Left Hip surgery recovery milestones:
[photos above: OA both hips before surgery, minihip Left side, first hike at week 4, first climb at week 12, first ski at week 22]
by end of first week: single crutch
second week: intervals of unassisted walking; recumbent exercise bike; drive car; single crutch to walking stick; walk to playground; taiji form unassisted; TFL swelling gone, can reach (L) toes; ROM limited to 90º
day 15: first day back to work / day 17: last tylenol dose;
third week: riding bicycle outside; back to work; foot/leg swelling gone; numbness in lateral-distal thigh gone; unassisted stairs; deep knee bends and up w/o hands; first swim and scissors kick exercise; drive to Albany for lymph tx; (L) ROM equals (R); no TEDs
fourth week: walking unassisted most days; squatting easily to play; first sleep upstairs; balance on (L) leg; (L) feeling stronger than (R); long walks w/ child on shoulders; can lift leg to chair height; steri-strips off; can reach head to floor in quad stretch on heels
fifth week: motorcycle riding; indoor rock climbing; begin private Ausara yoga; can reach fingers to both sides of (L) bent knee in lunge stretch
sixth week: strong hiking returned using walking sticks and bearing child carrier for child, age 3
seventh week: any sense of vulnerability with joint movement has left so now I feel wonderful about furthering the range of motion explorations; high (L) steps at climbing wall; trail bike rides cautiously; brief short-stride running; scissors kick swimming
eighth week: able to twist on (L) weight-bearing; first straight-leg lift; no more “cane days” at all
nineth week: PT discharge “gait excellent, (R) leg holds you back”; no stretch/exercise some days and legs still strong and stable; hard climbs 3x/wk at climbing wall
tenth week: no cane for first trip downstairs in AM; clearly easier straight-leg stretches in bed although VMO still an issue; AM exercises of 20-40 abduct. / 10-20 leg lifts / 3-5 knee-to-chest