I was never a jogger / runner before hip surgery. I would often use jogging as a way to burn off stress and exercise, but I would usually do 1-2 miles runs.. maybe 2-3 here and there. I never have run father than 5 miles in a single run. Stuff like marathons was never anythign I even considered...
with that being said... I totally gave up running about 4-5 years ago because it hurt too much to run. Before surgery the most I could do to move quickly was a kind of limping / hopping thing... my 3 year old could outrun me..that's how slow I was.
Dr. Gross told me I could start running again at 6 months. At 6 months.. I tried running. I went maybe 100 yards and it felt tired and weird. I could tell my muscles and everythign else was not up to it. I would try to run every so often to see how I improved. I do not try it every day.. maybe once a week or every other week I go out for a run. There were a few times where I didn't bother to try for the whole month... I am now 10 months post op.
Between months 6-10, I have maybe gone for a "jog" 7-10 times max. I gradually have been able to go farther and farther before I feel any discomfort.
I haven't actually measured how far I"m going other than I know where I start (my house)..I take the same route..and I keep track of where I poop out... lately.. each time I've gone, I've been able to go a bit further.
when I do feel the need to stop, I feel some soreness or pain the area of my incision. the pain is NOT in my joint.. my joint feels great. the tiredness or soreness is more where the incision is.. making me suspect i still have not healed 100%.. or perhaps my muscles/tendons/ligaments/etc.. are just not strong enough to sustain running that far.
I'm not a fat guy, but not small either. i'm about 5'9" and weigh 200 lbs. I probably shoudl weigh about 170-175...I gained a good 15-20 lbs after surgery..and have yet to lose it... my wife cooks good food and I can't help myself..
I would say at this point.. I can run about 3/4 mile to a mile before I feel soreness.. considering that before surgery I would usually do 2-3 miles max... I am pretty excited to be where I am...
I'm just curious.. is my progress normal, below normal, above normal? I am not sure if by 10 months I shoudl have my hip back to 100% and I shoudl be able to run all over with zero soft tissue pain.. or if this soreness is typical?
I feel zero pain the first parts of my run.. I start running and it feels perfect. I try to run "smoothly" and not take huge giant leaps and put tons of impact onto my joints... but even if I pour on some speed and really try to go fast..it doesn't hurt. it's just after I've run for maybe 10 minutes or so..that I start to feel pain..it's hard to descdribe it.. it's not sharp pain.. it's not some throbbing pain.. it's just sorenes. it also does not feel like muscle burn / fatigue from lactic acid... it's more like a soreness...or inflamation.
it could just be i get inflammation and that cuases sorenss or maybe it's some kind of fatigue in the soft tissues? the fact that it does NOT hurt one bit in the beginning an only hurts later on...and it has gradually taken longer for this to set in.. makes me think it's soemthing that is strength / muscle related..and the more I run the better it seems to get.
how many of you are running post surgery? how have you progressed compared to your pre running ability. I guess the fact that i had not run for 4 years or so BEFORE surgery.. has to play a role... and i'm not complainning.. if this is as good as I ever get.. I"m so much better off than before the operation it's not even funny.
in my day to day life..walking arodn teh hosue, up and down stairs.. Ii am 100%. I could run up and down a few flights of stairs and feel zero pain.. as if my hip is totally normal.. this "pain" or soreness really only presents itself after I run a long ways..
i don't plan on running a lot...I know there are various opininos on whether or not it's bad for our implants... so while I"m doing it now as a way to hopefully rehab my leg/hip.. I probably won't make a habit of running a lot even if I can... it sure is fun, however, to get out and run even 1/2 a mile.... given that it was physically impossible to do not that long ago. running "fast" the first time was the biggest euphoric rush I've had in a LONG time... wow did I feel like i was FLYING.....
on a humorous note... recently when out with the kids at the park.. i took off running with one of my kids and my 4 year old turns to me and says "Daddy.. you were running!" with this tone of suprise.. he had never seen me run.... now I can outrun him.. for now...