I have came to terms that my running, soccer and touch football days are over. I am looking forward to life with my new knee, walking without a limp, knee not giving way, knee not locking and the constant pain. Even though I have a lot of pain due to the procedure, I hope that with time that will decrease.
Hi Collie, please don't count yourself out of the activities you love. I was the same way as you. First off, my first TKR was absolutely horrible, horrible pain. I felt like I'd never get well, I used to worry and complain on here all of the time that my knee would never bend again. But things did start turning around after 8-12 weeks.
I was a long distance runner, this was a HUGE part of my life, who I was. My very first post on Bonesmart was in February 2011 asking if I can run again after TKR surgery. I got many, many encouraging replies. At 6 months post op I walked a 5k in 47:30 my goal was to do it under one hour. Afterwards I've, elevate and rest. In October I walked another 5k and did fine. At 8 months post op I ran a 5 mile Jingle Bell Run at an 11:25 pace and charged up the hills from the strong quads I'd built in Physical Therapy. At 9 months post op I ran a 1/2 marathon. My goal was to do it under 3 hours and I did it in 2:47:10. After that I was satisfied that I could do it and told myself I'd back off running and cycle as I continued to heal. I joined a cycling club and would go on group rides. Several rides at 36 miles, one at 42 miles and VERY hilly and a 50 miler. I then got a mountain bike too, then started riding in the dirt. Up until this time I can say that my knee never felt great but I could still do the active things that I loved to do. During the time I was cycling I'd run one day a week up to 6 miles at a time. But...this is where you and I part ways...
by October 2012 I was losing my ROM, in March 2013 I could still pedal a bike but only with the middle of my TKR foot. I had been going back to my OS and complaining of pain and loss of ROM but he would brush me off telling me to go to Physical Therapy. I'd been in Physical Therapy for two years. I found a new doctor who told me just what I suspected and that was my knee was FULL of scar tissue. This is what took away my ROM. I had surgery to remove it. They freed up my knee to let another TKR specialist determine that I had ligament I instability which made my platform sloppy with side to side movement which in turn was always inflaming my knee thus growing scar tissue.
So why did I just tell you all that? Because you'll see that I had a revision and I wanted you to know that it was not from being active, it was from lose ligaments with my first TKR. Don't give up on my dreams of being active again. Dick Beardsley (former USA Olympian) has bilateral TKR's and runs a 1/2 marathon several times a month all year long, all around the country. I met someone else who ran the Houston Marathon at 6 months post op, then again at 1.5 years post op. I have decided on my own that I will not run long distance again only because I have this revision, but even with my latest surgery (as well as several other doctors in the past) have told me that "a little" running is ok. They just don't give you their blessing and say GO RUN! The last doctors visit I was at for my post revision I was told this: we have a patient that is 5' 3" inches tall and weighs 400 pounds. Me at 122 pounds and 5' 3" if I did a five 5k I'd be putting less stress on my knee that the 400 pound woman would put on her knee every day. They didn't tell me to run but gave me the analogy instead.
All is not lost, hang in there and be patient. Listen to your body, you are still very early in recovery. I'll be 4 weeks on Monday the 30th and soon I'll be out there on my bike again and walking 10 miles and do an occasional 5k just for fun!
United Kingdom
But you have a good attitude with is good.
