Exercise after Knee Replacements
My question is I feel the need to run and have been starting to run 1 min intervals on the treadmill only to have some one tell me I shouldn't be running? Why? I am 46 yrs old regaining my health and strength and I again feel the need to do this simple running on the tread mill  |
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| No more running. The knee replacement material is not as strong as the original parts that came with your body. Running puts a great deal of extra strain on that new joint which will result in it's breakdown. Meanwhile small bits of joint material will be sluffing off with the extra force which float around inside your body, not good.
Yes, your muscles may be a strong as before but the underlying structure, that is the knee, isn't. Try some other high intenstiy exercise that doesn't put the pounding stress on the knee......swimming, bicycling, just not joint smashing running, jumping, etc. |
 thats going to be hard
i find that the 1 min intervels of running helps get and keep my heart rate up! |
| You can do that in the pool too (tho the water cools the body so you need to add extra beats to compensate). Bicycling, maybe a spin class, is in your future! I pass out just watching those folks! |
| well i do cycle every day 1-2 hours with the dog, but its not quite the same |
Put the dog in the basket and go uphill both ways.  |
| As a Cardiac Rehab Nurse I can tell you running at your age with knee replacements is not a good idea. Bike Swim, increase the resistance and speed on the eliptical but DO NOT RUN! |
| just curious, why do you say at my age? would that be with out the replacements too? |
| I tell the majority of my patients not to run after their 40's, it's just too hard on your joints. There are alot of exercises that are not so hard, an eliptical is an excellent way to get that "running feeling" without the constant pounding.
There will be many who disagree but as you age and your joints start to degenerate, and if you have had a knee replacement at such a young age you joints aren't so hot, you need to be careful of not over stressing them. I always recommend an eliptical over a treadmill for that reason. The Tread Climber is also a good machine that is joint sparing. |
| ...and glucosamine/chondroitin? |
| that didnt do a darn thing for me :0) |
| ok lots of replies i thank you all very much;
i ended up phoning my surgeon today and he just called me back . so i told him what i have been doing anddddd....... his response was running on the treadmill is fine!! its the running on uneven surfaces that cause problems and if i could run then you go girl and run!! |
| Well, you need to go with the advice you are comfortable with (which is usually the advice you wanted to hear) but you did some here before calling your surgeon so I will add one more comment.
I work in a physical therapy department in a very large hospital and I asked several PT's this morning if they would recommend running, either outside or on a TM to a patient with a knee replacement. Every one, without exception, said no. The bottom line is that the replacement is not as durable as the original equipment, so repetitive trauma tends to wear it out sooner. The components they use are generally polyethylene on one side and a metal on the other - the polyethylene can "shed" tiny fragments in response to the wear and this is seen as an invasive thing by your immune system - bottom line - distance running or other high intensity high impact sports are NOT recommended after surgery. But, we are a dog forum and anonymous postings on a sheepdog thread should never take the place of advice by a medical professional. |
| well i do thank you so much for the advise sharing info is the only way we can share our knowledge in life which is the reason i asked in the first place :0) i thank you for all your responses
cat :0) |
| I like the idea of the elliptical ... you'll get most of the feel of running and not do the damage that most of the posters have postulated.
Good luck cat |
| I'm at nationals, with limited internet, so just catching up on posts...
Anyway, I have been a hospital RN in orthopedics (also neuro/trauma) for 19 years. As alreasy mentioned, you will destroy your prosthesis prematuely by running. And the revisions are never as good as the 1st time the surgery is done. So, go for a lesser impacting version of exercise as mentioned - your prosthesis will last longer! |
| if you already cycle as you say you do? Try looking for a Spin Class, as earlier suggested. That will REALLY get your heart-rate up! Those things are brutal!!!! |
| I had both my knees replaced at the same time in June of 2007, the first thing I was told was I was could not run, the eliptical was better for me than the treadmill. I have started to take spin class, knees are a little sore, but worth the pain and you will get that workout you are looking for. Good luck! |
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