An ACL injury is a serious knee injury that requires specialist rehabilitation. With the right physiotherapy programme and modern technology like our AlterG anti-gravity treadmill, most athletes successfully return to their sport within 6-9 months. Our team specialises in post-operative ACL recovery.
An ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) tear is one of the most common serious knee injuries, particularly in sports that involve rapid directional changes — football, netball, rugby, tennis, skiing, and basketball.
The injury itself is often dramatic — a sudden pop, inability to weight-bear, rapid swelling. After surgery, many patients worry: "Will I ever play sport again?"
The answer is yes — if rehabilitation is done correctly. Modern ACL reconstruction surgery has high success rates (90%+ return to sport), but the physiotherapy programme that follows is equally critical. Poor rehab leads to poor outcomes; excellent rehab leads to full recovery.
At Lambert Sports Clinic, we work with patients from surgery onwards, using evidence-based protocols and cutting-edge technology like our AlterG anti-gravity treadmill to accelerate safe, confident recovery.
Each phase has specific goals, exercises, and milestones
Goal: Protect the surgical repair, reduce swelling, restore basic movement
Treatment: Gentle range of motion exercises, quad sets, straight leg raises, ice and elevation. Pain management and swelling control are priorities.
Goal: Restore knee movement, initiate quadriceps & hamstring strengthening, normalise walking
Treatment: Progressive range of motion, isometric strengthening, proprioception work. This is where AlterG begins — reduced-load walking on the treadmill allows weight-bearing without pain.
Goal: Build quadriceps and hamstring strength to 80-90% of pre-injury levels
Treatment: Resistance training, AlterG progression (walking and light running at reduced body weight), proprioception exercises, core strengthening. Balance and stability drills begin.
Goal: Achieve strength equal to non-injured leg, restore agility and cutting movements
Treatment: Sport-specific exercises, lateral movements, cutting drills at controlled speeds, proprioception challenges, plyometric foundation work (controlled jumping).
Goal: Restore high-speed running, sport-specific skills, psychological confidence
Treatment: Progressive running progressions from walk-to-jog to unrestricted running, sport-specific drills, agility work, return-to-sport testing to verify readiness.
Goal: Return to unrestricted sport participation, ongoing injury prevention
Treatment: Sport-specific conditioning, ongoing strength maintenance, prevention strategies to reduce re-injury risk, graded return to competition.
Traditional ACL rehab requires patients to wait 12+ weeks before attempting any running — because full weight-bearing is painful and risky too soon. This long running hiatus leads to:
AlterG changes everything. By reducing your body weight by up to 80%, the AlterG allows running and walking at much lower loads, enabling:
AlterG uses an air-filled chamber around your lower body to reduce gravitational load. You can reduce your body weight from 100% to 20% in 1% increments, allowing precise, progressive loading.
Example ACL progression on AlterG:
Comprehensive assessment and personalised treatment planning
When was your surgery? What type of graft? How has rehab progressed? Your goals and sport?
Knee movement range, swelling, strength testing, stability tests, gait analysis, proprioception assessment.
Single leg balance, step-down control, walking/running analysis to identify deficits.
Personalised rehabilitation roadmap with specific milestones for your phase of recovery.
First session of manual therapy, AlterG, and exercise training.
Detailed programme for daily home exercise between clinic sessions.
Post-operative physiotherapy is covered by most private health insurance policies. We accept:
Direct billing available for most insurers. Contact us to verify your specific cover before your appointment. Many patients find their rehabilitation is fully covered or covered up to a pre-approved number of sessions.
Whether you're 2 weeks post-op or 3 months into rehab, we can help you progress safely and efficiently back to sport.
INDEPENDENTLY
REGULATED
Most physiotherapy clinics in England are not required to register with the Care Quality Commission. Lambert Sports Clinic has voluntarily registered — submitting to the same independent inspections, safety audits, and clinical governance standards as NHS providers, hospitals, and GP surgeries.
Our infection control procedures, safeguarding policies, staff competency checks, and patient safety standards are independently verified — not just self-certified.