk involved when the athlete is carefully guided through this process. I have created a specific training protocol to help athletes through this.  Athletes will begin with single leg work first where I check for hip/trunk mobility and look for muscle imbalances.  Pushing, pulling, and hinging become normal routine movements for the athletes during the single leg work stage.  Athletes will then be progressed to core lifts and rehab exercises together.  Applying the concepts of both the physical therapy world and strength training world, I have been able to help athletes return to their sport healthy, productive, and often times achieving goals they never thought were achievable.  ITS is the answer for any stage of post ACL rehab.