I am now two years out of ACL and medial and lateral meniscus surgery and one year post-op from a partial meniscectomy. To say it has been a journey is quite an understatement. After a grueling 11 month recovery from my first surgery, my medial meniscus repair failed and I had to get another surgery, setting me back from playing professional soccer again.
A year out from my second surgery, I am in a much different place. I just returned from playing professionally in Germany (even though most of our season ended up being on our own due to the coronavirus). In this post, I will share my experience two years post-op from the initial surgery and one year after my second.
First, I recommend reading through or watching my initial journeys.
How I Feel
These last two years have been full of so many highs and lows. It has been both so absolutely trying and so incredibly exciting. Since my last update, things have generally continued to go up for me. Ever since I could play again, I felt like I was on my way to the next step. I increased the intensity and frequency, as well as my confidence. I have (and still) feel doubt and frustration, but I really feel like I have overcome these two injuries.
How My Knee Feels 2 Years Post Op
I’ll start with this: my knee does not feel normal. I do not know if my knee will ever feel 100% normal. There are a lot of times where I do not even notice it and where it feels great. But, it does not have the exact same range of motion. When I try to bend my knee as far as possible, it feels stiff and even hurts a bit. If I increase my level of activity to high too quickly, I experience pain. I always battle patellar tendonitis on and off.
However, my knee feels so much better than it did. I can do all of my normal activities including fully playing soccer, sprinting, agility, lifting, etc. As long as I am diligent with my warm-up and recovery, my knee feels fine.
I have had a couple of flair-ups recently. There were times where my tendonitis got really bad, and I nearly had PRP at the end of 2019. I decided to try again to manage it on my own, and that has worked well. Then, a couple of months later, my knee flared up in a different way. I was playing 6 days a week, sometimes multiple indoor games, on hard surfaces. My knee swelled up and was painful. The ROM was even limited. I took a few days off, and it slowly improved.
How I Manage My Knee 2 Years Post Op
There are some things I do differently now to ensure my knee stays healthy and pain-free. To take care of my knee I:
- Try to heat before activity as well as after for recovery.
- Use my Compex for recovery as well as quad strength.
- Occasionally tape my knee with K-tape.
- Use a compression sleeve sometimes after workouts.
- Foam rolling and stretching.
- Take a collagen supplement
Overview
operated leg flexion 
unoperated leg flexion
operated leg extension 
unoperated leg extension
- ROM: My extension (hyperextension) is pretty much identical. My flexion is actually not the same. My knee feels very tight and slightly painful at its end range and is a few degrees from my unoperated leg. It is not a major concern, as I have fully functional flexion, but something I am still working on.
- Quad: My quad has not fully returned, especially my VMO. I feel my second surgery really set this back.
- Pain: I struggle with patellar tendonitis on and off as well as pain along my medial joint line.
- Swelling: I rarely experience swelling anymore.
- I have returned to my full activity level, including playing soccer at a high level.
My Plan
Going forward, my plan is to continue training and looking for my next playing opportunity. I want to focus on getting my quad bigger and stronger, as well as stability exercises. Even though I am in a much better place, my journey is not over. I still have work to do and want to keep my knee and body as healthy as possible.
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