As Dr. William Sterett, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist at Vail-Summit Orthopaedics & Neurosurgery in the mountain town of Vail, Colorado, I’ve treated thousands of ACL injuries over the course of my career. While some ACL tears are due to unavoidable factors—like genetics or bad luck—others are the result of habits and movement patterns that can absolutely be changed.

The good news? These are behaviors you can control. Let’s look at three common actions or choices that put your ACL at risk—and what you can do to protect your knees before injury strikes.

CrossFit often involves explosive movements like jumping, squatting, and cutting—all of which can put stress on the knees. The rapid changes in direction and high-impact landings in some workouts increase the risk of an ACL tear, especially if your knee isn’t adequately supported by surrounding muscles.

Here’s how to know when you need revision ACL reconstruction and what to expect from the procedure.