gowfermike

I may need knee replacement surgery next year. Are their any fellow riders out there that have had the surgery and can one come back to riding 50+ miles a day for 10 to 15 day short tours?
Thanks.......

Wogster

I haven't had knee replacement, my mother did, but she doesn't ride, never learned and at 86 I don't think she will ever start. Success though does depend on a few things, first is how good a condition you are in pre-op. Second is how good are you at following instructions, the medical team will give you specific instructions and exercises to do, to get you back to as close to optimum as possible, if you follow the instructions then there shouldn't be any reason why you can't. If you think it's stupid or too painful and don't do it, then it's going to be a lot less successful. Third is your age, at 50 it's going to be easier then at 75.

Tell your PT your a cyclist and want to get back to riding 50+ miles per day, they will make sure to tailor your recovery process to try to achieve that. Chances are they will get you on a spin bike/trainer as quickly as possible, as it's a good exercise that is low impact for your knees.

twodeadpoets

Haven't had knee replacement however have had two knee surguries and my wife is about to get her other (from last year) knee operated on (maniscus) and both of ours so far have been very suscessful. That said, do ask you doc about it and tell them your cycling needs. They should be able to give you the skivvy on what kind of PT you might need to do. In my wife's and my cases, the only PT we needed or did was riding.

rockdog

Had some knee surgery myself a number of years ago but not a replacement. One of my co-workers had a knee replacement last year and has recovered very well. The doctor suggested he put a stationary bike in his office and spend as much time on it as possible as part of his physical therapy. He was using a cane for a few months but now you would never know he had a bum knee. Mine's screwed up again now and I'm seeing the orthopedic surgeon next week, I'm hoping he says it's nothing serious.

gowfermike

Thanks for the info. I had meniscus surgery 10 years ago and the knee is getting painful after sitting or climbing a hill. I quit standing up on the pedals and changed the chain rings from 50-39-30 to 44-32-22. I don't move as fast but I'm moving with less effort on the hills. I don't know if they will be able to clean up the calcification but I will hope...Thanks..

surfjimc

My wife had a knee replaced and has recovered far beyond what was predicted. She rides lots of miles when she wants, goes to spinning, and hikes. What made the difference between her and the normal person was her determination to heal and the willingness to do the painful pt that was needed. When she finished her pt, she went to the gym and hired a trainer to specifically work her legs and focus on building her leg back up after years of atrophy. All the effort and sweat and pain paid off. Oddly, I know quite a few people who have had knee replacements and none have had the same results as my wife, but none did the work she did. They mostly followed the pt plan then stopped when the prescription ended. She took it to another level in order to be able to do all the things she had given up, except soccer and skiing, which are no longer options. Good luck with the surgery. Then do the work and you'll be back touring. Just know that it doesn't come quickly.

Clarenza

Hi Gowfermike, I notice from your profile that, like me, you're in the wrong half of your 50's. I had my knee reconstruction (ACL) about ten years ago and I was on a walking stick / off the bike for about six weeks. To redevelop enough knee condition to do multiple consecutive 50 mile days would have taken me many months, possibly close to a year (then again I had some complications). Add another ten years in age and recovery is likely to be slower. But as Wogsterca accurately says, it depends on your pre op condition and your post op recovery regime. My guess is that absolute best case is that it would be at least six months before you'd be in a position to give it a try -- and travelling ultra light, preferably with sag support, would be advisable.

Saintly Loser

I had a knee replacement a few years back. It's been great. Yes, I ride 50+ miles a day (seasonally). I've never done it 10 or 15 days in a row, but I have no doubt that I could. In the summer, I do 65-75 mile rides just about every weekend. I've done centuries. I've done long weekend rides (3 or 4 days) of similar mileage. I'm careful about gearing, and don't try to push huge gears (I use a Sugino 48-36-24 crank, so I basically don't have any huge gears), and I haven't had a moment's trouble with my knee.

Really, knee replacement works. Do it. You'll be happy. I went from a near-cripple to riding as far and as often as I want to. Even the surgery wasn't that bad. I went into the hospital on a Thursday morning, and was back at work the following Thursday.

Oh, yeah. Forgot. I'm 50 now, was 46 (or 45, can't remember) when I had the surgery. I was on the bike pretty soon afterwards. In fact, getting back in shape was my main motivation for getting back on a bike after too many years away.

BobC57

I'm 52, and I had my knee replaced in February of this year. In June I rode 420 miles over 7 days with no problems. Post op and rehab hurt like a *****. If you work hard at it at rehab and at home you'll have full range of motion in a couple of months. I have no regrets over having the surgery, my knee feels better than it has in years.