Thread: Hunting with a knee injury

Firstly i'd say don't trust us on the forum. Listen to your doctor/physio/specialist first and foremost! The specialist/surgeon will give the best info specific to your injury, and your situation.

In my experience (lots of injuries!), doctors and physios are more generalised so more often than not tend to air on the side of caution.

Also i'd say in my experience, lot's of GP's are useless, some are awesome. Most physios are useless imo and a good one is hard to find. Hence i'd talk to and listen to a specialist specific to your injury any day of the week.


Other than that I can say i don't have an ACL, tore the collateral and pulled some of the hammy from the bone all on the same side at the same time. No surgery and i hunt almost weekly and train daily. Hence, longer term you can certainly make things happen.

Once everything is all sorted i'd suggest getting stuck into a solid strength regime with a strong focus on the legs, especially the glutes (hand brake and stabiliser for the knee). Obvilously including quads, hammys and calves. Maintain good flexibility to improve movement performance when out on the hill and its also a major insurance against injury.

Prior to your op, the stronger your legs are and the more muscle development you have the quicker you'll bounce back from surgery.

For cardio and joint health going forward, a push bike/stationary spin bike will be your friend. Think cardio without knee joint impact....


For longer term management i'd also suggest supplementing any or all of the following:

Glucosamine
Fish oil
Green lip mussel extract
Shark cartilage or similar collagen type product
Magnesium

At least the top two anyhow. IMO the best manufacture in NZ is https://www.o2bhealthy.co.nz/ . They're fully NZ owned and all produced locally in Nelson, there pricing is also good.

This will further help with your joint health long term as the weakness is now there and will never go away. But hopefully you won't need a full knee replacement later on as that can often lead to further issues with hips then going and then both on the other side etc...

Lastly, with any supplement use, always read up on them to ensure they're good for you. Monitor how they affect you as what works for one may not work for another.

All the best!