Frog Kick After Total Hip Replacement - Posterior Approach

[Dish]

I did a search of the forums for my question and came up empty. I realize that this forum is intended more for dive physiology, but couldn't find a better option to drop this into.

I broke my hip in a bicycle crash 3 months ago that required a total hip replacement. Apparently, I did a real number on my femur. Those that have experienced this know of the post-surgery hip precautions to avoid dislocation of the new joint. Hip precautions are different depending on the surgical approach. Mine was a posterior approach.

While I know that I will be safe with a flutter kick, I prefer to frog kick and be able to keep station with a reverse frog kick.

My physical therapy included an exercise that rotated my bent lower leg/foot toward the back of my other leg, but not to open up to the outside... which is what one does when initiating a frog kick.

Anyone out there with a Posterior Approach THR that frog kicks with no issues?

DAN does not provide recommendations for this particular question... only diving after joint replacement. And yes, I have reviewed the studies relating to post-THP and breast stroke.

Thanks in advance.

 

[divad]

Re my related experience..............endeavor to.... NOT **** IT UP!

 

[Dish]

Truer words were never spoken.

Not something I want to mess up... and start all over again.

 

[Bubblesong]

Can you get swimming pool physical therapy to try different kicks?
I have hip arthritis, and I have found regular frog kicks impossible, but bent knee frog kicks, also called modified frog kicks, are painless.

 

[Dish]

Thanks, @Francesea. The concern is not as much of pain, as it is a particular movement that will dislocate the replacement hip. Easy to do with little to no warning, hence the precautions.

I'm trying to follow @divad 's advice (never thought that I would type that)

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I had a total hip replacement on my left side with the posterior approach
on 03/22/2016.
The precautions they told me about were not to bend past 90 degrees and don’t swing your operated leg in past the centerline and then turn your foot in. Other than that they told me walk a lot and not to baby it.
I was diving three months later and hiking tanks down the beach four months later. Frog kicks are no problem for me. If anything, flutter kicking feels weirder than frog kicking but neither of them come close to violating any precautions.
The doctor told me to always swing my leg out and reach inside to put shoes or socks on. When I squat down I always have my knees apart. And then of course I can never pull that leg up to my chest ever again. I still have trouble with rotation and putting on socks. I still use a sock installer, but I’ve never been a very flexible person. Almost 30 years of joint degradation with bone spurs made it so all the muscles never got stretched because of limited moment. It’s just going to take a long time and constant gentle working to get the muscles and ligaments back in shape on that side. Getting my fin on and off can be quite entertaining for other people to watch. I’ve been told it resembles a monkey trying to do unspeakable things to a football, lol!
I am thoroughly thrilled with the operation and getting my life back.

 

[Dish]

Thanks, Eric (@Eric Sedletzky). I have the same precautions, to include "don't cross your legs". Knees out for bending motions was also advised. Still using the sock helper, as well. Of course my yoga practice can never be the same and must be highly modified, unfortunately.

What doesn't square (and this was my concern when I started the post) is the prohibition of turning your foot "in" when the leg is past centerline, but still being able to frog kick. Rotating your lower leg "out" with a bent knee creates the same femor rotation as rotating your foot "in" with a straight leg. I suppose that if you keep the knees apart, that mitigates the bad geometry and you obviously have not had any issues... which give me hope.

Thanks again for the response.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Thanks, Eric (@Eric Sedletzky). I have the same precautions, to include "don't cross your legs". Knees out for bending motions was also advised. Still using the sock helper, as well. Of course my yoga practice can never be the same and must be highly modified, unfortunately.

What doesn't square (and this was my concern when I started the post) is the prohibition of turning your foot "in" when the leg is past centerline, but still being able to frog kick. Rotating your lower leg "out" with a bent knee creates the same femor rotation as rotating your foot "in" with a straight leg. I suppose that if you keep the knees apart, that mitigates the bad geometry and you obviously have not had any issues... which give me hope.

Thanks again for the response.

Oh, I see what you saying now.
Yes that is true about rotation “in” doing some of the modified frog kick movements even with knees apart.
My frog kick is a true frog kick, not the bent knee sculling modified frog kick popular with cave and wreck divers. My legs and feet are turned out and I complete the full stroke with my legs straight out behind me. I use my full leg when I frog kick. When I draw my legs up to reload for the next kick my knees and feet are in normal position. At no time do I have to turn my feet in or put my hip joint in a compromised position. I also don’t do any backing up, no need in my style of diving and where I dive. Backing up will put your joint in a bad position because it will make you turn the femur “in”. So I would be very careful trying to back up.
One thing my threapist told me was too many times people want to begin to stretch out the joint muscles too early, and this loosens up the joint capsule before it’s fully healed. It takes at least three months for the capsule to set up before beginning to take joint movement to the limit of flexibility. If the capsule gets loosened up too early it can stretch the incision area and then it will heal in a stretched distorted way permanently. I know one guy who was an exercise and flexibility freak and a martial arts instructor. He wore both his hips out being overly flexible and having too much sudden impact on joints and had both of them replaced. He disregarded the advice to take it easy on the capsules and figured he’d be helping himself by getting right in with his stretching routine. He get’s so many dislocations now that he’s become a pro at grabbing his leg and resetting his joint himself!
I on the other hand, I used to work out a lot (that’s how mine went) but I hated to stretch. So they told me that since I have very tight joints and a lot of muscular tightness, I’m actually better off with fake parts.

 

[Dish]

Thanks, again, Eric. Glad to know someone in the same physiological boat. I did read a study that suggested that the standard frog kick was okay... a la breast stroke swimming. Guess I'll have to experiment a bit.

Do you think a Freedom Plate would help? Maybe not, but I sure would look good on the boat and it might make me feel better.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Thanks, again, Eric. Glad to know someone in the same physiological boat. I did read a study that suggested that the standard frog kick was okay... a la breast stroke swimming. Guess I'll have to experiment a bit.

Do you think a Freedom Plate would help? Maybe not, but I sure would look good on the boat and it might make me feel better.

The only way a Freedom Plate will help is that there will be less drag with a plate that slick and you will have to work less to go the same speed