Canadian-
I had my hip done by Dr. Gross almost 5 years ago. My 5 year anniversary will be in Feb of 2016.
it changed my life. before surgery I limped all the time and was in 24/7 pain. my hip started hurting a *little* in my late 20s..it gradually got worse..very slowly.. it wasn't until about 35 that it really started limiting me... by 38 i was in 24/7 pain..even in bed trying to go to sleep. i lived on aleve...i took 6+ a day for years.
now I can do pretty much anything. i have gone snowboarding, played basketball, racquetball..jogged.. the only limitation I have found is running. after a mile or two of jogging I get pain..caused my muscle tightness... chiropractic work helped it and extended how far I could run but i don't like running anyway.. so I don't care.
i cycle a lot and do 10-20 mile rides regularly.. no pain .. zero.. nada. and I crank the hell out of it... hill climbs..i've done mountain biking... massive uphill climbs..donwhill..no pain.
i weight lift. I do leg extensions, leg presses, no problems.
recovery is not overnight. Dr. Gross said 6 months before i start running. i remember the first time i tried to run at 6 months and it felt weird. 1 year before any full contact sports. i honestly think that i improved for about 2-3 years.... by 6 weeks i was walking all around with no limp and felt fine...so you are back up on your feet quick...and feeling good quick. but i can remember if I would sand on one foot to put a sock on.. and stood on the operative hip id' feel weird twinge... that stuff was still there even 6 months out.. gradually all that stuff gets less and less... feeling weird stuff when I did leg presses might be there a year out.. but then you build up strength and push though it...
if you do stuff like ice hockey... i bet you can be back doing it in a year if you go uncemented...but to be "like you were before" will be 1-2 years....
dot's wait too long to get it fixed. my mistake was waiting until i was in agony all day and all night .. i wish I had fixed my hip much sooner.
i always say, Dr Gross gave me my life back. not kidding.. my life literally transformed from getting my hip fixed. loving life!!
dr. gross has told me you can do anything you want on the hip. so go kick box, MMA, jump off stuff.. I have been up on a ledge.. or on a high stool change a light bulb.. and just jump off .... never had a problem. talk to Dr. Gross..he is great. i know there are doctors out there who say don't run on any metal on metal implant..but Dr. Gross basically says you can do anything you want on it.