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Struggling with IT band and to rebuild muscle after TKR
Joint Replacements | Last Active: Jul 23, 2022 | Replies (8)Comment receiving replies
Hi Colleen,the chickenhaslips story is something funny that happened in Med school years ago.My TKR was 10/1/2019 .Uncomplicated.There was a significant loss of quadriceps
loss .I’ve almost got it back.Problem is this IT Band discomfort on the side of my knee.There’s much less discomfort going up the leg to the hip .However,if I work out with leg presses and other leg exercises for the next week the knee feels stiff and there’s discomfort over the head of the tibia.But I need the exercise to regain strength.I can still golf ,ride a bike easily for an hour.If I wear a knee sleeve it’s so much better.The doctor wants me to exercise to build up the quads .He feels “ balancing “ the muscles will help the IT Band .I don’t stretch much.Go to Y and ride the stationary bike for 40 minutes.
I think it’s slowly getting better but it’s been a year and a half.And when it’s bad I do walk straight leg .Just not right yet
Replies to "Hi Colleen,the chickenhaslips story is something funny that happened in Med school years ago.My TKR was..."
@chickenhaslips I have had two TKRs, the R in 2013, the L in 2017. I wouldn't say I have pain in either but I do get some discomfort on the outer side of my R leg when I have exercised a lot. My biggest complaint is my flex, which is about + or -120. I exercise a lot but even now I do feel discomfort in my quads after a lot of exercise. I would not say pain, just discomfort and fatigue. I reached the point I am at fairly soon after my TKRs. I guess I do have some awareness of my knees most of the time, they will never be the same as natural knees but I just accept that and live with it.
Is your doctor aware that you are doing leg presses? I was told both by my doctor and my physical therapist to not do them, and I have read that in articles about good and bad exercises also. It can put too much pressure on your spine according to the article I read. The doctor and therapist did not specify why I should not do them. To me, they appeared to be an ideal exercise but apparently not, at least not for me. Perhaps your situation is different and your doctor recommends them. 🤷
My doctor loves the recumbent bike for exercising the knee, which I see you are doing, and he also loves pool jogging. During the pandemic, I haven't been able to go to my health club so I have been doing a lot of exercise videos, many of which have jogging in place and that does not seem to be a problem. I will never be able to do the stretch at the end where the person bends their leg up toward their butt. I can get nowhere close to that.
I hope you are able to move forward with some relief soon. If you do find a solution I hope you will share it, I'm sure there are many who could also find it useful.
JK
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Chicken, I appreciate the further explanation. Clearly motivation is not an issue and you're not a stranger to exercise and hard work. For that reason, I modified the title of this discussion to encourage others like @contentandwell @artscaping @bonzobear72 @babette @pittkd @ellerbracke @kwk01 @mikec @ehlerhardie to join in and share their experiences about regaining muscle and returning to physical activity.
It sounds like things are getting better. I understand the frustration of patience. It took more than a year for me to regain full use of my shoulder after an injury (no surgery). It seemed to take forever. Stay the course.