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How Movement Saved Terri From a Double Hip Replacement

Writer's picture: Richard AcevesRichard Aceves


Let me tell you about Terri. She was on the brink of getting not one but a double hip replacement. Her doctors had her convinced that surgery was her only option — the ultimate fix for the chronic pain she’d been living with. For years, her left side had grown progressively weaker, leaving her unbalanced and constantly uncomfortable. After exhausting other options, it seemed surgery was inevitable.

But it wasn’t.

Terri came to me for a second opinion, and I saw right away that her problem wasn’t just her hips. The pain she felt wasn’t isolated to a single area — it was a reflection of how her entire body was moving. What she needed wasn’t surgery; it was to restore balance and improve her move.


The “Hip Replacement” Diagnosis

Terri’s pain didn’t develop overnight. Over the years, her body had created compensations for muscle imbalances. Her right side was doing all the work, and her left side had checked out. This imbalance resulted in excess strain on her hips, eventually leading to chronic pain. The doctors saw the pain, scanned her hips, and prescribed surgery.

Terri wasn’t ready to accept that. Something about the surgical route didn’t sit right with her. She wanted to explore a different path — one that didn’t involve invasive procedures and the lengthy recovery they bring. And that’s how she ended up in my hands.


Looking Beyond the Pain

When I assessed Terri, it became clear that the root cause of her hip pain wasn’t just a joint issue. The problem lay in how her entire body was functioning — or, more accurately, how it wasn’t. Her body had developed compensatory patterns to deal with the imbalance. Her right side had been overworking, leading to weakness and dysfunction on her left.

So, instead of treating her hips as the problem, we treated her body as a whole. I focused on understanding why her body was compensating in the first place and how we could correct the patterns that led to her pain.


Rebuilding Movement Patterns

I designed a program to reawaken her left side and create balance throughout her body. The exercises weren’t complicated, but they were purposeful. Swami, Hinges, and carries became the foundation.

What mattered most wasn’t just doing the exercises but doing them right. I emphasized control, muscle engagement, and awareness—every movement aimed to retrain her body to function as a balanced unit. We didn’t rush. We focused on small, consistent progress, teaching her body to trust itself again.

One of Terri's most significant shifts was gaining awareness of her movement. Once she understood how her body compensated and avoided certain positions, she could start to actively correct those patterns. This wasn’t just a workout program — it was a process of rewiring how she moved, step by step.


Moving Away From Surgery

Over time, as we corrected her movement patterns and rebuilt her strength, something remarkable happened — her hip pain started disappearing. Slowly but surely, the discomfort that had plagued her began to fade. The sharp pain she’d been living with became a thing of the past.

Terri didn’t need a double hip replacement after all. She needed to restore her body's balance and move with intention by addressing the root cause of her pain — the dysfunctional movement patterns and low neural output to specific muscles. This wasn’t an overnight success story. It took time, effort, and consistency on her part. But the results speak for themselves. She avoided surgery and regained her strength, mobility, and confidence.


The Power of Movement

Terri’s experience is a reminder that pain is a signal, not a sentence. Too often, people rush into surgery without considering the bigger picture. But in many cases, the solution lies in restoring proper movement and muscle engagement.

Had Terri gone through with the hip replacements, she might have temporarily reduced her pain, but it wouldn’t have addressed the underlying issue. By focusing on movement, we allowed her body to heal itself.

Terri’s story is more than just about avoiding surgery. It’s about taking control of your body, understanding how it moves, and making informed decisions about your health. Movement is medicine; when we focus on the right things, the results can be life-changing.


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