Do you have an upcoming total knee replacement? Total Knee Replacements are a routine procedure, to help people with knee pain from osteoarthritis gain back their independence. To help you recover after your surgery, getting yourself as fit and healthy as possible beforehand is really important. Our experts at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital have pulled together some recommendations on how you can best prepare for a total knee replacement.
- Maintain activity levels
Exercise might be difficult due to your knee pain but maintaining or if possible, increasing your activity levels will help with your recovery. Swimming, walking and cycling (stationary bike) can safely allow you to improve your fitness. Listen to your body and stop if any exercises are increasing your pain too much.
- Improve muscle strength and flexibility
Having stronger muscles around the knee before surgery has been shown to increase the speed of recovery. Performing the following exercises can help to build the muscles in front of your thigh (quadriceps) and improve the movement of your knee. Make sure you warm up first – a gentle walk for a few minutes gets the blood flowing into your muscles, helping to prepare you for activity.
Below are a few exercises to help improve your strength and flexibility in the muscles around the knee. For more advice take a look at these Exercises for Osteoarthritis of the Knee.
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Quadriceps strengthening – sit to stand Sit on a chair with your arms folded. Slowly stand up without using your arms. When upright, return slowly to the chair again without using your arms. Repeat 10 times. |
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Knee flexion and extension Lying on your back with your knee straight. Slowly bend the affected knee as far as comfortable. Hold the position for 10 seconds and then slowly return to a straightened position. Repeat 10 times. |
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Calf strengthening - heel raises Using a chair for balance, push up on to your tip toes and back down again. You can do this just on your affected leg if you are able to balance. Repeat 10 times. |
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Quadriceps stretch Stand upright, holding on to a firm support. Loop a towel around the ankle of your affected leg. Keeping your back straight, use the towel to pull your heel towards your bottom to feel a stretch at the front of your thigh. Hold for 20-30 seconds. Repeat 5 times. |
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Calf stretch Stand in a walking position with the affected leg straight behind you and the other leg bent in front of you. Take support from a wall or chair. Lean forwards until you feel the stretching in the calf of the straight leg. Hold for 30 seconds, repeat 5 times. |
- Eating a healthy diet and maintaining a healthy weight
Eating a healthy diet will ensure your body has all the nutrients it requires ahead of surgery and help speed up your recovery. Maintaining a healthy weight can also help to reduce post-operative complications.
- Plan ahead
Make plans for how you will manage after the operation. Many everyday activities including dressing, washing, putting on shoes or slippers, getting on and off the toilet will be more difficult and will take longer until you are more mobile. The support of family and friends will be important in the weeks after your surgery, both for practical tasks and to help keep your spirits up. If you live alone and do not have family or friends close by, try to organise support in advance. Consider having friends or family come to stay with you for the first few days after surgery if possible.
Phil shares his journey and how preparing for his knee replacement put him in a great place for recovery – he even appeared in his golf club’s Christmas pantomime five weeks after surgery! Take a look at his story here: Royal Orthopaedic Hospital - Life Beyond Arthritis - Phil's Story
