Hip Talk at Surfacehippy

Congratulations Blinky.  Great to hear from you and read your update.  Hope you continue doing well and check back again with an update.  I wish you the very best.  Pat

Who watched Misty Copeland on the Oscars last night?
Did you know she had a hip replacement in December?
Wow!
Watching her made me wonder why more dancers do not choose resurfacing. Could it be the cup size? Or is there not a high consciousness of resurfacing in that profession?
If you need me, I will be off googling this issue.

Okay, I would follow your doctor's orders. If he says to restrict activity for six months, do it. If he says to wait a year, wait that long.
Typically, patients must restrict activities severely for six weeks, moderate some until six months, and are totally off leash at one year.

At ten years out, I can say I do all the things you list. I was not told they were out of the question for me. Now, was I comfortable doing all these things at six months? At a year? No! It took awhile to feel limber again. I remember at six months sitting cross legged first with one leg in front then the other and feeling tight.

Congrats! I did a 10K about a year out, too. I was sore, more than I expected, but then I did another a few months later and bounced back more quickly.

The halfs have been road races. I did a 5K trail run pretty early on, can't remember how early, and was afraid of falling so did not repeat. (The neighborhood park trail I thought would be so easy turned out to have many slippery, flat rocks. Now, I have fallen several times and bounced back up unharmed, but as I age I am more afraid of falling. An old lady thing?)

The first long run of the year, ten miles or more, hurts. Then every subsequent one feels okay. I think the trick would be to stay in condition, to keep doing those ten mile runs once a week year round. When I was doing three halfs in a row, one every four to six weeks, I felt good, and best doing the last one. So why don't I keep doing those ten mile runs? Just stay in shape? I used to pre arthritis. Now I have too many (good) things going on, and it is challenging to stay in the habit.

Is a treadmill better? Softer? Not for me. It is about the same as an asphalt road to me. Flat and well groomed trails with no slippery rocks might be the best. 

Good luck with your recovery and finding your new limits.

Thank you for sharing your anniversary story. I'm one year on from bilateral resurfacing and slowly clawing my way back to running again (tennis next!). I managed a 10K last month, hoping one day to run further but I made the decision to concentrate on trail running rather than a return to the roads. You didn't say if your half marathon events were road races, but if so how are finding training and racing on harder surfaces?

I see the names of the folks who went through resurfacing with me ten years ago. Hey guys!

This is Blinky, now Blinky one as time has had an effect on my memory if not my hips, and I forgot my login credentials.

The short update? I am doing great. I run, I swim, I hike, I dance, I spin, all the things. Ten years of sports and travel adventures. I wear out my kids and my husband. 

The longer version? The first year I focused on recovery. The second year, and, well, every year after, I pushed to see what the hips could do. Could I run a half marathon? Swim a 5k? In that second year, I found many things I could not do because I had fallen out of condition or because my brain and body had stopped communicating. But those could be remedied with hard work. I felt like year two I made some great gains. The gains came more slowly after that, but I was still improving. I settled into running a few half marathons a year in our cool months, swimming, and spinning. My H took a short gig in NYC, and for two years I spent every other weekend there, routinely walking 30k steps a day. Feeling completely recovered and very fit, I signed up for a half Ironman in Galveston for the spring of 2020.

Covid hit. Aargh! No half Ironman for me. I did a slew of virtual races, including the Virtual Race Across TN,  and eventually got back in the pool, in an outdoor pool with all kinds of Covid mitigation rules.

After Covid? Fit but not as fit. My boutique spin gym closed down. And I went back to school to get a masters in history. The degree turned into a new job lecturing at a local university. I am still running 5x a week and swimming probably 4x, but training for long events is more of a challenge with work and travel. I try to run one half marathon and swim one long open water swim a year. I expect (hope) the next big distraction from training will be grandchildren.

It has been a terrific ten years. I look forward to another ten.

Hello, 

I am an active 65 year old yoga practitioner and currently scheduled for a left hip resurfacing using the ReCerf ceramic prosthesis in May 2026.

I would like to learn more about hip mobility from anyone whose has had hip resurfacing, especially using a ceramic prosthesis.

From everything I am reading, following hip resurfacing and even after the recovery period, the advice is to:

    - no longer sleep on your stomach
    - Never cross your legs
    - Absolutely do not sit in lotus pose
    - No side or forward leg splits
    - No half moon pose on the resurfaced hip
    - No pigeon pose
    - Etc.

Is this the case for the first 6 months of recovery or is it the case for the rest of your life? 

Are there and hardcore yogis out there whom have had hip resurfacing with a ceramic prothesis? What is your yoga practice like a year after surgery?

Thank you in advance for your responses.

Carlos

Hi,
As with all recoveries you'll get different stories and perspectives but I can offer my experience which has similarities. I had bilateral resurfacing (phased, 10 weeks apart) and even factoring in the staggered recovery between left and right, my right hip (the second surgery) took longer to find a reasonable base level to work with.

Around 10 months on, I had what was determined as gluteal tendinopathy and bursa that wouldn't shift and was hampering the right hip's ability to recover and start taking more load. Working with my physio we tried a number of treatments and exercises before finally landing on a protocol that seemed to produce results.

We found that my outer quads, which for years had worked overtime to compensate for poor mechanics, were still trying to do all the work but now pulling at the tendon because they'd become so tight (a bit like tennis elbow I guess). In the gym, we worked on upper body, particularly core and Lats to try and relieve the quad. The exercise which really highlighted what was happening was the farmer carry, holding one dumbbell by my side, while holding another above my head, and then walking. The right hip would drop, the glute too weak to maintain a good neutral pelvic position and activate to push the leg through (the quad effectively pulling the leg through as before surgery). So, lots of Lat pulldowns, farmer carries, and dumbbell rows later we resolved a lot of the issues. We then worked on strengthening the inner quad muscles which had grown weak to get them in the game, along with glute strength. As for treatment, some (very painful) deep tissue massage into the quad to release the tightness was also a game-changer.

As I say, your issue may be different, and I would certainly say my pain was more acute than dull like yours, but something to perhaps discuss with your physio if not already.

All the best!

Well, I had my right Hip Resurfaced 5 years ago.  In hindsight I waited a year too long. The pain became severe enough that I was using a cane in the mornings. I had to make a decision even though I was still skeptical that Hip Resurfacing was a legitimate solution. After spending hours on the SURFACEHIPPY website I concluded that it was the logical choice.  I selected Dr. Koen De Smet [experience/reputation] to resurface my right hip and the hip just feels normal...unbelievable.

Unfortunately my left hip has started to become painful at times. After running longer distances or doing some sprints I would have moderate pain and be limping. The pain is intermittent but happening more frequently [similar to "imgetinold" experience]. X-rays confirmed that I have moderate to advanced osteoarthritis. I contacted Dr. Koen De Smet and he informed me that I am still a good candidate for Hip Resurfacing...I am scheduled for Hip Resurfacing this March.

Not everyone is a candidate for Hip Resurfacing and if you are over age 60 or female your chances become more limited. Also, if your hip deteriorates too much you may have to settle for a Hip Replacement. Surgery still worries me but I will take my chances and hope my Hip Resurfacing is successful. 

Hi
The BHR by smith and Nephew I don't think is available anymore in the UK.
However the ADEPT® Hip Resurfacing System is used in its place. Surgeon told me it's the same.