Healing My Hip=Losing Weight?

tneah

tneah

Cathlete
Hey All,

I have a question. Since my hip replacement surgery July 10th, I have lost about 7 pounds. My tanita scale has also stated my bodyfat has lowered by several percentages as well.
I do my physical therapy exercises (45 min. every other day)which consist of isometric holds mostly, and I walk for about 20 minutes, twice a day-at a slow pace. My diet has consisted of fruit, a little protein from either whey protein drinks with a banana in the AM, or tuna, along with some soup and fat free saltines. I will eat broccoli sometimes too. I also have an obsession with grapes!:9

So, its just weird to me. Was I eating that much more when I was working out over an hour a day, vigorously? Is it the wine, that I have taken out of my diet (cannot mix painkillers with wine:eek: )
My friend says to me, Wow, you lose weight when you do not work out hard, so why do you kill yourself? Or is it the healing process that uses up more energy than I thought it would?

Frankly, I am baffled, not complaining, my stomach is flat as a board, and my skin looks great, due to all the sleep I get, plus I have to sleep on my back so I never wake up with "squished" pillow face!:7

Any thoughts on this from anyone who might understand what is going on? Kathyrn? Anyone? I have three more weeks until I can return to "normal" acitvities. Thanks guys, I know I can count on someone who knows whats going on?
 
Hi tneah,

I went through something similar when I had my ACL surgery back in November. One thing that I really noticed during the first few weeks of recovery was that my appetite had gone down a lot. Also, the rehab exercises that I had to do 4X a day, while they weren't "vigorous" were definitely taxing on a healing body.

I would say that your body is working pretty hard right now to heal and that is using more energy than you realize.

The weight for me (which was only a couple of pounds...maybe) started coming back about a 3-4 weeks post-OP when I was feeling more myself and had my appetite back, but still couldn't work at the levels that I was used to.

HTH
 
I agree with Gayle -- I think your metabolism is probably working over time to heal your body. How are you doing? You sure seem to be doing very well and you're a real inspiration to the rest of us. Continued good luck and I hope you're back in fighting form in no time.:)
 
Hi Tneah,

I hear ya! I'm currently out due to a hamstring tear and can only do my PT exercises, upper body & core work. I'm also on crutches so any walking is a chore and needs to be limited. Worried that I can't burn calories thru cardio, I have been more careful about what I put in my mouth. However, I'm not nearly as hungry and I "feel" thinner and less bloated/puffy. I still have a glass of wine occasionally at night}( (not on pain meds) Interesting isn't it?! I know some people have seen improvements from reducing cardio and upping weight workouts so maybe there is something to it.

Anyway, hope your recovery is going well. I've got at least 6 more months to go before I can start back so I'll let you know if this phenomenon continues.

JJ
 
Sorry to hear about everyone's injuries, but glad that you are recovering.

I have to say I had the opposite experience after my knee surgery this March. I was bored so I ate a lot and gained 10 lbs x( . I am interested to hear what others have to say.

Karin
 
I lost about 15lbs in my recovery period from hip replacement. I was on blood thinners for 3 weeks or so which might have attributed to some of it. Most of my weight loss was being on days for three months, I am a 3rd shift worker. Between sleep deprivation and eating at the wrong hour it does add up (pun intended)
 
Ok, I do believe that it has to do mostly with the fact that your body is trying to heal itself. That takes a lot of water and energy. But also, you probably aren't taking in as much food as you once were. Plus you need to remember that now you probably aren't finding it as easy to go into the kitchen and grab just a bite of something here and there. Also, if you're sleeping more you burn more calories sleeping than you would if you were sitting on the couch, or sitting at a desk. That might attribute to it too.
But I went through the same thing with my ACL repair years ago. I do think that I was eating a lot less as you probably are. Plus it takes a huge toll on your body to repair itself after such an invasive surgery as you just had.
Don't tell your friend to stop working out, she still needs to do that, as will you when you're healed (not that physical therapy isn't a workout in itself right now!). But I bet if your friend started eating more fruits and vegetables and less protein she would find that she's going to lose weight as well. Kcalories in kcalories out is what it's all about.

Kathy
 
I had ACL reconstruction/meniscus repair back in June 06. I stayed the same weight (or lost a couple of pounds) the first few months. But what seemed to happen to me was I lost a lot of muscle in the healing process. I couldn’t lift as heavy as I was accustomed to and just “walking” was taxing for a while (let alone run for miles like I did pre-injury).

Now, a little over a year later….I’m feeling pretty good and lifting somewhat heavy again but find myself weighing more. I think I’m gaining back the muscle I lost but still haven’t lost the extra fat I picked up along the way.

Ugh, I’m happy to be healthy again but hate this extra fluff. Time to get cracking, I guess.

Kathy G
 
Thanks guys, I really appreciate the input from everyone. You are right, I am not eating quite as much as I used to. And healing takes alot out of you...I will wait and see what happens after six weeks.:)
I am healing really well though, so that is good.
 
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