Some people harbor many doubts as to whether they can go back to doing their daily tasks and activities after a complicated surgery. When you undergo a knee replacement surgery with your trusted doctor in Orem or elsewhere, you might think that you can no longer engage in any strenuous sports activities or even exercises for fear of damaging your knee.
But, in fact when you undergo this treatment doctors will insist that you return to exercising or even playing certain sports not only to improve your health but also to strengthen your knee. What you should remind yourself is to go easy on your knee whenever you’re exercising or playing a game.
So, if you want to go back to exercising after undergoing this type of knee procedure, try following the suggestions below:
Walking
You can resume walking after undergoing knee surgery as long as you go easy on your first day. Doctors recommend that you keep your walking exercise to less than 30 minutes and just around the block. Once you’ve healed further you can add more miles and minutes to your walk.
Swimming
If you really want to work on your cardiovascular system but don’t want to put too much strain on your knee you should try swimming a few laps. Swimming is the perfect exercise for someone with your condition because you get to exercise your heart, lungs and all of your limbs without straining your healing knee. Because you’re floating in a pool you’re not putting too much weight on your knees that could worsen your condition.
On top of that, you can hit the pool even if it’s only been three to four weeks after your surgery. Just be sure to ask your doctor first before you head to the local swimming pool.
Biking
Doctors say that cycling is one of the best ways to strengthen your knee after surgery. They advise that you start with a stationary bike first to minimize the stress on your knee and because physicians say that you should start pedaling backwards until you gain enough strength on your legs. When you’re confident enough to start cycling again doctors say that you should bike on flat surfaces for a while.
Yoga
Aside from strengthening your knee you should also help it become more limber. One way to do that is to try yoga exercises because they focus a lot on stretching and balancing activities.
Doctors say though that you should start with some basic and easy positions first to gradually build strength on your knee. Don’t jump right away to those complicated yoga positions because you might strain your knee; stay away from taking on too much too soon.
Weightlifting
You might be surprised to find out that doctors actually recommend that patients who have undergone knee replacement surgery try weightlifting to strengthen their knee. The reason behind this is that bones and muscles develop much faster when you engage in resistance training.
But, again, you should practice caution when performing weight-bearing exercises. Ask your doctor how much weight you can lift and also how quickly you can progress to the next weight level.
These are some of the exercises you can do to rebuild the strength on your knee. They’re not as strenuous as other exercises so your knee is safe from further injury.
