Hip replacement exercise program

Sit on a sturdy chair or on the side of your bed. Straighten your knee. Besides your exercise program, you must leave time for walking. It helps build your strength and endurance. Keep in mind that each person is different and has different pre-surgery levels of fitness. Talk with your physical therapist about walking if you have additional medical conditions.

Hip Replacement. Home exercise program. Swelling It is important to try to keep your swelling down after surgery. You will be able to do this by: lying flat with your leg at the level of your heart putting a cold pack on your hip actively pumping your muscles through ankle pumps balancing activity with rest Go to activities that will help with swelling.

Strengthening activities It is important to work on regaining strength after hip surgery. Walking It is important to walk often throughout the day. You will be able to do this by: walking around your home using a front-wheel walker, crutches or a cane assistive walking device your therapist instructed you to use walking with the "heel-toe" pattern that your therapist taught you to help keep you from walking with a limp gradually increasing the distance you walk Get additional instructions on how often to walk.

Swelling Do these activities to help reduce the amount of swelling and improve circulation after surgery. How often: At least 3 times a day You will have swelling in your leg and foot after surgery.

Ankle pumps Pump your feet up and down by pulling your feet up toward you, then pushing your feet down away from you. Thigh squeezes quadriceps sets Tighten the muscles on the top of your thigh by pushing the back of your knee down into the bed.

Buttock squeezes gluteal sets Tighten your buttocks muscles by squeezing the muscles together. Heel slides hip and knee flexion Bend your surgical hip and knee by sliding your heel up toward your buttocks while keeping your heel on the bed.

Lying kicks short arc quadriceps Lie on your back with a rolled-up blanket or towel at least 6 inches in diameter under the knee of your surgical leg. Straight leg raises Bend your non-surgical leg with your foot flat on the bed. Sitting kicks long arc quadriceps Sit on a sturdy chair or on the side of your bed. Walking How often: 5 times a day Besides your exercise program, you must leave time for walking. Walk around your home 5 times a day.

Trips to the bathroom or kitchen are not enough. Therapy also helps you learn to walk on your new hip joint. So what exercises should be done early on in the rehab process? Are there exercises that your physical therapist PT may prescribe to you while you are still in the hospital?

Starting exercises in the hospital after a total hip replacement is an important first step on the road to recovery. Your PT may prescribe exercises similar to the ones described here. Be sure to check in with your healthcare provider before starting any exercises after your total hip replacement. Heel slides strengthen the quadriceps muscles at the hip and the hamstring muscles at the knee. Your hip flexor muscles in the front of your hip joint are also active during heel slides, and the motion helps to keep blood flowing, possibly lowering the risk of developing a deep vein thrombosis.

Here is how you perform the heel slide exercise:. The heel slide exercise can be done several times each day. Be sure to stop if you feel any worsening pain. Straight leg raises help to strengthen your hip flexor muscles and your quadriceps muscles.

Perform the exercise as follows:. Straight leg raises can be altered to strengthen your glute muscles by performing the exercise on your side or stomach. Check with your PT to be sure you are doing them safely.

Gluteal sets are easy exercises that help strengthen the gluteal muscles of the hip. Strong gluteal muscles help in hip extension as well as stabilization of the joint. Gluteal sets also help to keep blood flowing. Perform as follows:. Slowly lower your leg down and relax. The back of your knee should stay in contact with the blanket or towel during the exercise. Bend your other leg with your foot flat on the bed. Raise your surgical leg up about 12 inches , keeping your knee straight.

Work up to holding for 5 seconds. If you are unable to do this exercise lying down, you can also do it standing up. Also see these additional standing exercises. Lie flat on your back. Come up on both elbows. Straighten your arms out behind you and come to a sitting position. Lower yourself down onto your elbows again, then down to lying flat. Sit on a sturdy chair with arms. Hold the arms of the chair.

Push down on the chair arms, straightening your elbows so you raise your buttocks a few inches off the seat of the chair. Lower yourself slowly back into the chair. If your arms are weak, use your legs to help raise your buttocks off the seat of the chair. Sit on a sturdy chair. Straighten your knee. Hip Replacement.