Men 50 and over are no strangers to the aches and pains of aging joints and muscles. Even though we’re not ready to retire, active lifestyles, work stress and strain, or conditions like Osteoarthritis can sideline us with little forewarning. Given the improvements in artificial joints and replacement surgeries, many of us “boomers” are taking advantage of the medical advancements to get back in the game sooner! We can help understand what expectations you’ll face in post-surgery workouts in our blog: Working out After Back and Hip Injuries and Surgeries.
The Importance of Activity in Recovery
In our blog on Working Out After a Knee Surgery, we talked about the importance of activity early in your recovery, and the same is essential in healing your hip and back. Benefits of therapeutic exercise are twofold:
- Increase strength – Strengthening the muscles that support your back and hips will help keep your joints stable. Stronger muscles also prevent further injury and keep the pain level to a minimum which allows you to keep working out and regaining your strength.
- Increase flexibility – A risk after any type of injury is a loss of flexibility. Stretching and strengthening your muscles will help restore your range of motion in your legs, lower back, and hips. This is especially important as you age.
Undoubtedly, your doctor or physical therapist will walk you through a great many routines, but the one thing they usually insist on prior to exercise is warming up and stretching the intended areas. Warm-ups can vary depending on the severity of the injury or tolerance to your body’s pain level. Slow walks or gentle rides on a stationary bike are two recommended methods for warming up with hip or back conditions.
Early Workouts after Hip Injuries
Once warmed up, it’s time to stretch your muscles to get them ready for strengthening.
Stretching your Hip Muscles
Standing Hip Stretch
Standing adjacent (not facing) to a wall, put the leg closest to the wall behind your standing leg. Use the wall for balance if needed, then lean your hip toward the wall. Go only as far until you feel the stretch and can comfortably hold it for 30 seconds. Repeat on the other side, stretching both sides four times.
Seated Stretch
Sit on the floor with both legs straight in front of you. Choose one leg and cross it over the other. Twist your upper body slowly toward the bent leg, using your hand for support. If comfortable, put the opposite arm on the bent leg to further the twist, but only twist as far as you feel comfortable. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds and come back to your center, repeating on the other side. Do both sides four times.
Knee Lifts
Lying down with your legs extended, bend one knee and pull it into your chest, holding at the shin. Pull only as far as your leg can go without causing pain. Hold there for 30 seconds and release. Wait another 30 seconds and repeat on the other side. Do both sides four times overall.
Strengthening Your Hip Muscles
The idea behind strengthening your hip muscles is to be able to carry weight on your ankle, giving your hip more strength. Start with no weights and slowly work your way up with light weights as you gain strength in your hip.
Hip Abduction
Lying on your side, have your injured leg on top and bend your bottom leg to give your hip support. With a straight top leg, raise the leg slowly until it reaches 45 degrees. Be careful not to lock your knee. Hold your leg in that position for up to five seconds and then lower it. Wait two-three seconds and repeat.
Extending your Hip
Lying on your stomach with a pillow under your hips, lay your legs straight out, choosing one leg to bend at 90 degrees. Slowly lift the leg, straightening it as much as you can without feeling discomfort. Lower the leg down, wait five seconds and repeat.
Knee Raises
Standing behind a chair, slowly raise one knee to a 90-degree angle. Hold it there for up to 3 seconds and put back down. Do 10 reps and repeat on both sides.
Standing Hip Abduction
Holding onto the back of a chair, slowly raise your leg to the side (bent at the knee). Raise it only as high as you feel comfortable, holding it for two to three seconds and lowering to the floor. Do 10 reps and repeat on the other side.
Advanced Hip Techniques
Once you can comfortably work through the above exercises, try some of the advanced techniques to keep your flexibility.
- Ball Bridge – Lying on the ground with your feet on a large exercise ball, lift your hips off the ground and hold for 5 to 10 seconds, return to the ground and repeat. This overall motion will work your core, hips and glutes. If this becomes troublesome, simply roll the ball with your feet to your buttocks and return to the starting position.
- With a therapeutic resistance band loop, place the loop around your ankles and take side-steps wide enough to feel pressure on your hips and legs. If the strain becomes painful, try standing still and lifting on leg to the side just enough to stretch the band. Alternate 5 to 10 reps each leg.
Early Workouts after Back Injuries or Surgery
After a back injury or back surgery, strengthening your core is vital. Your therapist may ask that you do exercises up to 3 times a day, each session taking around 10 minutes.
Ankle Pumps
Lying on your back with your legs straight, lift your ankles (one at a time) up and down slowly, repeating each leg 10 times.
Heel Slides
Lying on your back with both legs straight, slowly slide one heel in toward your buttocks, going only as far as you feel comfortable. Slowly straighten the leg back out and repeat on the other leg, doing 10 reps on each side.
Contracting your Abdominal Wall
This exercise will help you build your core. Lying down, bend both of your knees in a comfortable position. Place your hands on your stomach and tighten your stomach muscles, feeling your ribs move toward your back. Hold this position for five seconds and release, repeating 10 times.
Knee to Chest
Lie on your back with both knees bent, carefully lift one leg toward your chest, keeping the knee bent and holding at the back of your thigh. Hold this position for 10 – 20 seconds and release. Repeat on each side five times.
Stretching the Hip Flexor
Lie at the edge of your bed, with your buttocks at the edge. Hold both legs in a bent position, with your knees at your chest. Slowly lower one leg off the edge of the bed, lowering it just until you feel comfortable but not painful. Bring the knee back up and alternate the other side, repeating five times on each side.
Advanced Back Techniques
Once you can comfortably do the above exercises, try implementing some of these advanced techniques to keep strengthening your core and lower back.
Supine Dead Bugs
Lie on your back with your knees in a 90-degree angle. Keep your stomach muscles strong and lower one leg and the opposite arm to the floor (arm over your head). Repeat on each side, doing 10 – 20 reps each.
Ball Rolls
Carefully put yourself in a V-shape, holding your legs at the back of your thighs. Tuck your abdominal muscles in and balance in the V-shape for 2 seconds. Next, roll back onto your shoulders and then back up into the v-position, repeating 10 times.
Seated Russian Twists
Put yourself in a V-shape and holding a light medicine ball, slowly twist your body to one side, keeping the same shape and without over twisting, bring yourself back to center and repeat on the other side. Repeat for 10 reps on each side.
Final Thoughts
Working out after back or hip Injuries isn’t an insurmountable task, it just takes time and patience. Your hips and back (and core) are fundamental to your flexibility and strength, so don’t push yourself or think you need to rush. Only do what you feel comfortable with and talk to your medical professional about any pain you may be experiencing. Remember, each person is unique and may recover quicker (or slower) than others. The most important thing is consistency. You’ll find that exercising and/or moving your body 2 -3 times a day is ideal. Keep walking as a regular part of your routine, even if it’s slowly walking around your house several times a day.
We hope that you’ve found some useful information with our piece; Working out After Back and Hip Injuries and Surgeries. As always, if you don’t see something here you want us to cover, feel free to reach out to us directly through our Contact page or leave a comment below. Stay healthy and happy! ~ Glen.
Sources:
https://orthoinfo.aaos.org/en/recovery/hip-conditioning-program/hip-pdf/
https://www.orthoillinois.com/blog/exercise-after-hip-replacement/
https://uhs.princeton.edu/sites/uhs/files/documents/Lumbar.pdf
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