To recap:



July : my knee locked out and popped when I sprawled on a takedown.



August : I was a sulking moaning crippled Shebeast.



September : 80% better. I could roll fairly well. Just couldn't kneel at all or squat very well.



October : My knee locked out and caused paaaaaain, again. Aside from being a little sore the next day, there wasn't any noticeable regression in recovery.



November : 90% better. I could squat (body weight with an additional 20kg or so) without any pain or feeling of giving way. Could kneel fully, but it was uncomfortable, but most of my weight shifted to my right (good) side. The knee felt unstable every couple of days. I would wobble when running around my classroom, and hear regular pops when changing gear whilst driving. No real pain though. And I never felt like my leg was literally hanging off or anything..



4th Dec : MRI Scan. Went like this; "WHAOO WHAOO.. NNEEEAAWWW NNEEEAAAEWWWW NEEEAAAAAWWW... BBBBZZZZZ BBBBBZZZZZZ BBZZZZZZ". It was awfully annoying.



24th December : MRI results. A fully ruptured ACL. There's nothing remaining. AT ALL. So I've trained and competed without a ligament for 6 months. Swell.



The specialist has strongly recommended surgery. He's also said it will be 9 months before any contact sports. I read that as "9 months before any hard rolling". I understand they'll be taking tissue from my hamstring and using that to create a new ACL. I've already received some fantastic advice from friends who train reiterating the importance of prehab, rest and rehab. It seems like that will be the deciding factor in the length of time off training.



The waiting list for the surgery is roughly 4 months. In the meantime, I'll he training my ass off. I've nothing to lose (quite literally!). I will try to compete as much as possible and improve my jiu jitsu.



Its going to be a real test of my dedication and discipline (BJJ has helped me lose weight and focus on pursuing a healthy lifestyle). I think I might be a bit lost without jiu jitsu!



I'll have to turn my attention to rehab. And pull ups. Lots of pull ups.



Gah. Merry bloody Christmas!