Help! Fell while running—twice. :(

tkdkathy

I had THR of my right hip three years ago, anterior surgery. I was told no running, but finally my surgeon admitted he runs with some of his patients. But he told me to limit my running to three or four miles a few times a week. I am a 70 year old female and have been running on and off, since I was 12. I did my first marathon at 60, second one at 66. I have run two half marathons since my hip replacement, slowly increasing mileage and gaining confidence that I do not need to limit my running distance. I have fallen twice while running in the last few months. The first time, I kind of felt something catch on my right foot and down I went. Got up and ran home, kind of banged up, but not too bad. I kept running, but had anxiety about falling again. I literally just had been thinking I do not need to worry about falling anymore and a few days ago, down I went again. I cried all the way home this time. Both times I looked to see if there was something that caught my foot, but there was nothing visible. I run on the sidewalks and roadways and am pretty slow and shuffling. I have never been a fast runner, but love long, endurance runs. Now I am really afraid that something has gone wrong, or I am just getting too old to run. Which I never thought would happen. I lost my father a few months ago, and that has been affecting me quite a bit. But when I run lately, I have been very focused on foot placement due to the first fall. Just freaked out that something is going wrong that will prevent me from continuing to run. (And it is my surgery side foot that is catching somehow.) Any insight or encouragement would be greatly appreciated. I have not run since the fall early this week. 🙁

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    • December 24, 2022 at 8:23 am #20408
      tkdkathy
      Participant

      I had THR of my right hip three years ago, anterior surgery. I was told no running, but finally my surgeon admitted he runs with some of his patients.
      [See the full post at: Help! Fell while running—twice. 🙁]

    • December 25, 2022 at 4:22 am #20411
      OB
      Participant

      How is your mobility on your left side? I had my right hip replaced in 2020 and noticed while training for the Atlanta half marathon this past spring that I was dragging my left leg and almost tripped a couple of times because I wasn’t getting my foot high enough off the ground. I am now scheduled to have my left hip replaced late January. It isn’t very painful but bone on bone in the front of the hip socket has limited my mobility and caused me to be careful when I run.

    • December 25, 2022 at 12:29 pm #20412
      tkdkathy
      Participant

      Thanks for your thoughts. I believe it is my right side that is catching. Also my left hip is pretty good. I actually had to have the right hip replaced due to avascular necrosis. Not arthritis. It kind of all happened pretty quickly.

    • December 27, 2022 at 9:05 am #20413
      Cityofsmokingjoe
      Participant

      No, this doesn’t sound like a hip device problem. I hate to say it, but as we get older, we are more susceptible to trips and falls. I’m about to turn 61. I went through a period about a year after my thr where I fell multiple times. I ultimately started some weight lifting because I concluded that I wasn’t picking up my feet high enough and that some muscles were weak. Haven’t fallen since. I think it was my quads that were the problem.

      My suggestion: go to physical therapy. Basically as we age, muscles get weaker and then we compromise form and problems arise. The PT training can help you strengthen your muscles and improve your balance. Balance is a huge part of good pt for runners. And in PT there are lots of exercises for balance. You learn to use all the little muscles that get out whack over time. And unfortunately, as we hit our 50s and certainly 60, it’s easy for balance to deteriorate. But training can restore that.

      And the PT can notice if you’re not picking your feet up high enough and help you retrain that part of your form. I went to PT about six months after surgery to get back to running. Frankly the PT was less “therapy” to recover from the surgery and more just straight-up fitness and strength training. My muscles were in far worse shape than I thought. And running relies on muscle fitness and muscle activation way more than I thought. There is the strength part of PT and then there is an activation part. Over time, in bourgeois society, for example, we stop using our glute muscles. Those butt muscles are powerful, fierce and it takes time to activate them even if they’re strong.

      I went to PT again later for some knee problems. Both times were highly successful.

      BTW: there are great, good and mediocre PT people out there. Find someone you really like. You don’t have confidence in their method, go to someone else. Don’t waste time when you don’t feel you’re getting stronger. You should know in a month if the PT regimen is good for you. It could take several months of PT work, but your therapist will almost certainly want you running immediately. So you won’t have to sit out training as you go through the PT.

      Good luck.

    • January 6, 2023 at 11:47 am #20417
      Ltcajs
      Participant

      Hi Kathy Check the wear pattern on your shoes, we get older and become heal stickers with short strides . It’s easy to catch a toe and tumble. Study up on chi running and change to easy impact chi running. I’m 1 year out of left hip replacement, turning 70 and cleared to return to marathons and Ironman racing.

    • January 8, 2023 at 4:56 pm #20426
      tkdkathy
      Participant

      Thank you, Ltcajs. I figured out it is my stride, plus the shoes I have been wearing since my hip replacement. I have done tons of p.t. and am strong and flexible. So I knew p.t. was not the answer. So cool to hear that you got approved to return to marathons and Ironman racing. 🙂 I have switched out my shoes and am paying attention to my stride.

      • This reply was modified 4 months, 3 weeks ago by tkdkathy.
      • This reply was modified 4 months, 3 weeks ago by tkdkathy.
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