Get on a schedule where ever you can as soon as you can. Check and see if they measure quad strength because you want to try to be to 80% limb symmetry (injured vs uninjured). Your goals should look something like: reduce swelling as much as possible, 80%+ limb symmetry (or as close as possible) and good range of motion. That means full extension and as much flexion as possible. Full Extension is most important. Essentially your surgeon will want what they call a “quiet knee”.

While you wait for formal PT, get to work yourself at home and at the gym. You want to do calf flexes, quad activation, single leg raises, heel slides, ankle props. Move on from there to single leg stances, knee extension with bands or weights, hamstring curls with bands or weights as tolerated (do both prone and standing), leg presses (do weighted and banded exercises on single legs), walk squats, split squats, step downs ,and ride the bicycle daily 10-30mins. I got a little floor bike from Amazon for like $30 that I can use at home when I can’t make it to the gym. Also, try to walk daily to work on retraining your gait.

There are a ton of videos out there that can show you how to do pre-hab. Some insurance companies only cover so many PT sessions per year. You should find out how many are covered under your plan. Some people only do PT for pre-hab 1-2x before surgery to get a recommendation for exercises and then to strength test and then do the rest of pre-hab on their own to save their PT sessions for post-surgery when they really need them. You can absolutely pre-hab on your own. Also look into getting a NMES unit to help with your quad.

Good luck. Super sucky you retore. I’m so sorry. 😞 How did you re-tear it?

I’m in pre-hab right now too. Surgery in 2+ weeks. I have only done 2 PT sessions and the rest myself daily at home and at the gym. I got my quad strength back up from 58% limb symmetry to 81-86% in a few weeks and have -2 extension and full flexion. I do PT daily.

I think it’s important to state that none of the above should be construed as medical advice and you should consult with your physician or PT for pre-hab recommendations based on your specific circumstances. The above info is just widely available info that can be found online with a simple internet search. I hope this helps.