Recovering from Knee Surgery. Scared

jeremymmillerinstallations9273
jeremymmillerinstallations9273 Posts: 2 Member
in Motivation and Support
Lost! As I set here thinking about the last 2years of progress and eating anything in site. Thinking about the last few weeks of being laided up and knowing I have 6 to 8 more weeks. I find myself way out matched for this. How do I get back, how do I start again. Where do I start. Everyone keeps saying take it easy rest. But I’m truely scare to revert backwards. to gain all the weight I have lost, Losing my good eating habits for foods I love to eat. ( oh how I love ice cream). BecomIng Fat again. I need something to keep my mind focused.

Replies

  • knightreader
    knightreader Posts: 813 Member
    Been here. Many times. First, best of luck in your recovery. Second, what you eat becomes SO much more important right now b/c your mobility is limited. Any upper body workout you can do is great! Focus on arms and shoulders, if that's even possible. Lift light weights. At this point, your weight goal is to stay around where you were presurgery. Drink way more water than you want to! Then drink more water. If and when physical therapy is an option, ask them if you can work upper body stuff too to stay fit and strong. Stretch your upper body and back if possible. Maybe some light chair yoga? Good luck, I can't lie, it's tough! but certainly possible!!! You got this!
  • igutt
    igutt Posts: 97 Member
    Well focus on recovery and do whatever you want if you gain weight who cares at the end of the day when you recover and get back to 100% you can get back on track and do much better since you’ll know what to avoid
  • 88olds
    88olds Posts: 4,463 Member
    Don’t let the injury to your knee take over your head. Weight loss and maintenance are mostly about intake. There’s a target number where you will maintain where you are. You just have to find it.

    When does PT start? Maybe look on YouTube for a floor routine you can do that doesn’t involve your knee.

    Scared? I got scared one day and ended up losing 100 lbs. I stay just scared enough to not gain it back.
  • nebslp
    nebslp Posts: 1,645 Member
    I had both knees replaced during the same surgery 12 years ago so getting around was tough. But I was definitely not laid up as you put it. I had PT 3 times a week and learned what exercises I needed to do. On off days I did those same exercises twice a day without fail. Leg lifts with increasing weights as the weeks went by, balance exercises, high stepping, etc...whatever I did at therapy I did at home. Doing the post surgery exercises is what will make you strong. Eating right will make your body heal quicker and you will be way stronger after 8 weeks than you were before the surgery. rest is essential to healing. Ice cream is not helpful, but yogurt might be because it has protein. One more thing, I continued to do those exercises once a day, every day without fail for the following 9 months. Then I fell in ice and tore my rotator cuff and started working on that healing process with the same determination and follow through. It's never been better. My knees aren't perfect, but I was able to walk over between 17,000 and 20,000 steps a day in hilly Rome this summer with no pain. Fear will get you nowhere. Determination to be better than you were before will get you everywhere. Show everybody how tough you are! You've got this!
  • LyndaBSS
    LyndaBSS Posts: 6,964 Member
    I've had both knees and one hip replaced. You should commit to your physical therapy and also move enough that your muscles don't freeze up.

    Take your pain meds as needed, try to walk without favoring the surgical side and ice up. Good luck with your recovery.
  • surfbug808
    surfbug808 Posts: 251 Member
    I had two knee surgeries, and didn't gain any extra significant weight during my recovery period. I would walk (using crutches) to PT, and that was a workout in and of itself on arms/upper body and cardio! I was at the gym even more than usual to compensate for and prevent muscle loss in my legs, making them stronger than before. Stretching was necessary daily so I didn't lose flexibility. If you have a good physiotherapist, you'll probably be doing daily exercises. Lots of rest is vital to healing and proper recovery, but I echo what others have said above too, you can still exercise other parts of your body.

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