Some knee issues can be resolved on their own or with the right conservative treatments. However, some knee problems, such as a fracture or an ACL tear, require surgery. In these cases, surgery can help improve or restore your knee’s regular function and mobility; however, there is a recovery and rehabilitation period that follows.
Recovering from knee surgery involves physical therapy sessions. They help reduce resulting pain or stiffness, restore your knee’s strength, and help you learn how to move around with your “new knee.” One of the most common aspects of a postsurgical physical therapy treatment plan is targeted exercises.
A physical therapist can guide you through safe and effective exercises that you can perform during and between sessions, as well as after treatment is over.
5 exercises often recommended by a physical therapist after knee surgery
There are several types of exercises that can help you through recovery after knee surgery. By learning from a physical therapist about which are the safest and how to properly perform them, you’re ensuring that you’re getting the best results possible without risking any damage or taking away from the surgical improvements.
Your physical therapist will let you know how often to perform each exercise to continue moving along the recovery process.
Here are five physical therapy exercises that can help after knee surgery:
Aquatics — When you’re trying to exercise during knee surgery recovery, it’s important that you don’t place excessive pressure on the joint. You want to reduce potential pain and damage. Aquatic exercises are one of the most effective ways to exercise your lower extremity in a safe way. The buoyancy of the water reduces stress on your joints and muscles while allowing you to perform movements that may be painful on land. You’re also increasing the strength of your knee muscles by pushing against the water.
Cycling — There are types of cardio that can help people who have recently had knee surgery. The goal is to help accelerate the healing process with increased blood flow. Cardio also improves muscle strength surrounding the joint and helps restore range of motion. Cycling, either on an indoor stationary bike or an outside bike, can provide you with low-impact exercise. It can help gradually improve your knee’s muscular strength. You can slowly ramp up the intensity of cycling as you progress.
Walking — One of the most common movements that you complete throughout the day is also an effective form of exercise that can help you after knee surgery. Walking with the guidance of a physical therapist is all about improving your movement patterns. You're also increasing your endurance to safely and efficiently move throughout your daily activities. Your physical therapist can guide you through heel-toe patterns as well as help you learn how to use assistive devices that may be recommended after surgery, such as a cane or walker.
Strength training — As we’ve mentioned, increasing or restoring the strength of your knee after surgery is one of the main physical therapy goals. Your physical therapist can guide you through strength training exercises intended to not only help reduce pain and improve mobility, but also increase joint support for injury prevention. Common knee strength training exercises used by physical therapists include straight leg raises, wall sits and squats.
Gait training — Your gait refers to the positioning of your body as you move throughout the day. Your gait impacts your balance as you walk, which can be affected by your knee surgery. Your physical therapist can show you gait training exercises that can improve your balance and coordination to reduce the risk of a fall. Examples of gait training exercises include treadmill training, knee raises and single leg stances.
KC Rehab can help you after knee surgery through physical therapy
The goal of knee surgery is to help address and alleviate issues that are interfering with your day-to-day life, whether that be an ongoing medical condition or an injury that can’t be healed on its own. After the procedure, there is more work to be done to have the best knee function and mobility possible. That’s where physical therapy comes in.
At KC Rehab, we’ll design a personalized treatment plan for you. It will be based on the cause of your knee issues, physical abilities and overall wellness goals. Your plan may include a combination of many types of exercises, such as cardio and strength training. Your physical therapist can also help to alleviate any resulting pain with manual therapy and modalities.
Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment.
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