by h.harb » Mon Sep 14, 2015 2:34 pm
Thanks all. Yes, PMTS has the most efficiency and requires the least amount of strength of any system, to ski well.
However, what you have to consider, I did a crash 5 month training program before I went into surgery, thousands of squats, lunges, Plyos, and uphill running. My legs were stronger then I had them in years. I used up what was left of the arthritic knee, because I knew it was going away. It was painful, but absolutely necessary.
I was also very lean when I went into surgery, 145 pounds, and I stayed that way and even got lighter during rehab, carrying extra weight makes recovery and the knee more difficult to recover. After surgery, I began immediately with rehab and I pushed to the limits. This has both ups and downs, not to mention many painful nights. While I was waiting for my knee to recover from surgery, staples etc (the first few weeks not much strength work can be introduced to the leg). I was conditioning my hips, back, and abs as well as my upper body. I spends hours of boredom on a stationary bike, in whirlpools and swimming. And I pushed with pain, regardless of how I felt in the morning.
Yes, you can do many things after you recover from knee replacements, but few have skied at three months. Just want to make the expectations realistic. And remember it isn't a race. Most people take their time, they take a year or more. They don't want to push that hard and be in pain everyday. It's all in your motivation, but in the end, if you do the work, you will be rewarded. My friend Hermann Gollner, had his knee done 5 years before me. He told me, it's not for the weak of heart. He is a tough guy, when you hear that from a guy like him, its revealing. Of course, he pushed hard as well, and was very impatient, but that's the nature of the beast.