Forums >Health and Nutrition>Running After Hip Replacement
My neighbor is 62 this year and had his hip replaced 4 years ago. He still runs with no problem. He uses good judgment and doesn't run on slippery surfaces or anything that would disrupt his surgery but he runs 20 to 30 miles a week. Let your body tell you what to do.
One of the fastest female grandmasters runners in Tennessee has bilateral hip replacements. Bionics, methinks. Here is her story. Her RA profile. A thread of hers.
One of the fastest female grandmasters runners in Tennessee has bilateral hip replacements. Bionics, methinks.
Here is her story.
Her RA profile.
A thread of hers.
I am a 46 year old woman and a Physical Therapist. I have been running since I was 11, competitively in high school and recreationally afterward. I started running after my dad had a heart attack at age 46, because I decided I was going to keep my heart healthy despite my genetics. However, it was ironic that despite my best intentions, I ended up with severe osteoarthritis at this same "young" age. I was diagnosed with dysplasia, which some breeds of dogs are prone to get, but it was unknown to me until an x-ray was done 2 yrs. ago. I went to 4 different doctors to hear the same thing: "You need to stop running and will need hip replacements in the future." I am stubborn, I admit, and I tried to keep running/cross-training, thinking that it still must be a soft tissue problem. I had 3 steroid injections which helped for a few months, but eventually the nerve compression pain was too much. I was limping and couldn't sleep through the night with shooting and cramping pain. I had a specialist evaluate me for hip resurfacing, but he said that it would be a coin toss as to whether or not it would help me, and eventually I would need to have the hips replaced. Long story short, I had them both done this summer, 3 weeks apart, only 2 days in the hospital. I chose to have the posterior approach for cosmetic purposes (I didn't want to look at the scars in the mirror), and because of the easier access to the joint. This meant that I had "precautions" to adhere to (no crossing legs, no bending more than 90 degrees at the hip and no rolling my knee inward) for 3 months. After each surgery, I was walking with a walker on the same day and using nothing after 2 days. I was driving within the week and hiking 3 1/2 miles only 2 1/2 weeks after the 2nd surgery. Now, 4 1/2 months later, I have achieved a pretty decent running pace for 3 miles. I am also not accepting the idea that running is out of my life. I don't plan to do another marathon, but I would like to do some shorter triathlons. I hope to hear of more people like me who have continued to run despite hip replacements! Good luck to you all!
...what a great thread//............I'm 63 and HAD been running for 42-years,,,,,,,,, managed to run from ''Moderately Severe'' to ''SEVERE'' OA in both hips and have been PoolRunning for the last 5-years (since Watching Paint Dry isn't considered Aerobic) probably going to get the hip replaced in a couple more years (after retirement) this is a very encouraging discussion to read thanks.
...what a great thread//............I'm 63 and HAD been running for 42-years,,,,,,,,,
managed to run
from ''Moderately Severe'' to ''SEVERE'' OA in both hips
and
have been PoolRunning for the last 5-years
(since Watching Paint Dry isn't considered Aerobic)
probably going to get the hip replaced in a couple more years (after retirement)
this is a very encouraging discussion to read
thanks.
I'm a few days postop (anterior THR of the right hip) which was the culmination of 11 months of pain, medication, research, interviewing doctors and surgeons, switching insurance companies, and, last week, going under the knife.
It's been a tough road at times but I believe that my patience and research has paid off - though I'm early in the recovery process, everything has gone superbly to whit that, at no time since the surgery have I needed to use a walker, cane, or any other assistive device. As of the three days postop mark, I've been able to walk, bend down, crouch down to pick things up off the floor, put on socks, sit on a normal toilet, etc. I'm able to walk down steps slowly but I still have to "peg leg" downstairs.
While each person's situation is different, there was no way I would have delayed my surgery.
I hope that you've had your surgery by this point so this is my tuppence for people reading this thread — don't delay. Just as "bad news does not get better with time", nor does AO. It's an unremitting destruction of the cartilage and bone in a joint that can cause significant physical and emotional problems in its victims and, unless you have extenuating circumstances, the sooner you halt that process of degrading your life, the better off you will be.