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THR One year post-op

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Hi Grateful,

I actually bought my first bike in a long time last summer. The year before, we rented bikes on vacation and it was absolutely wretched as I could not get on even a woman's bike. My husband and I had been talking about getting bikes for years, so when I finally got my hips done I decided the time for biking had come!! Anyway, to answer your question, we asked at my 8 week checkup and he said I was fine to bike outside as long as I felt comfortable with it. I see on my flickr page I had my bike by July 1, so that's about 3 months after surgery. I remember being amazed how easy it was to get on it. It wasn't hard considering I was pretty out of shape. I have to admit, going really fast or down hills scared me a little.....I did try to be careful, maybe more cautious than I even needed to be. I am jealous of your trails, they sound wonderful!!!
 
It's good to see you too, Jaycey!!! After a few months away it's nice to see a few familiar faces still here. Hope you are doing great!!
 
Hi Sharonslp,

I hope it does help the newbies when we "veterans" relate some of our experiences. :yes 4: I found this forum about 2 days before I had my first THR and it was so great to find a bunch of people in the same boat as me!!

I don't think I had much attention span for knitting the first few weeks, either. I remember doing a lot of napping and watching movies, lol. How nice that a group of friends came over to knit with you! I wish I knew more knitters in my area, I only know one person around here that knits. Speaking of dancing - now that I've got my new hips , I'm determined that the husband and I will go take some ballroom dancing lessons. I think that sounds like a lot of fun! I think feeling so crummy for so long has made me more determined to make the most out of how good I feel now!
 
Hi everyone -
I'm keeping up the "derailment" of this one year thread - let's hope no one has a literal one. It does help to know I'm not the only one who couldn't straddle a bike - that was one of my lowest moments of a pretty demoralizing year last year when things went downhill so fast.

A couple of people wanted to know about my six week appointment which was on Monday. Everything was routine and the x-ray looks great. I asked about biking outside and OS just said "don't go crazy". So he was more worried about me falling and breaking one of my hips, than the movement damaging anything.

We leave on a week's vacation tomorrow. When we get back I'll first go to the gym and see how I do on the uprights, then try outside biking. I know I'll be scared of hills at first too, but if I go to the canal path, it is by nature very flat yet scenic. Happy trails, everyone!
 
Well, that sounds great! I think you're smart to stick to biking on flats at first and I look forward to hearing how that goes for you.

When I first started biking, I noticed a strength difference between my legs when biking on hills. I didn't have a limp anymore, but I could still feel one leg pushing harder than the other. It wasn't bad enough to make me feel unstable on the bike, but I still didn't like it.

I used the stationary bike to eliminate that. The bike I use has an electronic display that shows various bits of data. One of those is RPM (revolutions per minute) and, if it goes back and forth between two numbers, it means that one leg is pushing harder than the other. I did my best to keep that number constant while pedaling. That helps with walking too, because it trains your legs to move at the same speed, which is part of eliminating any habitual limp you might have.
 
alexthecat said:
The bike I use has an electronic display that shows various bits of data. One of those is RPM (revolutions per minute) and, if it goes back and forth between two numbers, it means that one leg is pushing harder than the other. I did my best to keep that number constant while pedaling. That helps with walking too, because it trains your legs to move at the same speed, which is part of eliminating any habitual limp you might have.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this helpful bit of information, Alex! I, too, use a stationary upright, which my OS said I could start at 6 weeks (as long as I behaved myself in terms of RPMs and resistance), and I've felt the difference in my two legs. I, too, am working to eliminate the limp I acquired over years of hip degeneration, so now I have something to help with that!

I'm looking forward to spring's arrival so I can even try out my outdoor bike, which I haven't used for years because of my hip. Woohoo! There are so many things to look forward to post-THR, aren't there? Like Sharon and ballroom dancing--sounds absolutely wonderful.

Joan
 
Thanks Alex - that's great to know. Will keep an eye on that. At this early point, even though both hips were done, the first one is quite a bit stronger yet, and the muscles never seemed to be quite as compromised to begin with. I imagine the difference between the two legs may well be what led to my falling several times the year before last!
And what a bonus if it helps with walking too, which is even more important to me.
 
If you listen to music on the stationary bike, your legs will automatically try to stay on the beat (unless you are not at all musical, but you mentioned dancing, so I’m guessing you are). Then you don’t have to obsess over the numbers. Just enjoy the music and the numbers will take care of themselves. Be careful not to get so into the music that you start stomping the pedals on the downbeat though. I’ve seen people do that and it’s not healthy for your hips or knees. Nice, smooth, round pedal strokes are the goal.


I had good luck improving my gait on the treadmill too. You stand in the middle of the belt, grab onto both handrails and start walking at a comfortably slow speed. Pay attention to your hands, arms, and shoulders and you’ll see if you have too much torso sway (a little is normal, but not too much), if you are walking at an angle (weird, I know, but it happens), or if you have equal stride lengths and speed. My PT had me do that for 5 or 10 minutes every day and said to keep thinking about it as I moved around during the day. It sounds easy because it was easy, but it helped a lot.
 
Alex, congrats on making through this year! I appreciate your consistent calmness and sound advice during my first weeks following hip replacement. Hope you are enjoying yourself outside.

Judy
 
Thanks, Judy! It's great to see you! You're coming up on a year yourself and I hope you'll consider making an anniversary post when you have time. I'm sure you're busy teaching now. Summer's coming though and it will be time to hit those hiking trails again!
 
Thanks to everyone in this thread regarding advice about stationary bikes. I'm nine weeks in and off to the gym this weekend for the first time to rebuild some of the lost muscle before the other side is done in about six weeks time. I'll redo the playlist on the ipod to make sure I have the right beats installed for the bike and cross trainer. I can feel the sweat already just thinking about it! :rolleyespink:
 
Hey! My anniversary thread is still open! Great because I have more to say about biking. :dancy:

I'm heading out tomorrow to spend two weeks hiking and mountain biking (and doing boring work stuff) in Wyoming and Colorado. Pictures and stories when I get back home! :biggrin:
 
Alex, you are such an inspiration! Have a great time. Can't wait for the pix!
 
Cool, Alex!!! Looking forward to the stories and photos.
 
How cool, Alex. I'm delighted for you. I lived in the mountains of Colorado, in and just outside of Aspen, for a total of 13 years and love the Rocky Mountains. Enjoy your journey. Can't wait for photos and stories.
 
You see this is what I've been talking about!! Contradictory information when you search on the web!!:rolleyespink:

Those exercises are good ones for the hips whether you're or a cyclist or not.
 
Amen to that. Once I was given the OK for pt, all the the therapists had me on a recumbent bike before I did ANY other exercises. It's a great way to loosen things up.

I actually ended up buying my own, as I was not able to walk much but I could cycle anytime I wanted and not hurt myself.
 
Alex,
Looking forward to some pictures of your trip!!! I'll bet the scenery will be gorgeous!!! I have to admit I have yet to get my bike out - it seems like our weather has either been cold and rainy or 94 degrees out.....neither of which inspires me to ride my bike!! Actually I am a bit anxious to try it out now that I've gotten myself in better shape at the gym the last few months. :thumb:
 
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