so i injured my knee, totally non cycling related

tripped over my dog ( 200lb bullmastiff) jammed an iron rod into the inside of my knee then slammed it into a 4x4 post. sweet huh ?

so i am finally back to walking regularly with minimal pain after 2 months. There was no permanent damage according to x-ray and mri.

how easy should i take it getting back to riding? i rode a little 5 mile trip and seemed fine, but it was on my cruiser. Should i go ahead and try a flat 20 miles or so ? see how it goes?

I think this is something you should be asking your doctor not people on the internet.

+1 but I'd take it easy for a while and let it heal completely first. If you over do it, you'll be starting over from square one and it'll prolly take longer to heal the second time around.

obviously i have been talking to a dr. i was more looking for real world experience , i.e. when i hurt me knee, this is how i progressed.....

So your looking for someone else who tripped over their dog ( 200lb bullmastiff) jammed an iron rod into the inside of their knee then slammed it into a 4x4 post and happens to be a cyclist? Not to be sarcastic, but every injury is different and will heel at different rates. If your doc recommends riding <5-10 miles, take his advice and your body will let you know if your overdoing it. I wish you a speedy recovery!

You are asking if you should jump from 5 to 20 miles?
There's a lot of increments between those 2 numbers!
I'd use at least 3-4 of them.

Posted by someone that had a titanium rod inserted through their knee!
Intermedullary nailing of the tibia.