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The ACL Comeback: Rehab, Reconditioning & Return to Play with Dan Lorenz

Nov 28, 2025

Dan Lorenz, Director of Sports Medicine at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, explores the intricacies of ACL rehabilitation and return-to-play strategies. He emphasizes the importance of pre-operative care to reduce inflammation and improve outcomes. Dan discusses the psychological aspects of recovery, the necessity of trust in the rehab process, and how open communication between therapists and coaches can enhance recovery. He also highlights the role of blood flow restriction training and the risk factors for re-tearing. Dan's insightful advice urges patience for long-term success.

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INSIGHT

Rehab Outweighs Graft Choice

The graft choice matters but rehab quality determines long-term success more than graft type.
Nothing ruins a great surgery more than bad rehab, so prioritize rehab execution and communication.

ADVICE

Do Prehab And Trust Objective Criteria

Do preoperative rehab: reduce swelling, restore motion, and regain some quad activation before ACL surgery.
Trust the rehab process and chase objective criteria rather than calendar dates to guide return-to-play.

ADVICE

Bridge The PT–Strength Coach Divide

Strength coaches and PTs must break down silos: PTs should learn load parameters and strength coaches should learn surgical biology.
Build mutual trust, ask questions, and coordinate programming for safer, faster outcomes.

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It seems like every day, we’re talking about a new athlete with a torn ACL.

Whether it’s the professional, collegiate, or high school ranks, it feels like torn ACL’s are now the rule versus the exception.

And while we can’t outright prevent these injuries, we can maximize any athletes comeback after they’ve happened – and that’s what we’re going to dive into today!

Dan Lorenz is the Director of Sports Medicine at Lawrence Memorial Hospital and OrthoKS in Lawrence, KS where he also serves as Program Director for the LMH Sports Physical Therapy Residency.

Over his distinguished career he’s also worked in the professional ranks for the Chicago White Sox, the Kansas City Chiefs, and in 2018, was recognized by the NSCA as the Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation Professional of the Year.

And in this episode, we’re going to take a deep dive into optimizing ACL rehab!

Quotable Quotes:

For every month you wait past six months, your risk of re-tear goes down 24% with each successive month.

Nothing ruins a great surgery more than bad rehab.

You have to trust the process. You have to do what is asked of you and make small goals.

It’s not about the calendar like timeframes. It’s objective criteria that you meet to pass.

This Week on the Physical Prep Podcast:

Dan shares his journey from a suburban Chicago upbringing to becoming a sports med director.
Why you shouldn’t rush into surgery after an ACL tear, and why pre-op treatment is so important.
Dan’s thoughts on various ACL grafts, and the ones he’s seen the most success rehabbing.
The difference between medical and physical clearance! (This is so important, PLEASE listen to this section if you’re coming back!)
Opening the lines of communication between the athlete, parent, physician AND rehab professional to achieve a great outcome.
The role BFR training can play both in ACL rehab, as well as for the older athlete with joint degeneration.
Why BFR is a great modality when mechanical load drives an increase in pain or symptoms.
Thoughts on ACL timelines and recovery – why every athlete is different and why waiting/slowing down could be the best thing you do!
The mental aspects of recovery, and why we need to think about an athletes fear of re-injury and the importance of mental readiness.
Finally, Dan’s advice to parents: “Don’t rush it,” underscoring the importance of patience in the recovery process.

Connect with Dan:

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