I had surgery on my lateral meniscus roughly three weeks. i’m to walk fine and this point, and have been doing about 30 mins/day on the elliptical and stairclimber (still can’t run). Besides some swelling, it’s coming along well. Is it too soon to start doing leg exercises at this point, i.e., squats, lunges, leg press, etc.?
(I’m not a MD, but I’ve had MCL and meniscus tear)
You should ask you OS or PT.
If the OS didn’t recommend PT, then I suspect you had a “minor” meniscus tear. Usually arthroscopic surgery can cut away and smooth the cartilage, with minimal complications. Post op, did they measure your knee flexion or strength?
Had you been advised to go to PT, you’d have had a regimen of excersizes, including cycling movement (easy level), simple heel slides and leg lifts (with or without weights).
Is it too soon to start doing leg exercises at this point, i.e., squats, lunges, leg press, etc.?
I wouldn’t do squats or lunges until you know the integrity of your knee. Do seated leg extensions with light weight to test your knee. Increase weight in small increments. What weight can you do now compared to pre injury? 50% 60% 90% ? When you get to 85% or higher, try light squats and lunges. You might have lost some stability in your knee, so be careful, especially on the lunges.
Good luck, and I hope some Orthopedic Surgeons or Physical Therapists are on ST to better answer your question.
This seems like a question you should ask your surgeon, who would know the exact extent of your injury and be able to provide advice based on that knowledge. Anyone else would just be guessing.
I agree that you should ask your surgeon. I had my follow-up appointment one week after the meniscectomy and my surgeon (who happens to be an IM athlete) encouraged me to go ahead and start doing leg presses and squats in the gym. If I didn’t appear to be recovering as quickly, he might have told me differently, of course. He also had me returning to cycling right away, but I wasn’t able to run until about 5-6 weeks out. I was 59, FWIW.
Surgeon specific question.
I started 1 week after surgery. I was in passive motion IMMEDIATELY after surgery.