Knee replacement at 67, down 25 pounds of muscle, will it come back?

[judochoke]

Had a full knee replacement on my right knee 1 month ago today. Both of my knees have been really bad over the years, arthritis, bone on bone, etc. decided to get it over with, and do the first knee.

I have weighted 260-265 for over 30 years, been lifting forever. Still nice and strong, look strong,full, on TRT for over years.  My life was good. Lifting, cooking, eating, enjoying the looks i still got at 265.

The knee replacement could have been the worst idea i ever had. The pain is almost unmanageable in the first week. I ate nothing, maybe 500 calories the first week. Nothing but pain pills. Fucking miserable. Walking with a walker, then a cane. My appetite never came back in the first two weeks. I stayed off of the scale, as I didn’t want to know my weight.

But looking in the mirror, i knew it would be bad, and it was. Finally stepped on the scale, 242. Fuck.
Started to try to eat, no real luck. Today, exactly 30 days after the operation, im at 240, with not a muscle on me. My arms are gone, flabby, chest is gone, i have shrunk right before my eyes.
And of course i caught the wife’s heavy cold, so im still not hungry.


So I guess my question is this? IS MUSCLE MEMORY A REAL THING??? Will my muscles fill back out once  i get into the gym? Will I start to gain some weight back at 67, when i restart my TRT?
Can i ever expect to be 260 again once i start hitting the gym full time? They always talk about muscle memory, but is it real, or just another of the WEIDER PRINCIPLES WE ALL FELL FOR?

Is it over for me, will 240 with no muscles be it for me??

[Gym Rat]

At 67, concentrate on getting healthy, agile, fit, etc...
You can do it, many have. 250+ at your age probably not a good idea...
We all have to face it some day...

[pkaz]

Had second knee replacement in Feb 24. First one was a year prior. Its a tuff surgery but recoverable. I still have problems with knee tightness, etc. I am finally training legs again. But never like I used too. However, not sure why you cannot train your upper body with intensity. As far a eating. Of course you will have to adjust your dieting if you are no longer killing leg workouts. Be patient. We are the same age and nothing stays the same...

[judochoke]

All my blood work comes back perfect at that weight. I’m very active walking, bike riding, treadmill. I just always was 260, after a short sickness, vacation, down a little, but always back to That weight.
I guess i will take it 1 pound at a time, day to day. Gotta get some meat in me, already bought protein powder, just waiting to put it all together.

[judochoke]

I did manage two days in the gym last week, very light weights. Was hoping to get started this week, but this nasty cold killed that idea. Still having problems sleeping, very hard to fall asleep with the knee bending and trying to get comfortable.

[Gym Rat]

All my blood work comes back perfect at that weight. I’m very active walking, bike riding, treadmill. I just always was 260, after a short sickness, vacation, down a little, but always back to That weight.
I guess i will take it 1 pound at a time, day to day. Gotta get some meat in me, already bought protein powder, just waiting to put it all together.

Bloodwork, not all its cracked up to be. Good to have it done, but many are fooled into thinking they are perfect if bloods are.
I know a few, perfect bloods, no history of drugs, booze or anabolic. still had bypass surgery, etc.

[BB]

An honest #242 is still big as heck for a regular person, let alone a 67 year old. My advice would be to learn to be happy at it. Realistically there is probably some muscle memory there, but is the juice worth the squeeze at 67?

[1Patrick]

How tall are you??
240 is lot of weight .
Focus on recovery and don’t chase the weight at your age .Health before ego.Yes muscle memory is a real thing .I was able to gain almost all my size back after having few months break.

[Dalnet]

I wanted a replacement rather than what they mushed back together. Said I was too young for a replacement. Judging by the stories I've heard and read: it was probably for the best. I just assumed once your new knee is in place, the pain, mobility and flexibility is just there and it's problem solved. How ignorant I was...

Sorry about your situation. Mine was a tibial plateau fracture along with a few other minor bits they had to reattach. The pain was so bad that they were using ketamine instead of morphine to knock me out for any movement. I didn't realise how bad the pain is when your knee goes.

Like others have suggested, you ought to just focus on living healthy and maybe try to slim down and trim up. Not saying that to piss you off but you need to preserve your joints and being heavy at that age is asking for faster deterioration.

[Cook]

I did manage two days in the gym last week, very light weights. Was hoping to get started this week, but this nasty cold killed that idea. Still having problems sleeping, very hard to fall asleep with the knee bending and trying to get comfortable.

Good luck! I had my hip replaced in 2020.I am 65 now and train hard on everything except no more squats.I work my legs but with other exercises.Best wishes

[Rambone]

Both of my knees have been really bad over the years, arthritis, bone on bone, etc.

Where have I heard this before?

[Dalnet]

Good luck! I had my hip replaced in 2020.I am 65 now and train hard on everything except no more squats.I work my legs but with other exercises.Best wishes

This is my technique, now. Machine work for legs rather than squats. Sticking to volume work

[judochoke]

I’m not a juicer, just TRT at 75 mgs a week. I have not done any legs for years, just did upper body. When i did train legs i got 405 for one set of 20 reps, almost killed me. And was always around 560-580 in my powerlifting meets.

Probably didn’t help my knees in the long run.

[Hulkotron]

You don't see a lot of 265-lb 80-year-olds walking around, regardless of how much is fat vs. muscle.

[BB]

Where have I heard this before?

Judochoke can be mistaken for a lot of people -

CSwol's brother, Joe from Reservoir Dogs, stuntman Robert Tessier, etc..... -

.


But he is way healthier than the other guy.

[Krankenstein]

Partial knee replacement in 2022.  Was squatting 155 about 5 - 6 weeks after.  Can do everything with my knee that I want.  (1:45 400m, 270# front squat, full squat cleans, squat snatch, box jumps, etc)

The keys to coming back from it :

1) Find someone trained by Dr Burger (sp?) who pioneered a minimally invasive procedure

2) Do 6 weeks of rehab PRIOR to surgery

3) Force that fucker to bend asap.  I was at 130deg flexion at 8 weeks

4) Keep massaging the scar and vastus medialis muscle multiple times a week

5) Keep up with the knees over toes guy exercises

[judochoke]

Almost got into a fight with CSWOL at my gym one day. We both acted up, face to face, ready to go, when we both calmed down at the same time. Good friends after that, I enjoyed talking to him. Used to go to the olympias in Las Vegas, had a whole crew. We would bring ice chests full of rolling rock beer, drink in the parking lot, inside the convention. Had a blast, Dave would always find us for a free ice cold rolling rock beer.

Judo a little thicker now.

[judochoke]

Yes, i saw my friend who also had a partial knee done. Does not sound like the same operation. He had hardly no pain at all. I had a total.

[wes]

Sorry to hear it judochoke......wishing you a full recovery brother.

[IroNat]

Reducing your bodyweight is what you should do to reduce knee problems.

Carrying a heavy bodyweight just aggravates knee issues.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/pain/why-weight-matters-when-it-comes-to-joint-pain

[The Scott]

Had a full knee replacement on my right knee 1 month ago today. Both of my knees have been really bad over the years, arthritis, bone on bone, etc. decided to get it over with, and do the first knee.

I have weighted 260-265 for over 30 years, been lifting forever. Still nice and strong, look strong,full, on TRT for over years.  My life was good. Lifting, cooking, eating, enjoying the looks i still got at 265.

The knee replacement could have been the worst idea i ever had. The pain is almost unmanageable in the first week. I ate nothing, maybe 500 calories the first week. Nothing but pain pills. Fucking miserable. Walking with a walker, then a cane. My appetite never came back in the first two weeks. I stayed off of the scale, as I didn’t want to know my weight.

But looking in the mirror, i knew it would be bad, and it was. Finally stepped on the scale, 242. Fuck.
Started to try to eat, no real luck. Today, exactly 30 days after the operation, im at 240, with not a muscle on me. My arms are gone, flabby, chest is gone, i have shrunk right before my eyes.
And of course i caught the wife’s heavy cold, so im still not hungry.


So I guess my question is this? IS MUSCLE MEMORY A REAL THING??? Will my muscles fill back out once  i get into the gym? Will I start to gain some weight back at 67, when i restart my TRT?
Can i ever expect to be 260 again once i start hitting the gym full time? They always talk about muscle memory, but is it real, or just another of the WEIDER PRINCIPLES WE ALL FELL FOR?

Is it over for me, will 240 with no muscles be it for me??

I have lost 81+ lbs since my multiple heart attacks.  My physicians said to lose it as your heart doesn't care if it's fat or muscle.  I have trouble now with 5lb. DBs and can only train once in a while now.  I am older than you and am not on HRT as my doctors said even thought my level is very low, I am NOT a candidate right now. 

As someone else said here, train for your health as best you can.  I will not tell someone how to train because I know that we all have an ego, mine is the biggest thing left of me, LOL!   I am fortunate/blessed to still be here so I am trying to do as the doctors tell me.  Of course it doesn't help that they all look pretty wimpy, LOL!

One of my brothers had his knees replaced.  When he had the first one done he cried like a baby about the pain and swore he would never do the other leg.   Within the first week after surgery he felt great and then down the road he had the other knee replaced along with a hip and some shoulder repair.  I am supposed to have my right shoulder totally replaced in about 9 or so months.  I have seen it and if I could feel pain, I know that I would be looking forward to the surgery.  I (usually) don't feel it so I am doing okay until they can get to me.  Apparently it is a very popular surgery for seasoned citizens.     I was told the recovery period at my age is approx 2.5 years per shoulder.  Yuck.   That worries me a lot.

All the best to you in your recovery!

[judochoke]

Thanks you my man. Leaving now to get out of the house, getting a nasty tasty burger and fries. Then stop at my favorite donut place for a donut and a de-caf coffee. Going to jump start my metabolism

[wes]

Muscle memory is real.

[jude2]

Yes, i saw my friend who also had a partial knee done. Does not sound like the same operation. He had hardly no pain at all. I had a total.

not the same.  The partial is a lot easier to recover from.  A lot less trauma because they only replace the parts that need to be not the total joint.

[pkaz]

BTW. I am now getting ready for shoulder replacement which I am not looking forward too. Good luck, keep training and enjoy your health...