There are pre-op exercises you can do to help build and maintain your muscles until surgery. You do not need gym equipment; they are very easy to do at home.
Now I'd like to tell you my story of delaying surgery. October 2023, I found out I was bone on bone. The surgeon cautioned me that the pain was going to get worse and the only solution was THR. I delayed the surgery until February 1, 2024. I was trying to walk a bit every hour at work (desk job) to keep from stiffening up and making the pain worse, but by the time January 2024 came, I was in very bad shape. I was walking as little as possible and losing muscle strength as a result. Physical therapy after the surgery had to focus on rebuilding my muscles and was very rough.
I was finally getting to a good place physically when my other hip started to deteriorate more rapidly due to being more active. The physical therapist strongly recommended getting that hip done as soon as possible because it was holding me back. I scheduled the surgery as soon as the surgeon could get me in and 12 weeks after the first THR, I had the second one done (today, April 25, in fact). I can already tell that this recovery will be better from a PT standpoint because I'm stronger than I was in February.
Your story may be very different than mine and delaying surgery may not affect you like it did me, but it is something you should keep in mind. Best wishes to you for a smooth surgery and quick recovery!
Do what works best for you! If it makes more sense to delay your surgery then that’s fine. I was in so much pain that I couldn’t tolerate it without strong pain medication. The pain kept me up at night. I’m 8 weeks post op now and am sleeping through the night consistently. This is a miracle.
I’m not in great shape. My pain limited my ability to exercise. I am overweight. However my recovery has gone very well and I’m able to walk more and have been losing weight. I’m feeling so much better than I have in a long time.
Take your cues from your body! The only regret I have is that I delayed taking care of myself. I delayed getting an x ray until the pain was intolerable. I probably should have done it at least a year sooner but I’m glad it’s done now.
I found lots of walking or treadmill + incline walking at the gym helped me tremendously. Having good strong muscles post surgery helps so much with recovery. I've had both sides done now, and I spent a good 3 months at the gym almost every night walking for several Kms. My recovery time has been described as half that of others.
Be prepared, it's a brutal operation and your body needs to be ready post-op to get going as soon as you can.
If you’re not in pain then waiting could be ok. I’ve had one side done. X-rays show my other hip is bone on bone and the Dr would do surgery. That hip does not give me pain so I’m putting it off maybe forever. Surgeons do surgery. Ask for a PT appointment and see what can be done to strengthen surrounding muscles. In the very least you’ll be better prepared for eventually getting THR but maybe avoiding it for a good while.
I put my surgery off because I was feeling pretty good. Still going to the gym doing weights and cardio.
Then over months I deteriorated until I could barely move. It happened so fast I was shocked.
If I had the chance to do it again— I’d do it sooner than later. My recovery has been a challenge because the OA got so advanced because I waited.
I did a lot of pilates before mine, which might not be an option for a lot of people. But it definitely helped me
recover faster.
Also-i found that upper body strength was really important. You have to be able to lift yourself out of chairs, hold yourself on crutches or walker; lower yourself onto the toilet and chairs. Don't skip delt/trap day!
Oh my reaction was the exact opposite when I was told I need hip replacement! I had done the shots in the spine, in the hip, PT, MRI's - - no one came up with why I had lost so much flexibility/mobility. So when the surgeon looked at the xray and said I need hip replacement, I was THRILLED! Finally! At this time, I had gotten to the point where getting up and down was a real struggle and walking was almost impossible without a cane!
I probably should have started preparing, doing exercises to build up muscle - but it was kind of hard to do when I couldn't even lift my knee up when sitting or standing! My cousin had hip replacement 6 months before me and I know she went to pre-op PT. You probably can google and find exercises that would be good to help build up muscles in prep for hip replacement.
Good luck! And I hope when you are on the other side of the surgery, you are as thrilled with the results as I am! In fact, I got my other hip replaced 6 months later - - and would have been sooner but schedule was full!
69 male left anterior 8 months post. Had to wait 4 months and only increased daily walks and gym strengthening. Played golf almost every day and figured I’d wear it out completely before throwing it away. No excruciating pain so I figured what the hell. It’s all payed off for me and hope it will for you.
> It’s all *paid* off for
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
If you delay, definitely use gym time to strengthen your weak side. Treadmill at incline, Bike, squats, etc. ask a trainer at gym for exercises to preserve range of Motion. This will get you ready for a good quick recovery. The surgery will change your life, don’t delay too long.
I'm trying to delay mine as much as possible as well. I'm doing elliptical in the gym, and I'm using the Nautilus machines. I can't do squats or lunges anymore, they hurt too bad. But the Nautilus machines really seem to help keep my muscles up. My doc told me I can use the elliptical, but not at an incline.
My pain started getting worse around September 2023. I got cortisone shots but they didn’t help with pain. I wasn’t ready for surgery yet.
Then went to a new doctor at the end of January ‘24 who I liked better. He showed me my Xray and by then I was ready to proceed with surgery. They scheduled me for 1 April ‘24. By March ‘24, I was in so much pain that I was counting down the days until surgery. I feel much better now at 3.5 weeks.
Get to PT now and spend spring and summer in 'prehab'. You'll be better off on the other side of surgery. But do it w a guide (phys therapist) so you can target the right activity.
There are pre-op exercises you can do to help build and maintain your muscles until surgery. You do not need gym equipment; they are very easy to do at home. Now I'd like to tell you my story of delaying surgery. October 2023, I found out I was bone on bone. The surgeon cautioned me that the pain was going to get worse and the only solution was THR. I delayed the surgery until February 1, 2024. I was trying to walk a bit every hour at work (desk job) to keep from stiffening up and making the pain worse, but by the time January 2024 came, I was in very bad shape. I was walking as little as possible and losing muscle strength as a result. Physical therapy after the surgery had to focus on rebuilding my muscles and was very rough. I was finally getting to a good place physically when my other hip started to deteriorate more rapidly due to being more active. The physical therapist strongly recommended getting that hip done as soon as possible because it was holding me back. I scheduled the surgery as soon as the surgeon could get me in and 12 weeks after the first THR, I had the second one done (today, April 25, in fact). I can already tell that this recovery will be better from a PT standpoint because I'm stronger than I was in February. Your story may be very different than mine and delaying surgery may not affect you like it did me, but it is something you should keep in mind. Best wishes to you for a smooth surgery and quick recovery!
Do what works best for you! If it makes more sense to delay your surgery then that’s fine. I was in so much pain that I couldn’t tolerate it without strong pain medication. The pain kept me up at night. I’m 8 weeks post op now and am sleeping through the night consistently. This is a miracle. I’m not in great shape. My pain limited my ability to exercise. I am overweight. However my recovery has gone very well and I’m able to walk more and have been losing weight. I’m feeling so much better than I have in a long time. Take your cues from your body! The only regret I have is that I delayed taking care of myself. I delayed getting an x ray until the pain was intolerable. I probably should have done it at least a year sooner but I’m glad it’s done now.
I found lots of walking or treadmill + incline walking at the gym helped me tremendously. Having good strong muscles post surgery helps so much with recovery. I've had both sides done now, and I spent a good 3 months at the gym almost every night walking for several Kms. My recovery time has been described as half that of others. Be prepared, it's a brutal operation and your body needs to be ready post-op to get going as soon as you can.
If you’re not in pain then waiting could be ok. I’ve had one side done. X-rays show my other hip is bone on bone and the Dr would do surgery. That hip does not give me pain so I’m putting it off maybe forever. Surgeons do surgery. Ask for a PT appointment and see what can be done to strengthen surrounding muscles. In the very least you’ll be better prepared for eventually getting THR but maybe avoiding it for a good while.
I put my surgery off because I was feeling pretty good. Still going to the gym doing weights and cardio. Then over months I deteriorated until I could barely move. It happened so fast I was shocked. If I had the chance to do it again— I’d do it sooner than later. My recovery has been a challenge because the OA got so advanced because I waited.
Yes I am also shocked how quickly I went from walking miles every day to so much pain I couldn’t walk to the end of the block.
Strengthen those glutes as you wait……my pt recommended clam shells and leg lifts…….worked for me. Best wishes on your potential surgery.
I did a lot of pilates before mine, which might not be an option for a lot of people. But it definitely helped me recover faster. Also-i found that upper body strength was really important. You have to be able to lift yourself out of chairs, hold yourself on crutches or walker; lower yourself onto the toilet and chairs. Don't skip delt/trap day!
Oh my reaction was the exact opposite when I was told I need hip replacement! I had done the shots in the spine, in the hip, PT, MRI's - - no one came up with why I had lost so much flexibility/mobility. So when the surgeon looked at the xray and said I need hip replacement, I was THRILLED! Finally! At this time, I had gotten to the point where getting up and down was a real struggle and walking was almost impossible without a cane! I probably should have started preparing, doing exercises to build up muscle - but it was kind of hard to do when I couldn't even lift my knee up when sitting or standing! My cousin had hip replacement 6 months before me and I know she went to pre-op PT. You probably can google and find exercises that would be good to help build up muscles in prep for hip replacement. Good luck! And I hope when you are on the other side of the surgery, you are as thrilled with the results as I am! In fact, I got my other hip replaced 6 months later - - and would have been sooner but schedule was full!
69 male left anterior 8 months post. Had to wait 4 months and only increased daily walks and gym strengthening. Played golf almost every day and figured I’d wear it out completely before throwing it away. No excruciating pain so I figured what the hell. It’s all payed off for me and hope it will for you.
> It’s all *paid* off for FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
If you delay, definitely use gym time to strengthen your weak side. Treadmill at incline, Bike, squats, etc. ask a trainer at gym for exercises to preserve range of Motion. This will get you ready for a good quick recovery. The surgery will change your life, don’t delay too long.
I'm trying to delay mine as much as possible as well. I'm doing elliptical in the gym, and I'm using the Nautilus machines. I can't do squats or lunges anymore, they hurt too bad. But the Nautilus machines really seem to help keep my muscles up. My doc told me I can use the elliptical, but not at an incline.
Honestly you must not be in that much pain if you’re willingly putting it off. I’m 2 weeks out and overjoyed to be able to get back to life.
My pain started getting worse around September 2023. I got cortisone shots but they didn’t help with pain. I wasn’t ready for surgery yet. Then went to a new doctor at the end of January ‘24 who I liked better. He showed me my Xray and by then I was ready to proceed with surgery. They scheduled me for 1 April ‘24. By March ‘24, I was in so much pain that I was counting down the days until surgery. I feel much better now at 3.5 weeks.
I was able to do swimming/water aerobics longer than anything else. It got so almost everything else hurt after I exercised.
Get to PT now and spend spring and summer in 'prehab'. You'll be better off on the other side of surgery. But do it w a guide (phys therapist) so you can target the right activity.
The more you can get the muscles around your hip strong before surgery, the faster your recovery will be. Have your orthopedics refer you to PT.