[QUOTE=SadieKate]Yikes! Lunges and squats! No way, Jose. Not for me. Let me say that again.

Prescription orthotics. Worn them since 1976 for chronic chondromalacia and I don't leave home without 'em.


I also wear prescription orthotics, shoes, ski boots, cycling.

And yes, squats and lunges. My first bout (when the ortho told me to quit exercising) with this the therapy was mostly straight leg raises with ankle weights. I did them until I was "blue in the face". But, I still had pain. I had been doing step aerobics, which I gave up, but had an instructor who was very strict about proper form (knee over toe) when doing squats and lunges.

One day, I decided my knees were going to hurt anyway so I started doing squats and lunges again. My knees felt so much better! A year or 2 later I tore my rotator cuff and for some reason got off the leg training. During that time I went hiking and jumped down an embankment and that started the right knee off again.

The ortho I saw said "no lunges or squats" but my therapist disagreed, most of my therapy was straight leg raises, again to ad nausum, weight machines and lunges and squats. To make a long story short I ended up working with an athletic trainer at my gym who set up a program using the weight machines. I followed her program for quite a long time.

When I moved here to the Denver area I didn't have a gym membership so, for ski conditioning, I started doing lunges and squats again. No problems. After I joined a gym I mixed the weight machines with lunges and squats.

Then every skiers fear, the dreaded ACL tear. Before my 1st therapy session for my torn acl/mcl I thought I was so smart because I just knew I'd have to do zillions of straight leg raises. Initially there were leg raises but the protocol is so different from what I did before. Strengthening was done on the pilates reformer, all leg muscles ( hip, core, etc.) were included. Many floor exercises were pilates based. Around 4 weeks I started doing single leg squats. Then I had acl surgery and started the protocol all over again. Around 6 weeks post op I began lunges, walking, sumo and side to side,l squats against a wall or fit ball. I also do the step down in front of a mirror that knottedyet spoke of.

The therapy this time around is much more "whole body" based and functional. Every exercise I do incorporates a variety of muscles, including my upper body. When I finish formal PT next week, I will start a "maintance program" at the physical therapist office, so there will be continual guidance with the knees.

I still have a lot of work to do to bring back the muscles in the injured leg but I've learned so much about keeping my knees strong. I guess that's the positive side of this acl tear.