Getting this West Hempstead man out of a real 'pickle'

Like many sports-loving adults, the pandemic pushed James Ackies Jr. to pick up a pickleball paddle. The 47-year-old father of four lives near Hempstead Lake State Park and its outdoor courts. Soon, Ackies was playing with and against his entire family, including 20-year-old son, James Ackies III.

But in December 2021, Ackies underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus suffered while playing pickleball as well as an older ACL injury, both in the right knee. Enter Northwell Health STARS Rehabilitation and Roger W. Gerland, a physical therapist and certified athletic trainer. He already knew Ackies, recommended a surgeon and personally rehabbed the dad, who was eager to get back on the pickleball court to take on all comers.

Dr. Randy Cohn, a renowned orthopedic sports medicine expert, performed successful surgery at Long Island Jewish Valley Stream. After six months of rehab, Ackies returned to pickleball. He’s been an advocate of the game — and proper warmups — ever since.

“It’s an adrenaline rush like what you get from football, basketball and other contact sports, but without the contact,” said Ackies, a construction worker in BAC Local 7. “It still gets the competitive juices flowing, but without all the soreness you’d get. I recommend to my friends to no longer play basketball and get into pickleball for the activity.”

Recent reports from insurers and health care sector analysts claim that pickleball is, in part, responsible for a rise in injuries and accounts for up to $500 million in additional medical costs nationwide. Strains, sprains and fractures are common, but so too are knee injuries that require surgery.

“We recognized that we were beginning to see a lot of pickleball injuries in our orthopedic practices and emergency departments at Northwell Health and STARS Rehabilitation,” said Roger Gerland of STARS. “So we joined forces with Pickleball Plus to initiate a pickleball injury prevention and education program. It’s about properly warming up as well as the right footwear to help limit the number of injuries.”

Pickleball Plus in West Hempstead is the largest indoor pickleball facility in the tri-state area. Pickleball Plus and STARS Rehabilitation periodically offer training sessions on proper warm-up exercises for playing pickleball.

Form matters too. Maria Lobben, the Pickleball Plus club pro who is PPR certified, stresses using big muscle groups such as quadriceps and shoulders to volley. Overuse of arm muscles, for example, can lead to wrist and elbow injuries.