THR My Intro...
- Thread starter C Mac
- Start date
- Status
I didn't mean OCD I meant COPD! 
OP
OP
C Mac
post-grad
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2011
- Messages
- 1,396
- Age
- 63
- Gender
- Female
- Country
United States
You know, I should do an update as my fake hip is now 1 1/2 years old! 
To save you from having to read back through my thread I've visited with a variety of care professionals since my hip got installed -- seen the OS more times than I'd have hoped or expected, been to the chiropractor many times, been to the acupuncturists about 6 or 8 times, been to a Pain Management specialist (non-surgeon), been to a broken link removed: https://www.rolf.org/about for myofascial release work, been to a broken link removed: https://www.bodyawarement.com/services_3.html specialist for movement work and the usual suspects like physical therapists.
I do still have some lingering after effects of the surgery that I haven't figured out how to resolve but have managed to learn to deal with them; much as I'd learned to deal with the many years of having a funky hip and then having a dysfunctional hip prior to giving in to the replacement surgery.
Now, I am back into the gym but with a really geriatric work-out -- but I am back and finding my way, carefully. In the fall I did a weekly broken link removed: https://www.bodyawarement.com/atm_classes_9.html that was limited to very minimal movement related sessions and really being slow and mindful of my whole body's bits and pieces. After 4 months of ATM class I am beginning an adaptive yoga class, finally, as it had been my goal at this time last year. It's a big step up but now I can handle it!!
As we are continually reminded by Josephine everything IS all connected and interconnected!! I am grateful for my left side where all the muscles behave, play nicely together and don't give me pause to think about them in individual fashion. My right side, often leads me to ponder the piriformis, tensor fasciae latea, adductors, gluteus medius, semitendinosus, rectus femoris et al. There is just always something going on in that leg! Fortunately, it is soft tissue related and my hardware is settled happily in its zone rotating around like it is supposed to.
So, this is my year of on-going adaptation -- with the hip.
Happy New Year everyone and thanks for keeping track of me
Take care,
Cardie
To save you from having to read back through my thread I've visited with a variety of care professionals since my hip got installed -- seen the OS more times than I'd have hoped or expected, been to the chiropractor many times, been to the acupuncturists about 6 or 8 times, been to a Pain Management specialist (non-surgeon), been to a broken link removed: https://www.rolf.org/about for myofascial release work, been to a broken link removed: https://www.bodyawarement.com/services_3.html specialist for movement work and the usual suspects like physical therapists.
I do still have some lingering after effects of the surgery that I haven't figured out how to resolve but have managed to learn to deal with them; much as I'd learned to deal with the many years of having a funky hip and then having a dysfunctional hip prior to giving in to the replacement surgery.
Now, I am back into the gym but with a really geriatric work-out -- but I am back and finding my way, carefully. In the fall I did a weekly broken link removed: https://www.bodyawarement.com/atm_classes_9.html that was limited to very minimal movement related sessions and really being slow and mindful of my whole body's bits and pieces. After 4 months of ATM class I am beginning an adaptive yoga class, finally, as it had been my goal at this time last year. It's a big step up but now I can handle it!!
As we are continually reminded by Josephine everything IS all connected and interconnected!! I am grateful for my left side where all the muscles behave, play nicely together and don't give me pause to think about them in individual fashion. My right side, often leads me to ponder the piriformis, tensor fasciae latea, adductors, gluteus medius, semitendinosus, rectus femoris et al. There is just always something going on in that leg! Fortunately, it is soft tissue related and my hardware is settled happily in its zone rotating around like it is supposed to.
So, this is my year of on-going adaptation -- with the hip.
Happy New Year everyone and thanks for keeping track of me
Take care,
Cardie
OP
OP
C Mac
post-grad
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2011
- Messages
- 1,396
- Age
- 63
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
I just have to quickly let you know that in my adaptive yoga class we do CLAMSHELLS!!!
Holy, moly there is just no escaping those things....
I must say that I am pretty good at them -- after a year and a half...
Have a good day and if you are a newbie, do some clamshells for your gluteus medius.
Cardie
Holy, moly there is just no escaping those things....
I must say that I am pretty good at them -- after a year and a half...
Have a good day and if you are a newbie, do some clamshells for your gluteus medius.
Cardie
Anniepops
post-grad
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2012
- Messages
- 1,069
- Age
- 61
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United Kingdom
Haha Cardie, not the dreaded clamshells,you just can't escape them. How do you now if you are good at them (we need a Cardie clamshell instructional video methinks....whatdyathink.lol). I think I am doing them properly but still not 100% sure. I am holding my leg in the up position for a while before dropping it back down and that sure aches a lot when doing it.
Hope you are good
Ann.x.
Hope you are good
Ann.x.
Vida
post-grad
I'm sorry Cardie, I spat my coffee out at that one! Too funny. Clam shells are currently a dirty word in my house. My physio has agreed they are banned for now, replaced by bands on lying down.
OP
OP
C Mac
post-grad
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2011
- Messages
- 1,396
- Age
- 63
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
Wow, well I am flattered that you may think I do these clamshells in the proper form Anniepops As the consumate expert on all things exercise related alexthecat would probably give the best advice!!!
In the early time out from surgery I just did them like this guy (you can use a little pillow or something to support your head a bit better).
![[Bonesmart.org] My Intro...](https://bonesmart.org/forum/attachments/avictoriawellness-com_wp_content_uploads_clam-jpg.43386/ "[Bonesmart.org] My Intro...")
It's important to keep your body nice and straight and your tummy held in a bit. After doing these darn things for what seemed like an eternity of months after the surgery I finally discovered if I put my hand on my low back/top of my buttock that I could feel my G. medius moving when I did the exercise. This was a moment of celebration because it confirmed to me that my muscle was actually working -- even though I still had a post-surgical limp that had not been present pre-surgically...
When I started clamshells after surgery I didn't lift my leg very far off of the bottom leg because it seemed as if the higher I lifted it the more that other glute muscles were activating during the exercise and at that time I was just trying to keep track of my medius.
Now that I am so far out from my surgery and confronted with this exercises in a yoga class that isn't PT or filled with THR friends -- I can see that you can lift the top leg to differing heights and contract different areas of your buttocks and pretend that you are having an exercise moment like a normal girl!! And, get this -- you can do it on both sides of your body and not just your fake hip!! HA, it's like a little return to normalcy this adaptive yoga class...
Vida when I was early out from surgery I had to red pencil through some of my exercises because they were too hard or too painful at the time and I kept bashing myself trying to do them until I gave myself permission to STOP trying for a while. Eventually, some months later I might try a "red lined" exercise again and low & behold I could do it!!!
Poppet I managed to somehow ignore the straight leg raises for the first 6 weeks and then when I got the Phase II exercises I did them incorrectly because they hadn't given me enough time hands on to learn it at my follow-up appointment and I totally misunderstood the little sheet of paperwork with the picture. I don't know when I finally got around to them but by then they were tolerable because I'd healed up a bit more and not been stressing those muscles with them early on.
I have been told, both at my 6 week follow-up and at my 3rd round of mini-pt in the fall (over a year out from surgery), that I still don't lift on that exercise with my leg muscles in isolation, I use my back muscles. NOW, if I do straight leg lifts (lying on my side) I am to hold my stomach tight and to press hard on the top of my hip (iliac crest) towards my foot to keep my back out of the movement and only lift slightly off the other leg.
It's such a pain to be an anomaly sometimes
Onward we go though!!
Cardie
As the consumate expert on all things exercise related alexthecat would probably give the best advice!!! In the early time out from surgery I just did them like this guy (you can use a little pillow or something to support your head a bit better).
It's important to keep your body nice and straight and your tummy held in a bit. After doing these darn things for what seemed like an eternity of months after the surgery I finally discovered if I put my hand on my low back/top of my buttock that I could feel my G. medius moving when I did the exercise. This was a moment of celebration because it confirmed to me that my muscle was actually working -- even though I still had a post-surgical limp that had not been present pre-surgically...
When I started clamshells after surgery I didn't lift my leg very far off of the bottom leg because it seemed as if the higher I lifted it the more that other glute muscles were activating during the exercise and at that time I was just trying to keep track of my medius.
Now that I am so far out from my surgery and confronted with this exercises in a yoga class that isn't PT or filled with THR friends -- I can see that you can lift the top leg to differing heights and contract different areas of your buttocks and pretend that you are having an exercise moment like a normal girl!! And, get this -- you can do it on both sides of your body and not just your fake hip!! HA, it's like a little return to normalcy this adaptive yoga class...
Vida when I was early out from surgery I had to red pencil through some of my exercises because they were too hard or too painful at the time and I kept bashing myself trying to do them until I gave myself permission to STOP trying for a while. Eventually, some months later I might try a "red lined" exercise again and low & behold I could do it!!!
Poppet I managed to somehow ignore the straight leg raises for the first 6 weeks and then when I got the Phase II exercises I did them incorrectly because they hadn't given me enough time hands on to learn it at my follow-up appointment and I totally misunderstood the little sheet of paperwork with the picture. I don't know when I finally got around to them but by then they were tolerable because I'd healed up a bit more and not been stressing those muscles with them early on.
I have been told, both at my 6 week follow-up and at my 3rd round of mini-pt in the fall (over a year out from surgery), that I still don't lift on that exercise with my leg muscles in isolation, I use my back muscles. NOW, if I do straight leg lifts (lying on my side) I am to hold my stomach tight and to press hard on the top of my hip (iliac crest) towards my foot to keep my back out of the movement and only lift slightly off the other leg.
It's such a pain to be an anomaly sometimes
Onward we go though!!
Cardie
alexthecat
Former BoneSmart staff member
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2010
- Messages
- 9,708
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
If you're isolating your gluteus medius, the side leg lift should be a small movement, with pelvis and shoulders stacked and toes pointing straight forward or slightly down. The medius has a small ROM, so it's easy to rotate the leg and/or let your pelvis collapse and start engaging other muscles. That's not what we want early in recovery from THR. The goal then is to isolate and strengthen that particular muscle.
Non-THR people don't care much about the gluteus medius though and, as we progress in recovery, it's not the only thing we need to focus on either. In the Pilates side kick, you can start the leg lift with the gluteus medius and then externally rotate that leg and lift it the rest of the way. You still keep your pelvis and shoulders stacked, but you're consciously letting other muscles engage to lift that leg.
![[Bonesmart.org] My Intro...](https://0.tqn.com/d/pilates/1/5/4/1/-/-/SideKickUp200x138.jpg "[Bonesmart.org] My Intro...")
It's a nice stretch for the adductors and it's a way to help your gluteus medius learn to cooperate with other muscles. This is an exercise that I think Anniepops might want to consider. broken link removed: https://www.athleta.net/2010/12/30/pilates-on-the-go-side-kick-series/ is a good explanation of the Pilates side leg series.
Non-THR people don't care much about the gluteus medius though and, as we progress in recovery, it's not the only thing we need to focus on either. In the Pilates side kick, you can start the leg lift with the gluteus medius and then externally rotate that leg and lift it the rest of the way. You still keep your pelvis and shoulders stacked, but you're consciously letting other muscles engage to lift that leg.
It's a nice stretch for the adductors and it's a way to help your gluteus medius learn to cooperate with other muscles. This is an exercise that I think Anniepops might want to consider. broken link removed: https://www.athleta.net/2010/12/30/pilates-on-the-go-side-kick-series/ is a good explanation of the Pilates side leg series.
Vida
post-grad
alexthecat
Former BoneSmart staff member
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2010
- Messages
- 9,708
- Gender
- Female
- Country
- United States
- Status
Staff online
-
LaylaStaff member since November 20, 2017 -
EalingGranStaff member since January 23, 2024 -
JocketteStaff member since March 18, 2018
