Executive Summary
- After a knee replacement surgery, low-impact exercises like golfing can help build flexibility and cardiovascular health while offering mental health benefits like stress relief and social interaction.
- Before golfing again after your surgery, consult a healthcare provider to discuss your recovery timeline and readiness indicators. This will help you better understand your limitations and avoid overexertion or strain.
- Adjusting your golfing technique and equipment to meet your new needs, such as using lighter clubs, comfortable golf shoes, and golf carts, is essential.
- Warmups and stretches can make golfing more comfortable after your knee surgery. Nevertheless, you should still look for signs you should stop, including swelling, persistent discomfort, and instability.
Learning About Golfing After a Knee Replacement
Knee replacement surgery is common, especially for older individuals suffering from joint injuries or arthritis—roughly 790,000 total knee replacements are performed annually in the United States. Many patients who have had this surgery are excited to return to their favorite activities, many of which have the desire to golf after knee replacement.
Thankfully, golfing after knee replacement surgery can be a beneficial addition to many people’s treatment plans because it is a low-impact exercise that can increase mobility and cardiovascular health. However, knowing how long after knee replacement you can play golf and what adjustments to make is crucial to avoid overexertion and strains.
Intense workouts or overextending movements can harm your knee health and hinder recovery. Educating yourself on the considerations below and consulting a qualified joint specialist to understand your recovery timeline, readiness indicators, and signs to stop golfing is essential.
1. Low-Impact Exercises Support Your Recovery
Performing low-impact exercises like yoga or golfing has the potential to assist your recovery. Although golfing after knee replacement can offer many benefits, you should approach the sport strategically and with your healthcare provider’s approval. Over time, you may experience the following advantageous effects from golf after knee replacement.
Physical Benefits
Some examples of potential physical advantages that can come from golfing after knee replacement are:
- Low-intensity exercise – Golf can be a gentle, low-impact workout that makes it easier to stay active without subjecting your joints to harsh impacts. This makes it a good sport for many who are easing back into physical activity.
- Improved flexibility – When done properly and with care, the various movements involved in golfing, such as walking and swinging, may gradually enhance your range of motion.
- Enhanced cardiovascular health – Walking the course and using your muscles during a round of golf can assist in raising your heart rate, which may improve the function of your cardiovascular system over time.
Regular physical activity like playing golf can slowly shape your body and make daily duties more manageable.
Mental Benefits
Some examples of mental advantages that some people may experience while golfing after knee replacement surgery are:
- Stress relief – Playing golf involves spending time outdoors in nature, which is believed to improve mental well-being.
- Social interaction – Joining others to play golf can be a beneficial social interaction that helps reduce feelings of loneliness and improve the patient’s mood in general.
- Enjoyment – Golf’s goal-oriented structure offers amusement and a sense of achievement with every round, making it a helpful diversion from the healing process.
Although golfing can offer a myriad of mental and physical benefits for some people, you should talk to a medical professional before participating in this activity to ensure that it will coincide with your unique treatment plan.
2. You Should Consult Your Healthcare Provider
Many knee replacement patients can resume some of their normal activities a few months after their surgery. However, everyone has a unique recovery timeline that only their healthcare provider can offer insight into. Before getting back into golfing after knee replacement, you and a qualified medical professional should discuss readiness factors.
Some questions a joint specialist may ask you before approving your return to golf are:
- What are your pain levels during rest, standing, and low-impact activities?
- What is the full range of motion you can display without causing discomfort?
- Do you feel stable while standing and walking?
Your healthcare provider may also assess your swing mechanics to see if you can mimic a golf swing without causing strain. Additionally, they may survey the surgical site and look for signs of swelling or infection to ensure that your healing progress is sufficient enough.
The practices mentioned above can help you understand your limitations and capabilities post-surgery. With this knowledge, it can be easier to prevent overexertion or strain during golfing that could hinder your healing process.
Get Back to Your Lifestyle
Our compassionate team at The Joint Replacement Center of Scottsdale will take all the steps necessary to help you overcome pain and ensure a smooth recovery.
3. Choosing the Right Equipment Helps
You may have to adapt your approach to golfing by ensuring your clubs and accessories accommodate your post-surgery needs. Some examples of equipment changes that may help you play golf comfortably and safely are:
- Buying lighter clubs – Clubs made from light materials such as carbon graphite or titanium can minimize knee strain.
- Driving a golf cart – Reducing the amount of the course you walk by opting for a golf cart or other assistive transportation can prevent you from overexerting your knee.
- Equipping shock-absorbing grips – Adding anti-shock grips to your clubs can reduce the impact of the jolt sent through your body after hitting a golf ball, helping preserve your stability.
- Incorporating adjustable clubs – Some clubs can be fine-tuned to meet the needs of your changing swing mechanics.
- Trying higher lofted clubs – Using clubs with high lofts can reduce the effort needed to get the golf ball airborne, reducing stress on the knee.
- Using custom-fitted clubs – Ensuring your clubs are tailored to your new biomechanics post-surgery can make swinging them feel more comfortable.
- Wearing comfortable golf shoes – Buying shoes with comprehensive support and cushioning can improve shock absorbency, avoiding harsh impacts to your knee during walking and swinging.
Thankfully, the golf equipment industry is filled with tools and accessories that can make golfing easier for people with medical concerns. Talking to a medical professional with experience helping patients return to sports is an excellent way to discover what equipment adjustments you need to get back into golf.
4. Preparation Minimizes the Risk of Injury
After making equipment adjustments, you should also tweak how you physically prepare to play golf to further reduce the risk of injury. Some examples of potentially helpful adjustments are:
- Change swing mechanics – Altering your swing to reduce torque on your healing knee can minimize discomfort and facilitate healing
- Stay hydrated – Proper hydration can promote joint lubrication and reduce swelling, potentially making golf-related movements more comfortable.
- Stretching beforehand – Performing knee-focused stretches, like heel and calf stretches or half squats, before and during your game can improve your range of motion.
- Warming your body up – Taking a warm shower or going for a light walk can help alleviate stiffness before you start golfing.
Overall, pay attention to your body’s signals and avoid overexertion. Prioritize your health over your performance, and don’t push beyond your limits.
5. Indications That It’s Time to Stop Playing
Even though playing golf a few months after a knee replacement is considered safe for many patients, there are hazards and difficulties to consider. Some examples of signs communicating that you should stop playing golf are:
- Hindered recovery despite abiding by post-surgery guidelines.
- Inordinate tiredness or weakness in the leg muscles supporting the knee.
- Redness, warmth, or increased tenderness around the knee.
- A sensation of the knee giving way or feeling unstable.
- Ongoing discomfort that does not improve with rest.
- Difficulty bending or straightening the knee significantly.
- Sharp or intense pain in the knee during or after play.
- Noticeable increase in knee swelling following golf.
If you notice any of the indicators listed above, you should immediately stop playing golf and seek guidance from a qualified medical professional.
Get Back to the Activities You Love
For many patients, golfing after knee replacement can offer physical and mental benefits, ranging from improved flexibility to stress relief. However, you should still talk to your medical provider to understand how long after knee replacement you can play golf.
A qualified joint specialist can help you choose the right equipment, such as lightweight, shock-absorbing clubs. Moreover, they can help you build a preparation routine that mitigates the risk of impeding your recovery and explain signs that signify you should stop golfing, such as increased swelling or instability.
The Joint Replacement Center of Scottsdale can help you build a treatment plan tailored to your unique knee complications, increasing your chance of being able to golf after knee replacement surgery. Our experienced joint specialists offer various knee pain treatment options, including alternative therapies like Pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) and ARPwave therapy.
Schedule a consultation to develop an individualized treatment plan for your knee condition.
