Pre-hab

I go under the knife in 16 days. The better shape you are in pre-operation, the quicker you will be able to rehab and get back to whatever it is you like to do. I'm working out 3-4 times a week. I always do full-body workouts with ab days inbetween. My focus currently is on leg extensions, romanian dead lifts or leg curls (but I find that RDL's are easier on my knees), and calf raises.

I add these to my upper body workouts (which vary from day to day). I also prefer to do more complex leg exercises, but I am limited by what my injured knee is currently capable of.

Here are the descriptions of these exercises:

Romanian Deadlift:

Start: stand tall with a slight bend in your knee or knees (about 15 degrees of bend if you want to be specific). Push your hips back so your weight starts to go to your heel or heels, as your hips push backwards your torso should start to lower to the ground. I encourage athletes to fall backwards, this way I know they are pushing back into the heels. I would rather have too much weight going back than none at all. As they fall back the torso needs to balance out the falling and they need to learn how to balance this position. From a visual point they should feel as if they are mooning someone. The position of the upper body should be a straight line from shoulder to hips. If the lower back has an anterior or posterior tilt the pressure will be directed at the low back and will cause pain or discomfort. The initial depth for me is just to the tops of the knees. I want the student to understand the movement of the hips pushing back. The lower back should maintain a neutral position. Since the hips started the movement by pushing back, they will initiate the return by pushing forward. The body should return to the start position.

Leg Extension:

This is pretty simple really. Just find a leg extension machine and extend your legs from bent to straight.

Calf Raise:

There are 2 methods - machine or free. I prefer the machine because it allows me to focus on my calves and not on the dumbells. I also believe it keeps my form better, and it doesn't bother my knee as much.

With all of these exercises (and any others that you choose to try), make sure you are using a slow, fluid motion. Do not swing the weights or try to create momentum, this is a complete waste of your time and you are more likely to hurt yourself. Make sure you keep in good form and do as many reps as you can with good form.

I always follow up my workout by stretching. Hamstrings, calves, quads, groin, hip flexor, lower back, and whatever upper body parts you feel fit. As this is about kne rehab, I'll stick to talking about legs mostly.