Help!!!! newbie

Hi, welcome!
Read some of the current posts, there are several folk, boys and girls, starting their adventures in running with a THR at the moment, lots of info to absorb.
In my case, I was jogging at 6 weeks and back in the mountains at 4 months, but this was over 4 years ago so no Covid to recover from..
I started on hard flat surfaces, in ordinary trainers, at a very slow jog/walk/jog, checking for new pains/funny feelings and being very careful. The hospital physio, however, stuck me on a treadmill and made me run properly (but not very elegantly) so I stopped worrying and so my 6 week jog was actually at parkrun, 5k. I went down the route of small steps, faster cadence in flat shoes – some go the other way and get Hoka or similar soft cushioned shoes, and start running on grass. I was fit before the op. so was reasonably quick quite quickly, this did not last very long and had to build up mileage slowly to regain proper fitness. Basically my best advice is to ‘suck it and see’ – I recorded my progress on my Garmin devices, nice to be able to look back and see how far you have come.
Good luck,
Pete

Good luck Berukie. The hardest thing is getting started, once you do, the questions will answer themselves. Make sure your glutes, quads, hamstrings and any tendons cut in surgery are as strong as they can be. I initially had some adductor weakness and held off from running until I could complete sets of single leg glute bridges on the affected side. Also, fairly obviously, make sure you have rebuilt enough aerobic strength. Although I was able to continue swimming right up to surgery, and got back in the pool 5 weeks after surgery, I was quite surprised how much capacity I lost during the period before / after surgery when I couldn’t run.

I have stuck with the shoes I had before surgery, both were fairly new when my running started to fall apart in early 2021. Fairly normal Mizuno Wave road shoes and Saucony Guide trails. Not sure where you live and therefore what options you have. Trail might make an easier start so long as you have somewhere with a good compacted surface – wide and well maintained paths, not riddled with roots, not a lot of mud etc. treadmill likewise if you can bear it (I would rather be outdoors!).

I am now just over 4 months out from my THR and made a tentative start to running in December, which I am now building on. I started with weeks 1 and 2 from couch to 5k as I hadn’t been able to run since May, and am now using coach Amy’s 5k plan on Garmin Connect to build on it. Basically run/walk until I can continuously run 5k. I am a big fan of parkrun, currently walking it as fast as I can with Nordic urban poles, I won’t switch to running it until I have got through (or close to through) the Garmin plan.

I have an excellent personal trainer who I have worked with on strength for a number of years. He has been excellent in getting me into some sort of state to tackle this. Plus as I mentioned I swim and I also do pool based Aqua classes.

I am not sure whether I will go much beyond 5k. I probably will build back to 10k but that’s enough. I am 65, main motivation for running is the physical and mental health benefits. Nothing seems to help in quite the same way.

I have a Smith & Nephew uncemented Polar 3 (Polarstem / R3 cup), surgery was posterior approach. My recovery has been really easy and straightforward.

Hi Berukie,
Congrats on your impressive pre-op times. I would start slow and short, take the first year to adjust and just build a base. After that anything is possible. I started racing 5K’s and 10K’s and later moved to marathons and now ultras. For me the longer the distance the easier it is on your hip. The pounding running sub 20 minute 5K’s took a tool and gives me pain in the hip area. You have to listen to your body and back off when it’s telling you. The majority of my training is slow and I’m still able to show up race day and do well, winning occasionally. I also do a little riding (stand up ElliptiGo to be precise) and think hip strengthening exercises will also pay dividends. I try to eat healthy (keto) and keep inflammation to a minimum, for me I think that’s the biggest risk. I’ve been running between 2,000 to 3,000 miles the last 5-6 years. Wishing you tons of luck and many miles.
Dave

Hi Berukie,

I echo Dave’s response. Everyone is different. Obviously don’t do too much too soon and let your hip guide you through the process. When it says its done, take a day or two and then try again. Starting out initially is tough. It feels weird and makes you wonder if you should be running on it. But over time, you get used to the new hip and your running starts to feel normal again. Best of luck to you!
Hip Brother Tom

• This reply was modified 1 year, 10 months ago by Hip Brother Tom.

Hello. My hip started bothering me in 2013 and gradually got worse, to the point where I couldn’t run at all. I had my THR in September, 2014.

For the first 2 months, I did mostly walking at a fast pace. I gradually mixed in a little bit of running with the walking, letting pain be my guide. At 3 months, I tried a 5K race and even though it was 9 minutes slower than my pre-surgery race times, I was happy that I could run the entire distance without walking. For a few more months after that (3-6 months post-surgery), I was running about 4 or 5 days a week and walking on the other days. After 6 months, I was running almost every day, and started working on speed and distance. I used shoes with maximum cushioning, Skechers and Hoka. I tried to stay on flat, soft surfaces for the first 6 months (the track and dirt roads).

It took about a year to get back to peak performance in the 5K. And another year to build up to the longer distance races.

Of course, everyone is different so your recovery and rebuild won’t be the same as mine. Take it one day at a time and just try to improve from week to week. Know that, from now on, you will be getting better instead of worse.

Good luck to you, and please be sure to post your progress!

Have faith !! You can get back !!!
You had some remarkable running times prior and Have the opportunity to get back to some level! Interestingly your lifetime PR’s are REAL similar to mine!
Have a review of some of my history on this blog as I am now 13 months post – op:
https://www.hiprunner.com/wp-admin/edit.php

Lmk if you have trouble accessing and reviewing.