Just got back from Emergency room and they believe I have a torn MCL stage 2, and a strained meniscus...
What are the chances of me being able to run normal again? Can I be competitive again? I was a sub 4:05 miler, and sub 14:30 5k runner. Is it possible to get back to that level with such an injury? Surgery? Doc thinks 12 weeks total I will be out.
(I know I'm going to get about 7 idiot answers and maybe one or two serious answers.)
I suspect you probably have an excellent chance at a normal or near-normal knee. You now need to find an excellent orthopedic surgeon in your area. If you are in Southern California, I know someone good (just had my http://www.maci.com/ done in Santa Monica), if not, you might look at the Kneeguru forums or surgeon finder....
How did that happen? Were you playing some other sport?
I haven't had an MCL in the right leg for 25 years. You can run just fine without one, but you will need to worry about muscle balance. I had surgery to remove it because it was severed when I landed on my leg the wrong way and it wasn't possible to reattach.
The meniscus will eventually cause you pain and you can deal with that. It's not like you'll be laying on the ground writhing. For the foreseeable future your main worry will be to have them remove anything that's not attached anymore, since that will float around and either lock you knee at unexpected times (you'll fall down stairs occasionally) or cause damage to the stuff that's still good.
Thank you all who replied.
I tore it similar to the way T. Polamalu messed his leg up. A 220lb man fell on leg while it was planted while playing soccer. Messed it up and figured I would be alright but I was wrong..
I am going to see an orthopedic surgeon on Monday and discuss rehab and surgery options.
and God Damn... No MCL!! It seems like you need that? Can you twist your knee around all over the place?
I just hope I have time to heal, and be ready for a decent track season. (I really hate xc)
I was thinking you hurt it either by playing basketball or soccer.
Female coach having affair with male runner. Should I report it?
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If Daniel's and Pfitz are outdated..then where do I look for modern training plans?
Colin Sahlman runs 1:45 and Nico Young runs 1:47 in the 800m tonight at the Desert Heat Classic