back on the court

[russell]

At age 53, I have been very active in many sports my whole adult life (running marathons, riding road bikes). However, my life-long love has been playing tennis. After having been forced to give up first, singles (just couldn't cover the whole court well enough anymore) and then, doubles (too much pain), I had a bilateral HR (BHR) with Dr. Su eight months ago. I returned to normal competitive tennis with no problems whatsoever six months post-op. In terms of doubles, I am right back where I was pre-symptoms. I don't even think about it when I'm on-court. And I have to say that I'm the guy on the court who can be most relied upon to chase down the balls most people can't reach. I haven't tried singles yet. I suspect that if I did, I would find that I have lost a step in getting only to the most very difficult shots. I may just save these hips for doubles only. I want to make them last. I also usually only play on clay as opposed to hard-court surfaces (it's gentler on all the joints, especially my hips. Touch wood, I couldn't be happier. My opponents are surprised to see how acrobatic I still am. Too bad my ground strokes still suck though. Maybe Dr. Su can fix that as well!

[hernanu]

Congrats Russell and great to hear you're back to competition

[Kiwi]

Great stuff Russell - as an (ex) tennis & squash player it's very pleasing to hear you're back enjoying a run around the court. I'm only 2.5 weeks post op so have a bit to go until I'm back on the court. You will be able to get back to singles I'm sure. I know a fellow hippy who plays squash 3 time per week & he's 55! He started back playing (length games) at 10 months and now plays interclub weekly & is competitive as he ever was  :)
Enjoy!