19 with FAI

^ On the surgery on the other hip 4-6 weeks later, I’ve read that online and it does make some sense. However, I also believe in what my doctor said. There are a decent amount of people with this condition that do not experience symptoms at any point, so why do the surgery and go through all of this just to try to prevent something that isn’t statistically proven to happen? Especially given the fact that 9 months post op I still can’t do squats, my hip occasionally hurts, and probably not full sprints? I’ll take a normal and healthy hip that “may” develop into an issue over specifically causing an issue in the hopes that the purposeful issue is better then the possible issue…if that makes sense. Though I do believe this condition does lead to arthritis if untreated, I can’t justify doing a surgery right now that the end result will be as limited as my surgery hip is. Alright, so it doesn’t feel “limited” really, but compared to my non-surgical hip it is noticeably different and slightly limited.

I can’t do back squats, doing it just plain hurts. I don’t know if that will ever change due to the cartilage that was removed, but I’ll keep trying every month or so and see. Haven’t tried front squats, but in my mind they seem like they would be better. I just don’t have squatting shoes anymore, and I don’t have the flexibility (especially now) to hit a decent depth with good form. So I do leg press, and while that gives me some issue if I go to low (like parallel), it is for the most part not an issue. I do leg extensions, leg curls, and RDL’s without issue. I use to love DB lunges and Barbell Split squats prior to the surgery, but haven’t worked them back in yet. I don’t want to try deads, not because of my hip but just because it doesn’t fit with my lifting strategy and goals right now. In my mind I believe they would cause some issues with my hip just because of the angles involved and the way I pull.

Basically, I am back to lifting as normal with the exception of squats and some carefulness on leg exercises.

Update on my car accident: Arm is normal, knee seems better but still off. I saw another doctor and he said the MRI didn’t really show a tear, and that from examination and describing my symptoms there wasn’t anything to do. So I’ve been experimenting with my knee, going to see how it handles things. I finally felt my hip was comfortable enough to do some light basketball work (shooting, some spinning, jumping, some explosive stuff) and while it was iffy, the pain was minimal and my motion was good. So as of right now, I’m improving. One bright note in my seemingly endless struggle

^ Are you still doing rehab type stuff for your hip? I’ve been out of surgery for about as long as you have, and I’m back to doing sprints, all sorts of single leg stuff, front squats, deads, but not back squats. I mean, I can do them, but I don’t get full depth and I feel pain if I try. I recently started some foam rolling and hip flexor stretching and I think it’s helping. Honestly I think a lot (not all) of your ROM and pain issues in the hip COULD be muscle related, not joint. There’s almost assuredly scar tissue in your rectus femorus and other hip flexors that needs some treatment. I mean, that’s where they put the scopes in, isn’t it? Muscular guys will develop scar tissue in their muscles more readily, and my doc gave me a prescription to try and prevent it, but it was still there some. It is getting better progressively.

As for two surgeries, that is highly case by case. If you’re asymptomatic in your other leg, and the doctor doesn’t think you will have problems later, then you’ll probably never need it. As for me, my doc, after the first surgery, said he thought I’d be back to see him in a few years, and I was. At this point I wish I’d had it done sooner so that I’d be further out of recovery. So it really just depends on the morphology of the individual.

Don’t do stuff that hurts. Do things that challenge your ROM w/o forcing you to get it by doing the exercise wrong. I.e, if you can’t do squats w/o buttwink, you probably aren’t ready for them. Do leg presses and try to get just a bit more ROM in the hip, a little at a time. Maybe do partial squats, too, although I don’t like those. Do sled pulls. They mimic sprints, but w/o the impact. I would get back on top of that single leg stuff. It will make you feel like you’ve done a real leg workout but (at least in my case) your re-habbing hip won’t cause you issues. Bulgarian split squats in particular are great for increasing mobility in your hip flexors. Get deadlifts back in, too. You need something bi-lateral and heavy, and you can probably do them pain free.

Sorry for all your issues, dude. You are having a really sucky recovery. I hope it gets better.

rehab stuff has faded away at this point. I still do band internal rotations 3x a week when I don’t get too busy to remember. I can sit fine unless I try to have a straight back (think good posture) or if I try to squat with a straight back. Then I get a pinching feeling in the hip joint, I don’t know that this is scar tissue or muscle. It literally feels like something in my joint is getting pinched.

I generally feel like I’ve done a real leg workout. RDL’s have always been great for my hamstrings, and with leg press I can get a lot of work in. I would fit in split squats but with my lifting program it doesn’t fit in well, I might start adding them in though just because it might help my hip in the long run.

Thanks, I’ve had a lot of health issues yeah, more than what I’ve posted on here. Honestly, the worst part right now is some days I feel so bummed out I just want to eat everything, which means I’m gaining some fat. Hard to stop because eating is like a therapy. Im hoping to get that under control here soon, though that’s only partly due to these health issues.

Another update:

Hip has been fairly normal. I attempted to do some lightweight squats, hurt pretty bad so still can’t do those. Tried to run 1 mile, finished it, went home and later that day my knee was just uncomfortably painful. So much so I could not focus. One week later I did my normal leg workout and my knee hurt on the back right afterwards. Pissed off, sad, tired of this bullshit, whatever you want to call it I’m there.

Hip still will hurt randomly, sharp pains. Happens every time I work on my feet, sucks but manageable.

I’m new to these forums and hope it is not against the rules to bump a 3 year old thread. Apologies if it is!

I don’t know how many people in this thread still are on these forums, but I am curious to hear how you guys are sitting a few years down the line? Especially @fisch and @nschneid , how are your hips doing? Would you have done anything differently if you could throughout the entire surgery and rehab process? Would you still do the surgery? How is ROM, exercise selection, pain levels, etc. today?

Great thread, although it is very old. I am facing the same issues. Hope to hear back.