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TKR Seven years out, Right TKR

Has anyone ever have their quad muscle give out on them? Mine does occasionally but not sure how or why in relation to how I'm walking. I know I still need it to gain more strength. It happened on Tuesday, & my knee has been sore & swollen since. Just wondering if anyone else has had this happen???
 
Yes, my quads gave out on me sometimes while walking, it did feel like a buckle. My quads were very weak so I used a cane for quite a while.
 
Oh, yes. Every so often my gives out, too. Just a little bit. Thank God I don't go down to the floor, but when I least expect it, it will give away for a couple of inches. But, it overcomes itself.
 
My quad is also still a bit "iffy" and after surgery I had alot of muscle spasms in it, and still do occasionally. Thankfully, my quad hasn't given out on me, but maybe it's because I have been strengthening it? I don't know if this could be useful or not, but back when I was doing regular PT, it became clear that I had had developed some compensations accommodating for my injured knee for so many years that it caused weakness in my other areas, like quads and glutes. So, I'm supposed to be strengthening the quads and glutes to the point the knee doesn't need to work so hard. One of the PT folks (an exercise physiologist) has me doing leg lifts while standing sideways against a wall (for support), raising the knee up to a 90 degree angle, doing 10x on each side. At first I couldn't do 10! But, after about a week doing a few each day I got to 10, continuing to do at least that many each day. And she has me doing "sink" squats, dipping down as in a squat while holding the sink edge, to strengthen my glutes, too...
 
Thanks @BBCG , I'll try those. :) My knee is still sore from going out last week. :boohoo: I really hope it didn't cause any real, lasting damage.
 
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Julie, you're right behind me and the best is yet to come! It's such a slow process, but so worth it in the long run. I still have some down days, but not as many or as long as they used to be. Now, I'm looking forward to getting lefty done in the next year or so!
 
Julie, indeed, Paula is right! It is SO worth it once you get past those first early months... If you needed lessons in patience, this is great way to get those classes, I tell ya! Healing from this surgery just takes some of us a bit longer than we're used to needing in life, but I feel like the lessons I'm learning are and will be valuable over the rest of my life.

But, do learn to listen to your new knee, too; don't do too much too soon... or you end up paying for it with added pain and decreased ROM for a few days or a week, as I've found out, too, of course. If you tackle a new exercise, I was advised to do just a few of a new thing, to see how your knee likes it, before doing a bunch. Sometimes it takes a little while to learn to hear that new knee's wishes...

But, I'm 4 months out and I did a work task "test" last week: carried out (with someone on the other end) a long, concrete-aggregate bench to a customer's car. It weighed about 100 pounds and I hadn't lifted anything that heavy or carried one since prior to surgery. I did it, and had no long term regrets, so hooray! My new knee feels rock-solid and my other one, that may someday need its own TKR was creaky and my new one quiet and strong!
 
So happy your knee didn't rebel after your heavy lift!!! ~ progress! We have to celebrate each victory we have along this recovery!:yes!:
I've also been doing those exercises, so thanks for the tip!:yes:
 
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Getting a little worried ~ I'm almost 6 months out & my bend is still not there :bawl: I'm not sure what else I should do ??? I know everyone says it just takes time, but I have pain when I try to get it to bend further. Getting nervous & frustrated...Any insight???............thanks!
 
Did you have the bend before surgery? Is it still swollen? Does it feel like it's stuck or just too painful to bend? After my first lateral release in the 80s, I was in an immobilizer for 8 weeks and developed adhesions. I found the best way to work through them was to get into as hot a tub of water that I could stand and let my knee down in that water. Once heated up, I would slide my foot up towards my butt and rock my knee into a bend. Then, back into the hot water, then up again. I was able to bust my adhesions myself this way. It didn't all happen in one try, maybe three or fours days in the tub. But, I did it without a MUA and none of the setbacks that a MUA gives you! Of course, if you're still swollen, that's the cause of the bending problem. Maybe you can benefit from my experience. If you'll really concerned you should make an appointment with your doctor. I'm sending prayers your way.
 
Thanks Paula! My bend was great before surgery. I thot it'd be better by now. It does still swell some, but that's improved a lot! Not sure if the weak quad has anything to do with it? Sometimes it's painful to try and make it bend more and feels stuck where it is??? It sometimes feels like I feel it clunking around in there when I walk also ???
I will try the hot soak & bending exercise~thanks for the tip!:bath:
 
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You are very welcome. What is your ROM? It might not be as bad as you think it is? Can you do normal things?
 
I haven't had it measured in quite awhile & I can do normal things, just when sitting it doesn't bend back far under the chair or when I'm standing I can only bend it up/back so far.
 
Well shoot, if you can do normal things, I wouldn't worry so much about it, the ROM will come the more you use it. Are you still icing? My ROM was really slow coming, but once the swelling went down some, it did better. Even now, sometimes the swelling is much worse than others. The knee, on a normal day is 1 1/2" bigger than my left one and won't bend as much and the old one, but I'm happy with what it can do and know in time it'll just get better, as yours will, too. I hope the tub hint will work for you!
 
Tim (forum advisor) did something similar to Paula in the shower. He'd sit on a shower bench, letting the hot water hit his BTKR and do heel slides.

There's no time limit on ROM. I gained flex well over a year after surgery. I was away at a wedding about 18 months after surgery and was swimming alone in the hotel pool. I got chilly and squatted to get my shoulders under water. I squatted! Then walked around the pool in a squat! I did this for a few minutes before I realized what I had done! I stood up and yelle out, "I can squat!" Now I'm not trying this on land, it's a water only exercise for me. A lot of daily living, biking and lap swimming had happened. So it will come when you least expect it. Have you ever read the children's book Leo the Late Bloomer?
 
Thanks @KarriB ! I think Leo is my twin! :flabber: :heehee: I sure am a late bloomer with this TKR recovery! I'm hoping I also continue to gain ROM with time! It's just hard when trying to things that require more of a bend & I can't cuz it hurts and won't move any further...
 
Don't push it. Bloomers don't bloom while they're being watched, so live your life because it sounds like you can do most things. I cannot sit with my leg tucked under my butt and miss that, but it's a small price to pay for getting my life back.
 
Some days are better than others for how much I can pull my leg back under a chair. My knee area especially above the knee is swollen and is like some one else said about 1/2 again the size of my right knee. But I realize I am healing yet, I am hoping to accomplish a lot more in the line of bending and using my knee down the road. Right now it's still all about doing what needs to be done in the line of daily living.
 
Ahhh...2 weeks since I've had a chance to hop on here~~such a busy time of year! Today is my 6 month anniversary of my R-TKR. I'm half way there!!! :santaclap:I've been on the slower side of recovery compared to others, but I'm getting there slowly but surely... I've been back to work for 3 months and I can tell that my walking has improved immensely.:yes!: I still swell some & have to ice & elevate but not as often. I am noticing some pain in my opposite foot~~not sure what that's all about & hoping it goes away soon. I do see my OS next month & if it's still bothering me, I'll ask him about it. Going to try & switch out shoes also.
To all of you in your early weeks, take care of yourselves and stay plugged in here with all the great resources & dear people who are here to listen, support & give helpful tips & advice! Hang in there! We are all on our own recovery journeys, but we are going thru this together. I hope to catch up with everyone when I can. Keeping you all in my prayers. I wish you all a blessed & very Merry Christmas! :tree lights:
 
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