Hip replacement recovery Walking, scar care, strength and balance, week by week

A total hip replacement swaps the worn ball and socket of the hip for an artificial joint. It is one of the most successful operations in medicine for hip arthritis pain, but the result depends a lot on the weeks of rehab that follow. This guide walks through hip replacement recovery from the hospital to full activity. If you are comparing it with a knee replacement, our knee replacement recovery timeline covers that operation.

Hip replacement recovery timeline

• Days 0 to 2: standing and walking with a walker, often the same day or the next; many people go home within a day or two
• Weeks 1 to 2: walking short distances at home, simple exercises several times a day, and the incision healing
• Weeks 2 to 6: moving from the walker to a cane, longer walks and outpatient physical therapy
• Weeks 6 to 12: walking without support, stairs step over step, driving and most daily activities once your surgeon clears you
• 3 to 6 months: most people feel close to normal and return to golf, swimming, cycling and long walks
• Up to a year: strength, endurance and balance keep improving

Hip precautions

Depending on how the surgery was done, your surgeon may give you precautions for the first six weeks or so, such as not bending the hip past 90 degrees, not crossing your legs and not turning the foot inward. Some approaches have few or no precautions. Follow your own surgeon’s instructions; physical therapy builds the plan around them.

Physical therapy after hip replacement

The first video shows the steps of that rehab: checking the incision, practicing sit-to-stand, walking and step-ups. A typical program, once you are home:

Early exercises (weeks 1 to 3)

1. Ankle pumps: point and flex the feet 20 times every hour you are awake, which also helps circulation
2. Glute and thigh squeezes: tighten and hold for 5 seconds, 10 times
3. Heel slides: lying on your back, slide the heel toward you and back, within your precautions
4. Sit-to-stand from a firm chair with armrests

Building strength (weeks 3 to 8)

5. Standing hip exercises: holding a counter, lift the leg out to the side, back and forward
6. Bridges and side-lying leg lifts
7. Step-ups onto a low step
8. Stationary bike with the seat high, once allowed

Walking and balance (weeks 6 and later)

The goal is an even, confident walk without a limp. Single-leg balance, longer walks and stairs come next; our guide to balance exercises shows how balance work progresses. In the second and third videos, Maggie (Yi) Zhang, DPT works with patients after a total hip replacement.

Scar care

Once the incision has fully closed and your surgeon says it is fine, gentle scar massage can help the skin and tissue under it move freely, which some people find eases tightness around the hip. The third and fourth videos show a physical therapist gently moving the skin around a healed incision. Do not massage a scar that is still open, scabbed, red or draining.

Warning signs after hip replacement

Call your surgeon or get urgent care for calf pain, warmth or swelling in one leg (a possible blood clot), sudden shortness of breath or chest pain (call 911), fever, increasing redness, drainage or opening of the incision, or a sudden pop with severe pain and a leg that looks shorter or turned, which can mean the new hip has dislocated. Our pre- and post-surgical rehab team at the Brooklyn and Staten Island offices follows your surgeon’s protocol and shares progress with your surgeon. For hip pain that comes back months later, see our hip pain page.

Related care at Precision Care Medical & Sports Performance

Physical therapy after hip replacement near you

Looking for post-surgical rehab in Brooklyn after a hip replacement? physical therapists Zoya Reznik, DPT, OCS and Maggie (Yi) Zhang, DPT, with physical therapist assistants Dennis Furman, PTA and Leila Nahmoud, PTA see patients at our Brooklyn physical therapy office on Shell Rd. The office is a short drive from Coney Island, Bensonhurst, Manhattan Beach and Midwood. Ashley Marcus, MD also sees patients at the Brooklyn office.

For physical therapy after surgery on Staten Island, physical therapists Victoria Lynn Kain, DPT and Nicholas “Nick” Ursini, DPT work at our Staten Island physical therapy office on Richmond Rd, convenient to Dongan Hills, Great Kills and Todt Hill, where Jake Stephen, DO also sees patients. In Manhattan, Yuri Gordin, MD sees patients at the Precision Care Spine & Pain Center in Midtown Manhattan, reached easily from the Upper West Side, Spanish Harlem and the Financial District, for hip pain care; physical therapy is not offered at the Manhattan office. Bring your surgeon’s protocol to the first visit. Request an appointment or call the office closest to you.

Questions patients ask

Educational only, not medical advice. These videos and this article explain common problems and treatments in general terms. They are not a diagnosis or a treatment plan for you. Results vary from person to person. See a qualified clinician about your own symptoms, and call 911 or go to an emergency room for an emergency.

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