# I'm now bionic!



## telemike (Jun 20, 2011)

The stars have aligned and I finally got the hip I destroyed in late January replaced two weeks ago, posterior approach. I'm a walker guy now and hope to progress to a cane in a week or two. I've read all the older threads about replaced hips and I have a few questions about personal experiences.

When did you at least get on an exercise bike (bike to nowhere) and start circulating?

What about the road and easy rides? How did that work out?

When were you able to ride at least easy trails? How about walking the bike uphill?

What won't you do even today?

Did you screw up and have further problems? How did you to this? I've already done it a little hooking the walker on a throw rug. They are now all out in the shed until I'm walking ok again.

How about skiing? That's how I got here - my fourth serious ski injury in fifty years of skiing fanaticism. I don't know if I'll ski again and that really hurts.

Any other hints, cautions, etc?


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## Jing (Sep 4, 2013)

No tips on the hip, but I gotta say with a name like that you've got to ski again. Keep the faith.


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## jeph (Apr 3, 2008)

I had an anterior approach THR in Jan 19. One of the differences in the two procedures is the recovery time. Also, the risk of dislocation while recovering. Listen to your doc and PT crew. Are you walking w a cane? 

I was didn't use a walker too long but it was slow. I recall a walk around the block w/the cane, the highlight of the day, and getting passed by a 3 legged dog, 

Also, do you have a routine of PT "homework"?

I was on a stationary bike at 2 weeks (I think) walking is probably the bigger thing for a while. I did start walking trails w/hiking poles, you don't want to fall.

I wasn't cleared for a non stationary bike until 6 weeks after an xray show good bone attachment. That was slow going, flat trails was all I could do for a while. 

at 8 weeks or so I was working on getting my fittness back. 

It's been great, I am riding as strong as ever.

I haven't tried sking and might this year. I don't tele, in fact I suspect skiing is what wore out my hip. Mine was a slow degradation and I put off replacement for 15years. So skiing got painful and lots of Vitamin I. I totally avoided hardpack days. Cycling was rarely painful.

You might have different recovery times. You should do what the PT folks say.

Good luck


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## cyclelicious (Oct 7, 2008)

Wishing you a steady progressive recovery telemike 

The fact that you were active prior to your hip replacement is a determinant of what you hope to achieve. Follow a physio program to build up your strength and tolerance

I can't say how soon you can start riding ... that will be determined as the result of your training and especially your dedication and motivation 

I haven't had a hip replacement but I do have a plate and a bunch of pins in my wrist from 2009 as well as an old plate and screws in my lower back (1985 MVA) ; neither has stopped me from any sport I've done.

My brother had a hip replacement at 53 (damage done from hockey), he was back skating within a year. He's coaching now at 55


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## 33red (Jan 5, 2016)

Moving can help get energy flowing but you have to listen.
Over doing it is simply not smart. 
With frequent small steps i helped my mom after a knee replacement.
We are resilient.


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## marathon marke (Sep 26, 2012)

I had a lateral replacement due to a bike crash 8 years ago at age 54, just 4 months after breaking the 300 mile cross-Wisconsin road record. Surgeon said he still prefers lateral over anterior, because it's considerably easier to see what you're doing.

In 2 weeks I was riding a stationary bike. 8 months later, did a century. By next summer, I was back to doing double-centuries. 

This past March, I returned to mountain biking, after a 30 year hiatus.


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## telemike (Jun 20, 2011)

A quick check in. It's three weeks post surgery and I'm now using a cane instead of a waker. I'm not walking far yet and being very careful. I would put my recovery slower than my wife's recovery but her's was ten years ago when she was in her early 60's. I'm now 72 and that really does affect healing time!

I'm not planning to do more than walk around the farm a little until my followup with the surgeon on Dec 2, then I'll pretty much follow his guidelines for pacing recovery. I don't expect to be on even easy trails until Feb or Mar but I hope to return to local flat riding before that.

Stay safe, all, but not too safe!


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## threepin (Nov 2, 2006)

Mike,
I had an anterior total hip which was probably due to multiple impacts on the same hip. I pushed things a bit much early on and in retrospect i feel like i paid for that in a painful first couple of weeks.

I was on a stationary bike at 2 weeks which my doctor was fine with and was riding for real at 4weeks, at 3months i did a 4 day bikepack with some really hard hills and did great, a dirt century (red meadow loop) at the 4 month anniversary also went quite well. I do think getting on a bike was key to both my mental recovery and it really seemed to reduce pain and inflammation.

As far as activities now, I still ski but pick my days more and avoid ice and firm surfaces as best i can. Firm bumps are right out. I do find myself avoiding really rocky and rough trails as i really don't care to experience a revision any time soon.

I had read at the time that skiing was fine if you skied before but that post hip was not the time to learn. The forces of firm surface skiing and firm bumps were not recommended- that's fine with me but then i no longer live in the east. Perhaps you could get a prescription for a trip to Hokkaido?

A possible caveat is that I believe anterior offers a lesser chance of dislocation than posterior or lateral due to fewer muscles being cut etc. so you might need to keep that in mind. Anterior may be harder to do and more challenging access wise for the surgeon but seems to offers a more stable outcome with some increased risk of a nerve neuropathy in the thigh which indeed i have a bit of.



telemike said:


> A quick check in. It's three weeks post surgery and I'm now using a cane instead of a waker. I'm not walking far yet and being very careful. I would put my recovery slower than my wife's recovery but her's was ten years ago when she was in her early 60's. I'm now 72 and that really does affect healing time!
> 
> I'm not planning to do more than walk around the farm a little until my followup with the surgeon on Dec 2, then I'll pretty much follow his guidelines for pacing recovery. I don't expect to be on even easy trails until Feb or Mar but I hope to return to local flat riding before that.
> 
> Stay safe, all, but not too safe!


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## telemike (Jun 20, 2011)

*The Bike to Nowhere*

I'm now almost a month and a half into this hip replacement adventure. I'm still using a cane but slowly eliminating it. No walker anymore.

I had hoped to be further along walking wise by now; my wife was about a week and a half ahead of where I'm at when she got her hip done about ten years ago. It's clear to me that I'm healing slower at 72 than she did ten years ago (never, ever, reveal your wife's age). I'm really looking forward to some low key hiking again; that will precede actually riding since the penalty for screwing up and crashing can be very bad.

The brightest news right now is that I'm pain free on the bike to nowhere so I'm doing about 30 minutes twice a day out on the patio. As soon as I feel comfortable getting on and off the bike, I'll be back riding the local farm roads and the little used frontage road on the nearby highway. Actually riding trails will not happen until I can push the bike uphill without pain. I'm in less that top shape because of how long this misadventure has kept me sidelined.

And, by god, I'm seriously bored. Enough reading, enough netflix and youtube, enough internet for life. I know there are lots of people who would die for the chance to just sit around in front of the TV, but there probably aren't many of those folks on MTBR!

Originally, I was scheduled for the anterior approach but the surgeon delayed several times and then went on family leave for at least a month just before thanksgiving. I fear that COVID entered his family and I hope they are all OK. After the shut down of elective surgery for three months, two months of COVID, and delay after delay I couldn't take waiting anymore and went with the first available surgeon. It is much better psychologically to be on the mend and improving than just killing time waiting!

So folks, ride and ski safe, but not too safe.


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## threepin (Nov 2, 2006)

I too figured that my recovery would go quicker but it didn't.
It was depressing as hell reading of all these people who seemed to recover especially fast.
I did note that many times those were less fit and more sedate people.Sometimes i think that those of us who are really active, especially for our age, don't quite know how to rest like those who have been doing it for more of their lives.
As depressing and painful it may be , know that a slow recovery doesn't mean you won't be really strong again and that you won't even realize that thing is inside you till you think about it.
I found studded tires to be a key item in my recovery- didn't have to worry about falling on ice and they roll ok.

At least you aren't using the walker- i found that to be soul-crushing.



telemike said:


> I'm now almost a month and a half into this hip replacement adventure. I'm still using a cane but slowly eliminating it. No walker anymore.
> 
> I had hoped to be further along walking wise by now; my wife was about a week and a half ahead of where I'm at when she got her hip done about ten years ago. It's clear to me that I'm healing slower at 72 than she did ten years ago (never, ever, reveal your wife's age). I'm really looking forward to some low key hiking again; that will precede actually riding since the penalty for screwing up and crashing can be very bad.
> 
> ...


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## telemike (Jun 20, 2011)

*3 pin?*

Hey three pin, are you still a pinner? I'm on G3 Targa bindings, simple, dependable, strong, but no release. If I had releaseable bindings, I would be riding today (or doing a bit of tele).

Ironically, I located a really cheap pair of Voile Ultravector BCs at the end of the 2018 season. I couldn't find a good deal on AT boots and bindings, so I waited. Then, on September 28, 2019, a tornado and huge hail completely ruined our nut crop so I didn't end up on AT gear in 2020. Thus, that hail storm may have wrecked my hip by delaying purchase of AT gear with a releasing binding. However, the disaster day for my hip was a very long XC trip and I probably would have used the Scarpa T2s and the Rossi BC 125s anyway.


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## threepin (Nov 2, 2006)

i, like many tele skiers, have mostly moved on to AT (already tele'd)
I do occasionally tele and just bought some Altai kom skis with threepin cables. I had actually learned how to ski on pins and was having trouble paralleling well on them and switched to get things down and mostly haven't switched back. Still fun though, really almost all modern skis are.


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## BansheeRune (Nov 27, 2011)

telemike said:


> *The Bike to Nowhere*
> 
> I'm now almost a month and a half into this hip replacement adventure. I'm still using a cane but slowly eliminating it. No walker anymore.
> 
> ...


Mike, it sounds like you are doing it right. Moderation and listening to what your body tells you along with what the doc and PT are recommending. At your age, I'd say you are progressing nicely. 
Give it the necessary time and rehab, you'll be able to do more than you might think! Glad you are on track and healing!

in 2014, I had a major M. I. and the recovery from that episode was long but with tangible results following. I realize there is a difference in a cardiac event vs. a blown hip but with these things comes the recoup time. 
On another one... A close friend had a double joint replacement 15 years ago. After those and an aorta resection 3 years ago, he went for an E-Plusser. That was the best therapy in his case! Riding took major change, indeed however, being out there with that clown was very welcome.
Amazing what we can recuperate from. May you get back in the groove in good form, Mike!


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## PierreR (May 17, 2012)

TeleMike I hope you do ski again. I grew up on telemark skis as they were considerably cheaper. I now ski on regular alpine skis with Knee bindings. I am okay with resort skiing. When I travel for skiing I pretty much ski by invite and pay very little. I still tele once in a while. 
AT looked interesting to me but I saw very little incentive to go with it. because I can still rip the zipper line full alpine style on tele gear with no tele turns. Been skiing for 61 years with no joint replacements yet. Hope that continues. Sounds like you are making a good recovery even if slower than what you would like.


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