4 months

steady progress continues.  Strength is improving nicely.  I was able to run 1/2 mile easily nonstop.  Flexion and external rotation have improved but are not perfect yet.  I started using mederma on my scar and it is helping it soften and get lighter.

Week 17

steady improvements in flexibility and running ability.  Still taking running easy as a precaution but confidence is building.  Strength is slowly improving.  Mobility work and stretching are key.  External rotation is slightly better but still my biggest issue.

Week 15

have made definite improvement in hip flexion thanks to deep wall squat hold, lying leg pull, recumbent bike and forcing my leg higher on the assisted pullup machine.  I have to be at least 100 degrees now.  External rotation is still my issue.  It has improved and I started doing the bad girl machine 4 days a week, went back to clamshells, and a newer exercise where I lay in my op side and use my ext rotators to left my leg up with my knee bent.  I also can lay on my back now and get my foot on good knee with a little cheating.  I think ext rot strength is weak and it needs to get stronger rather than more flexible.  But I stretch anyway.

Week 14

Been back to work for a week now so I don't have as much time to focus on my hip plus I have a newborn baby girl in addition to my son.  I been going to gym 4 days a week and doing stretching 3x a day focusing on deep wall squat and pulling my leg to chest.  I stretch with weight at the gym.  Progress does not come as quick as it did in the first month post op but slow and steady.  Strength continues to grow and I am confident I will be stronger than ever in a year.

Week 13

sleep has sucked the last week in a half due to my newborn baby girl.  It is worth it and hopefully gets better in a few weeks.  My time has been limited.  I try to sneak in pt exercises and stretches when I get a chance.  Last week I barbell squatted for the first time post op and had no pain and it felt good.

Week 12 green light

I saw the dr yesterday and he said I have no restrictions and can do what I want.  X-ray is perfect.  He wants me to focus on wall squat holds as low as possible and lying knee pull stretch to increase flexion.  My flexion is 90+ degrees and external rotation is 40.  Not perfect but much better than along time.  I barbell squatted for the first time in forever 135x5x5 and had no issues. My form is not perfect yet but it was not bad either.  It will take sometime to get it right.

Week 11

Progress is occurring and I feel more limber than I have in a very long time.  I'm getting back to doing more lifts that I haven't been able to do in Along time.  Still need more flexion and external rotation but I've seen a good improvement in the last two weeks.  I can get my foot on opposite knee if I pull on my sock.  If I do high knees I'm close to even on both sides.  My main pt focus at this point is to stretch scar tissue.  I started doing the child's pose, dangle, foot on knee, and pull good leg to chest and straighten op leg 3-4x a day.  Hopefully, next week putting on my socks will be more normal.

10 weeks post op

I'm ahead of schedule on most attributes such as strength, endurance, speed and power.  Flexibility has improved drastically.  I'm starting to get my socks on with a little wiggling.  I am riding the bike on the lowest seat level and my hip flexion is much better.  I make it a point to stretch the hip flexors and external rotators multiple times a day.  I can go up the stairs 2 at a time with ease now and I did stadium stairs for 15 minutes yesterday and was doing 2 at a time for the last 3 minutes.  My whole body feels more limber and I don't have the tight back I had presurgery.

9 weeks (almost a normal hip)

Strength is getting much better on the operated leg.  Mobility is getting better too.  External rotation is getting better and with a towel I can get my ankle on opposite knee with a slight bend backward.  I'd say I'm about an inch away from getting my sock on.  I can squat lower than I coukd in two years and my stuff legged deadlift nearly touches the floor.  I'm focusing on my loaded high range of motion leg exercises and moving away from machines.  Today I was able to break concrete with an axe (took hundreds of powerful swings to destroy it) which was a great conditioning bonus workout.  My cardio is the best it has been in years.  I think in another month I'll be doing awesome.

8 weeks

Every week I am seeing noticeable improvement.  I'm feeling more limber and all around better.  My hamstring is not very tight anymore and I have gained flexibility.  My only complaint is poor external rotation on my op leg.  It has gotten a little bit looser but I am still not able to get that sock on.  I feel I can do just about anything I want to do at this point except run.  My strength is increasing nicely and I am becoming a workout machine.  I go as hard as I want and don't get tired.

7 week update

My obsessive compulsive stretching is starting to pay off and I am getting more flexible.  I'm able to touch my toes on my right foot when I put my leg up on a bench now.  I am getting closer on the standing toe touch.  I started holding 30lb Dumbbells at the end of my workout and bending over to stretch.  Also, I just started using the seated cable row machine to increase my sit and reach stretch.  My external rotation is better than a week ago but I'm not there yet.  Hopefully, in 2 more weeks I can get my ankle to opposite knee and put socks on.  My walking speed has increased nicely.  On two occasions I walked over 3.6 miles at just above a 15 minute pace.  I can do the stair master now.  I am on seat level 3 on the bike comfortably (I started at 6 three weeks ago).  My strength is getting back to normal even though my body weight is 198-200.  I'll take strength increases at a lower body weight anyday.

6 week update

My hip is 6 weeks old now and I just had my 6 week appointment.  Everything looks good.  Dr just wants me to focus on two new stretches to get my ability to put socks on properly.  I am walking at a fast pace with ease now.  I walked over 2 miles at a 16:21 pace easily on Monday while pushing my son in his buggy (I note that cause I don't swing both arms when I push it).  I have lowered the stationary bike seat to level 4 (level 6 was misery presurgery).  Every Monday I lower it 1 level.  I am destroying the elliptical in fact I did hiit cardio after lifting today and the machibe had to slow me down cause I was maxing the speed.  Flexibility is improving and I'm about 1 inch from touching my toes when I put my foot on a chair or bench.  I was a mile away a few weeks ago.  Progress has been great.

Day 37/38 (walking pr)

I have been focusing on stretching my hamstrings and getting them looser as that is my biggest issue at this time.  My quad flexibility is nearly back to normal and my knee is better.  I am biking a little further faster every morning at the gym.  Strength training this week was much improved from last week and I'm getting my muscles back.

I walked 3.26 miles pushing my boy on his buggy this morning.  I want to incorporate one long walk every week to build up distance.  Once I'm back to work that will happen on the weekend usually.

Day 36 (better)

I am moving and feeling better today.  Had PT and went to my happy place during massage which focused on my hamstrings (not my friends).  I'm glad I chose this PT place and I feel like it's the best one I have been too out of 3 in the last 15 months.  I've never had this intense of massage therapy with PT before and it works wonders.  No way am I this far progressed without the massage and laser treatment on the scar.  My newest exercise is sitting on a softball in my tight parts of my hamstring which is way better than a foam roller.

Day 34+35

34- had PT and massage hurt less and I am making progress.  Hamstring still too tight but I've had this problem for awhile before the surgery.  It will take time.  Lowered the bike seat one setting at the gym so I got a little more range of motion.


35-stretch hamstring a lot today.  I'm going to make it a point to stretch many times a day to get it even with left hamstring flexibility.  I had some weird feelings today.  First I worried about my left hip flexor than it felt five then the groin and then the outer left knee.  Now my left side is ok and my right leg has some tightness.  It's weird.  I will keep icing.  Most likely from compensating.  Maybe I should have kept cane longer even though I didn't think I needed it.

Day 32 +33 drastic improvement

Today, I was walking around the house and noticed I was walking pretty awesomely.  I couldn't even notice any limp.  I walked past a mirror and my shoulders looked even.  Nice!  This is the best I walked in 2 years.  Huge confidence boost.

I walked 1.37 miles in 24:45.  I took my son to the park and did 10 hands touching pull-ups and 15 wheel pullups.  The wheel pullups are my new favorite you real have to brace your core to prevent the wheel from turning.

Day 33: 1.6 miles in 29:40.  12 ng pullups 12 wheel pullups.  Finished my blood thinning injections today #winning.

One month post op

I trained legs today not the way I want to but better than nothing.  I realized how far I have to go to get where I want to be.  My legs have become much weaker than before the surgery.  Despite, the fact the muscles are weak and recovering I still walk better and feel better do that is a victory.  I will train legs on Fridays as a third PT day as I do some of the same exercises plus others.  As my ROM increases I will be able to add cooler exercises such as lunges, ghr, step ups, swings then later deadlift and squat variations.  Being patient will be the hardest part as I love to squat and deadlift.

My progress on the bike and elliptical gets better everyday. I walked 1.07 miles later with my boy. I am going further faster while still not pushing it hard.

I thought I'd be closer to being able to get my right sock on by now correctly but I still have to cheat.  I hope this gets better in a few weeks as that will be a huge milestone for me.

Day 29+30

I have been using the bike to warmup at the gym and each day feels better.  I hit my weights and then use the elliptical after.  I am pretty happy with my progress so far.

Today day 30 I went to PT and the quad massage was less painful but my knee is still tender.  I had a little more ROM on the quad stretch.   They hamstring massage was super painful and worse than the pain from Monday's massage.  I feel like they need a safe word lol.  It needs to be done though cause tight muscles suck.

Day 28 (holy moly!)

I had PT this morning and it is the most pain I have had....maybe ever.  No it was not during exercise or from pushing myself.  It was during massage therapy!  I had my quad, hamstring, glute and adductors massaged.  I thought the massage around the wound was bad until the PT had his assistant work above my knee cause I told him about my knee tenderness.  WOW!  She told me it is ok to cry here lol.  I told her I am too proud to cry. My IT band was so tight I thought it was a metal rope.  I thought I was going to pass out and piss myself.  It did feel sooooo much better afterwards though.  When I came home I pissed so much you would think I drank two gallons of water and held it in for a day.

After PT I headed to the gym for the first time in a month.  I rode the stationary bike on seat height 6 which used to impinge my hip but I felt good at that.  My flexion is already better than it was before surgery.  I also trained chest and did the elliptical.

Day 27 (keep on truckin)

Did my push-up progression last night and foam roller for the first time since the surgery.  Wow!  My quad and groin were so tight and in need of work.  I will foam roll daily.

I pushed my boy around in his buggy to the park 1.34 miles in 25:14. I did 16 ng pull-ups, 5 wheel pull-ups, 5 super close grip pullups.  This park is pull-up paradise.  Idk who had more fun him or me lol.  I love that it is nice outside and we can do fun things despite me not being 100%.

I been making sure to stretch my quads and hamstrings at night because both are tight.  It will be a good day when I can touch my toes again.