I had hip replacement surgery three months ago and am now slowly returning to yoga. I am a fit senior and was doing intermediate II and III classes before surgery, even though I needed to make some modifications as movement in my arthritic hip was limited. I need to work particularly on my upper back, neck and shoulders to release stiffness and tensions caused by the after-effects of an accident seven years ago in which I broke several vertebrae and ribs.
But right now I cannot do a lot of basic movements: no sitting cross-legged, no pigeon pose, no stepping forward into lunge from downward dog etc. I have tried out some of the chair yoga for seniors, but find that not challenging enough. But most intermediate classes seem to have poses that I cannot do, and that is frustrating.
Basically, I am now looking for intermediate classes which do not include such poses, but none of the available filters are helpful for this.
I am happy to hear you are returning to your practice! I have had many students in my studio classes over the years come back after hip replacement. The main take away that they shared is that they had to relearn what poses and movements now worked for them and which ones did not. They then would adapt or switch out certain poses or movements, and get used to feeling ok about doing a different pose than the teacher was cueing for. Going into slower classes is a great place to start because it gives you more time to adapt. Maybe some of Mellisa’s hatha style classes would be a great place to start?
“what can I do instead?” was the single line that a dear friend said she used when coming back to classes.
Thank you, Fiji! I realize that I have to let go of the expectation that I will go back to the flexibility I had before my hip started giving me problems. So “What can I do instead” is a really helpful thought!
I actually find that your recent strength building classes also work well for me, with a few adaptions.