Leg Extensions

[AllanD]

When would you say it is actually safe to do leg extensions, im now 5 months post op (there or there abouts) and its probably the best exercise i can do to build up my quads nicely.  I know its a no no for a good while as it can put stress on the graft, hopefully mines is nice and secure now though!

[christinarina]

Hiya

I aviod these anyway (pre-op) but I recall there was a long thread on this a short while back if you review the previous pages - opinion seems to differ!

[Megwi]

Allan,

Are you seeing a PT? They should be able to tell you what exercise to do when. My PT recommends a recumbent bike (the one where you sit down at the same level as the pedals) as this doesn't put any stress on the ACL. Swimming is good too for building muscle up with minimum impact.

If you haven't seen a PT its well worth booking an appointment. Not sure how you go about it on the NHS but you should be able to see one privately (mine is £43 for half an hour but I have insurance to cover it.)

Meg

[patpalloon]

Allan -
here is the previous thread:

http://www.kneeguru.co.uk/KNEEtalk/index.php?topic=31432.0

It seemed to have vanished but I found it on a search. Opinions seem to differ widely, but I've been doing them since 3 months post-op with no problems and can push about 75kg.

[henri]

OK,this topic is like each week tradition.So  yeah,anyway,its important,so heres what i do.
I started them 2 months post op,which was surely too early,but i luckily wasnt able to do them much because my doc told me not to.So i restarted doing them 4 months post op and did those with about 30 kg-s.

[Kai]

The leg press is soooooooooo good for you... and closed chain.. so ,,, safe...   also good for properception as you work on using both legs equally..   if you have access to a leg press station, do that instead of extensions... 

[henri]

indeed,leg press is also good for muscles,still, you also have to look,that you wont do leg press with too much extension or so.

[zengirl]

I have changed my mind about leg extenstions. I did them and now I have all kinds of touble and pain. I'm sure it came from this because I remember a day when one of the instuctors was talking to me for a while while I was doing them, and I think I did them for longer than I usually do. I think this is the cause of my present patellar pain.

I now do leg press instead of extensions.

[Kai]

and squats.. lots and lots of squats.. and when you can do them with 2 legs, start with just the injured leg... then add weights..  trust me, you wont miss the extensions...

[celinenj03]

If your OS says okay and if you can do them with absolutely no pain, do them. You should start out very low weight and only do a few sets. Even if you feel you can progress, don't. You have to be really careful not to start the cycle of tendonitis, which takes a while to get past that.

I do them because you just can't compare them to the leg press. I also do the leg press, but that seems to work my glutes more whereas the leg extension is all VMO and quad. Squats are also good and so are lunges and shuffling. I like to do shuffle step where you squat down and slide your feet side to side. Wow, what a burn you will get from that. I try to do it longer and longer each time. My legs are SORE after that.

Leg extension is not for everyone and that's okay. But if you can do it without pain, it won't hurt so long as you are very very careful. And like Zengirl said, watch that patella tendon pain, if you have even the slightest, you aren't ready for this exercise yet. I started in a chair with no weight, then put a 2lb. ankle weight on, then worked up to 10lbs. This took over a month, so it's a slow process, just be careful.

[Banner]

I am in full agreement with you celinenj03. I am over 8 months post-op and started doing leg extensions just over a week ago. I've been a religious believer in the leg press since about 3-months post-op and it has served me quiet well.
It was only last week in the gym and there was a queue for both the leg press and 2 hamstring machines that I decided to give the leg extension a go. I was only doing 30kg with both legs and then 15 with the injured leg and it was then that I remembered Feeny's comment about the burn he felt after doing leg extensions.
I have to agree with him here. I would have to do 3 times the amount of work on the leg press to get the same work on my vmo as the leg extension.
I'll definately incorporate this into my program albeit I'll keep the weight down so as to err on the cautious side

[spartanpele]

Heres a very general idea of which exercises to do and when....   

http://www.ehealthmd.com/library/acltears/ACL_rehab.html

and also, a description of what they are.

http://www.athleticadvisor.com/images/Acrobat/knee%20rehab.PDF