My ACL Recovery

In 2018, I suffered my first major sports injury. I tore my ACL at the USA Open during the last few seconds of the finals. I was shocked and instantly heartbroken. I had no idea if I would have enough time or not to have the surgery, rehab my knee and get back to international competition form.

After the initial visit to Dr Gordon Nuber, I was confident that I was going to be able to beat the clock on my road by the competition. I searched for the best physical therapists around, and I found Dr Davor Vasiljevic, a former USA Judo athlete who came highly recommended by other athletes.

Dr Nuber did a fantastic job on my surgery, and then the real work started. First, I had to learn how to walk again (normally), bend my knee, straighten it, strengthen it and finally, ease back into karate. I am very grateful to Dr Nuber for his excellent work on my knee and to Davor for his commitment to getting me back on track. I was fortunate to be able to compete at the 2018 World Championships in Spain, just 7 months after my injury. I continue to strengthen and improve my knee, even more than a year later. As an older athlete, it is very important to treat my body well, giving myself adequate rest and nutrition. And a very long warm-up!