From Injury to Recovery: The Truth About ACL Rehab for Young Athletes with Coach Carmen Bott

The Ready State Podcast

Kelly Starrett & Juliet Starrett

Fitness, Health & Fitness

4.9 • 623 Ratings

🗓️ 2 October 2025

⏱️ 66 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

ACL tears used to be rare in high school sports. Today, they’re an epidemic. Behind the headlines, there’s one voice cutting through the noise with hard truths, practical solutions, and decades of experience: Coach Carmen Bott. Known online as “Coach Bott,” she’s become the go-to expert on youth athletic development and late-stage ACL rehab, guiding parents, athletes, and coaches through one of the most pressing crises in sports performance.

In this episode of The Ready State Podcast, Kelly and Juliet Starrett sit down with Coach Bott to dig into why so many kids are getting hurt, why recovery takes longer than most parents realize, and how we can protect the next generation of athletes.

What You'll Learn in This Episode

Why ACL rehab isn’t 12 weeks—it’s a full year
The difference between yesterday’s athletes and today’s single-sport kids
Red flags parents should watch for in youth sport programs
How to support kids when insurance and the system fall short
The myths around strength training and growth in young athletes
Why prevention starts with play, variety, and strength—not fear
The real story behind the menstrual cycle and ACL injury debates

Key Highlights:

(00:00) - Intro

(00:54) - Carmen's Background

(05:26) - Athletes 25 Years Ago

(10:00) - Good Rehab Program Criteria

(13:18) - Ideal Club System for Athletes

(16:40) - Supporting Kids in Sports

(23:46) - Post-Acute Rehab Strategies

(29:32)) - Return to Play: Getting Fitter

(32:23) - Importance of Exposure in Rehab

(39:34) - Returning to Contact Sports

(44:51) - Preventing ACL Injuries in Kids

(52:30) - Menstrual Cycle and Athletic Performance

(56:04) - Myth Busting in Sports

(58:20) - Where to Find Carmen

(59:34) - Outro

Transcript

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0:00.0	Unfortunately, it's led me down this road to become a bit of a go-to person in late-stage rehab for knee trauma, particularly ACL.
0:08.3	You know, knee trauma and injuries and surgical interventions.
0:11.9	It wasn't something that I wanted to do because who wants to make a living helping 15-year-old kids do rehab for almost an entire year.
0:20.5	But you just said the rehab as year.
0:21.6	I think that's going to be astounding to a lot of parents and a lot of coaches who hear this,
0:26.6	that this timeframe for return to play full healing, you just said unequivocally a year.
0:31.6	I thought I was discharged from physical therapy at 12 weeks. I don't get it.
0:34.6	Carmen Bot is a strength and conditioning coach with over 20 years of experience.
0:38.8	She holds a master's in exercise science and is a certified strength and conditioning specialist,
0:43.2	practicing kinesiologists, and university instructor.
0:45.9	Coach Bod is an expert in post-ACL surgery injury recovery and returning adolescents to sport.
0:51.5	She was recognized for her work with combative and team sport athletes, sharing her methods
0:55.5	through consulting, podcasts, and conferences worldwide.
0:59.4	So as soon as the sutures are out and the doc says, you can go in the pool?
1:03.3	Guess what?
1:03.8	You're in the pool.
1:04.5	You're water running for a month.
1:06.3	Then you're doing retrograde treadmill to your thighs feel like they're going to fall off.
1:11.1	You're the worst.
1:12.9	Carmen, welcome to the Ready State podcast.
1:16.2	Thank you so much. I'm very excited to be here today. What an honor.
1:20.5	Well, let me just set this up for everyone. I know Coach Bot because she is one of the best
	...

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