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February, 2025

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Skiing with torn ACL?

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Hof
Posts: 19 - Karma: 223
I recently had a pretty painful accident on a trampoline and thought I'd done serious damage to my knee but A and E said nothing was wrong. So I got back on skis a week later for a very mellow session without any jumps and managed to avoid any pain. My knee seemed to be making progress every day, but I still lacked some flexibility to decided to go to a physio to make sure I recovered properly.

He then informed me that I'd torn my ACL, but this was only 3 weeks later and I was managing almost every movement pain free which is very unusual. He asked if I'd injured it before, which I had about 4 years ago when I massively over extended it trying to land switch in pow but catching my tails, so its entirely possible that I actually tore it then and never realised. Also, the recent accident is not typically the kind to cause ACL damage whereas the one from 4 years ago is, but I honestly have no idea when I tore it.

The physio said I'm absolutely fine to continue any exercise (including park skiing and trampoline) as long as there's no pain, and thinks I'll be fully functional in just a few more weeks. Its been 1 month now and I went back to the snow dome park (I'm from the UK) and managed to do basic rail tricks without any pain, so I know I'll have no trouble with casual skiing around a mountain or anything like that, but I'm yet to properly send it or take any big impacts. I know that some people never bother with reconstructive surgery and have a full recovery without it. However, I'm supposed to be going to Japan for the season in a couple of weeks, and was really hoping to see a lot of progress on jumps this season but I don't know if I should seriously lower my expectations now?

Was just wondering if anyone has had any experience skiing around with a torn ACL without reconstructive surgery and if they managed everything as normal or if it seriously impacted their performance?
Nov 28 2023 2:28PM
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dant02
Posts: 253 - Karma: 2,345
If you want to push through that’s all you. There is an increased likelihood of injuring other ligaments in your knee, especially meniscuses. In addition you will have general instability until surgery. How old are you? Do you want to deal with chronic knee pain in the future?
Nov 28 2023 2:59PM
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eheath
Posts: 61841 - Karma: 125,567
There are a ton of pro skiers that have skied without an ACL, strength and a brace make a huge difference, but you are risking further damage to your meniscus.
Nov 28 2023 3:02PM
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Hof
Posts: 19 - Karma: 223
I'm 22, and obviously want to avoid future chronic knee pain. I'll most likely get an MRI after my season to work out the full extent of the damage.
dant02If you want to push through that’s all you. There is an increased likelihood of injuring other ligaments in your knee, especially meniscuses. In addition you will have general instability until surgery. How old are you? Do you want to deal with chronic knee pain in the future?
Nov 28 2023 3:26PM
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Hof
Posts: 19 - Karma: 223
I figure that if I get surgery, whenever I do decide to do that I'll be out for a year anyways, so I guess any other damage I end up doing before then will also have time to heal haha

But cheers, it's good to know that some the of the pros have managed without it at their level
eheathThere are a ton of pro skiers that have skied without an ACL, strength and a brace make a huge difference, but you are risking further damage to your meniscus.
Nov 28 2023 3:28PM
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snomaster
Posts: 3346 - Karma: 5,776
eheathThere are a ton of pro skiers that have skied without an ACL, strength and a brace make a huge difference, but you are risking further damage to your meniscus.

tammy wallnutz says to just land switch, right?

OP - Have fun in JAPAN!!
Nov 28 2023 4:09PM
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Knapzach
Posts: 471 - Karma: 5,148
HofI figure that if I get surgery, whenever I do decide to do that I'll be out for a year anyways, so I guess any other damage I end up doing before then will also have time to heal haha

But cheers, it's good to know that some the of the pros have managed without it at their level

Super valid but that meniscus stuff can be a real bitch come recovery
Nov 28 2023 5:01PM
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midwestcoast
Posts: 224 - Karma: 2,326
I had a 15% ACL tear in Whistler, late Feb. 2010. I over-rotated a 3 and wheelied out a landing. I knew I was injured. I skied down to the base relatively fine, but I clearly something was off. I could walk fine(ish) initially, but when I woke up the next day I was in pain - only able to apply minimal weight on my leg. I passed all the "manual" tests (doctor pushing and pulling, etc.) but after MRI I was diagnosed with the partial ACL. Once I learned of the timeline for recovery with surgery vs. no surgery, I opted for NO surgery - I'm a boat captain in the summer, and need my balance. Surgery would have made the recovery twice as long, and a miserable summer. I started tackling rehab, bought a bike, etc. I was able to walk normal within a month. Main difference from your situation is I didn't ski the rest of the season. I maybe could've skied in April or May, but I didn't want to risk it. I skied around 90 days the following season with no issue. I used to think I might eventually need arthroscopic surgery in old age to clean up any scar tissue, but I don't believe that anymore.
Since then, I've been fine, but my ski philosophy is different for sure. I started paying attention to my ski mechanics much more than I did previously. Sure, I still hit jumps and pipe, but I have no problem not taking risks when I can recognize I'm tired and my skiing is getting sloppy.
I'm no doctor, but my honest opinion is that you are putting yourself in more risk than necessary. You likely feel good, but I guarantee your knee is not 100%. Obviously, your decisions are up to you, but I'd throttle back a little to avoid being in a foreign country with a debilitating injury. Still have fun, but pay attention. Don't drink and ski, keep your balance and decision making sharp.
Good luck the rest of the season! Very jealous you'll be in Japan!
Nov 28 2023 5:52PM
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Farmville420
Posts: 5006 - Karma: 64,910
You only get one body in this life, every injury you ignore now will come back when you're trying to continue doing the things you love when you're 40. I've ridden with a ton of adults would bitch about their knees when we skied together, Tanner Hall is lacing quads at 40. Choice is yours ultimately but that's just an observation I've had over the years.
Nov 28 2023 5:53PM
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Hof
Posts: 19 - Karma: 223
midwestcoastI had a 15% ACL tear in Whistler, late Feb. 2010. I over-rotated a 3 and wheelied out a landing. I knew I was injured. I skied down to the base relatively fine, but I clearly something was off. I could walk fine(ish) initially, but when I woke up the next day I was in pain - only able to apply minimal weight on my leg. I passed all the "manual" tests (doctor pushing and pulling, etc.) but after MRI I was diagnosed with the partial ACL. Once I learned of the timeline for recovery with surgery vs. no surgery, I opted for NO surgery - I'm a boat captain in the summer, and need my balance. Surgery would have made the recovery twice as long, and a miserable summer. I started tackling rehab, bought a bike, etc. I was able to walk normal within a month. Main difference from your situation is I didn't ski the rest of the season. I maybe could've skied in April or May, but I didn't want to risk it. I skied around 90 days the following season with no issue. I used to think I might eventually need arthroscopic surgery in old age to clean up any scar tissue, but I don't believe that anymore.
Since then, I've been fine, but my ski philosophy is different for sure. I started paying attention to my ski mechanics much more than I did previously. Sure, I still hit jumps and pipe, but I have no problem not taking risks when I can recognize I'm tired and my skiing is getting sloppy.
I'm no doctor, but my honest opinion is that you are putting yourself in more risk than necessary. You likely feel good, but I guarantee your knee is not 100%. Obviously, your decisions are up to you, but I'd throttle back a little to avoid being in a foreign country with a debilitating injury. Still have fun, but pay attention. Don't drink and ski, keep your balance and decision making sharp.
Good luck the rest of the season! Very jealous you'll be in Japan!

Thanks man, appreciate it. Still waiting on the visa so that might be the season ender instead! The problem for me is that I have no idea whether or not I tore it 4 years ago. If I did, then I'd feel a lot more confident going into this season as I've been without it for so long and never felt anything. Regardless, I'm still going to be careful before I try anything new.
Nov 28 2023 6:01PM
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michael_bc
Posts: 1396 - Karma: 788
The referenced post has been removed.

Different doctors have different opinions on this. There is a school of thought that ACL reconstruction is not necessary and physiotherapy is the better way to go.

However, please don't rely on the opinion of a physiotherapist only.

Get an MRI and an appointment with a proper sports knee doctor. Do this before you leave for Japan. You don't want to rely on maybes. It sucks not to know.

Personally, I suspect the MRI will reveal you only stretched a ligament rather than tore it. But only one way to know...
Nov 29 2023 5:53AM
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snowmosexual
Posts: 1939 - Karma: 10,071
I skied with a torn acl and damaged my meniscus because of it. It's my number one regret in life. Recovering from ACL surgery was way harder because of the meniscus damage. The meniscus cannot be fully repaired, parts of it get no blood flow. Once its gone, its gone. Your meniscus acts as shock absorption in your knee. All activities are not as enjoyable as they once were because I'm missing 15% of my meniscus. Please hear my warning. You can still ski, but you should ski like a 80 year old man that wants to live to 120. No jumping, no high speeds, no harsh movements.
Nov 30 2023 12:29PM
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C-WAK
Posts: 6 - Karma: 23
Partially tore my ACL two seasons ago. After my MRI results, I was under the impression that I fully tore it so I decided to ski on it thinking I didn't have anything to lose. My knee was swollen for a few days after the initial injury and I had trouble walking. Within two weeks, I toured up and skied down my home mountain. There was still pain but I got up and down fine. Continued to ski on it for a few weeks up until the day before my surgery, hitting rails and smaller jumps. When they opened my knee up, they found that I tore my meniscus and strained my LCL due to skiing on it post MRI. Surgery and recovery went well but I still have pains after running or skiing on it. Definitely do some strength conditioning before your trip if you decide to ski on it. Otherwise, I would lay low and heal up to prevent further injury
Nov 30 2023 3:37PM
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skiminnesota
Posts: 9093 - Karma: 429
Certainly not a doctor, but as a guy in his mid 30s who tore my ACL in my mid 20s, I am 100% glad I had it replaced. I went with the patellar tendon replacement vs the hamstring based on the rec of my surgeon. If you do what the doc and PT say you can 100% come back strong I skied better the year after my surgery then I was skiing the year I tore it.

The recovery sucks, but work you butt off and it will be worth it.
Dec 1 2023 10:44PM
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VT_scratch
Posts: 8823 - Karma: 6,410
skiminnesotaCertainly not a doctor, but as a guy in his mid 30s who tore my ACL in my mid 20s, I am 100% glad I had it replaced. I went with the patellar tendon replacement vs the hamstring based on the rec of my surgeon. If you do what the doc and PT say you can 100% come back strong I skied better the year after my surgery then I was skiing the year I tore it.

The recovery sucks, but work you butt off and it will be worth it.


I just tore my acl and fractured my tibia plateau skiing whistler park last week. Waiting to get an MRI still to see if other ligaments have been damaged but the doctor felt sure about the acl tear sadly :(

What was your surgery and post surgery process like? how long until you were allowed to walk again etc?

thanks
May 14 2024 8:25PM
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