From Backflips to Hip Replacement

45-Year-Old Martial Arts Instructor Regains Quality of Life with Orthopedic Surgery

Lonnie Huey

After having total hip replacement surgery, PIH Health patient, Lonnie Huey is back to his full active capabilities

Lonnie Huey, 45, is a professional martial arts and parkour instructor, as well as a former gymnast and competitive snowboarder. So it’s no surprise that his life comes with extreme physical demands.

Lonnie’s highly specialized skills include kicking, jumping, handsprings, splits, and flipping off two-story buildings landing on hard ground.

But there was a downside.

“Between my martial arts, snowboarding and gymnastics, my hip really took a beating,” he said. Lonnie ended up with osteoarthritis, which damages the slick cartilage covering the ends of the bones that helps joints move smoothly.

“My serious pain started in 2015,” he explained. “At first, I thought I had simply strained or torn some muscles, so I began icing and taking ibuprofen regularly. I did that for about seven years. But the pain kept getting worse to the point where I couldn’t kick above my hip and it affected my ability to walk, run and teach.”

In 2021, Lonnie reached out to his primary care physician, who referred him to Andrew Luu MD, PIH Health orthopedic surgeon.

“An x-ray confirmed that Lonnie had serious osteoarthritis and needed a total hip replacement,” said Dr. Luu. “With Lonnie’s profession, an anterior approach surgery was ideal since we wouldn’t be cutting through any muscles, tendons or ligaments, greatly reducing recovery time.”

Fully on board with the plan, Lonnie had his hip replacement surgery in December 2021 during his studio’s two-week holiday shutdown. The surgery was two hours long, and Lonnie was walking within four hours. He needed a walker for the first two days, then used a cane for another 10 days, and by the time he returned to his studio, he was walking unassisted and back to teaching. Within eight weeks, Lonnie was back to his full active capabilities—minus the backflips—and feeling no pain at all.

His only regret? Not having the surgery sooner.

“Dr. Luu was a real life-saver!” he said. “For anyone experiencing any kind of chronic hip or joint pain, go see him. Don’t wait seven years like I did.”

To learn more about Orthopedics at PIH Health, including new technology like the ROSA™ Robotic Surgical Assistant, visit PIHHealth.org/Ortho.