My name is Marty Sklar. I'm 74 years old and I've had two knee replacements; one of them about 12 years ago and the other about 7 years ago. Definitely pain shooting up my leg and we tried some simple things, arthroscopic, that didn't work. So at that point my orthopedic surgeon said, "You've got to have your knees replaced". Well, the reaction is, "Doc, if you tell I can get rid of this pain, I'm doing it, you tell me how." The first thing I wanted to know from the doctor is will I be able to get back on the tennis court and when. And when he gave me good answers, I said "Okay, what do I have to do?" and the physical therapy was a big part of it. It really helped tremendously using heat and then when I'm finished, cold, but really doing exercises to get my legs back in shape, all the muscles. And I continue to do that religiously. I work out every morning, do exercises, stretching, etc. and end up riding an exercise bike for 20-25 minutes practically every morning. Well, my support group is important. First of all, my wife puts up with all of these, that's number one. Number two, having a good physical therapist who you trust, gave me the right kind of exercises, pushed me and understood what I wanted to do which was get back on the tennis court. Well, for me it's all about take action and what I do religiously is to workout. I have my exercise regimen. And the other important thing is to have a regular program that keeps you in shape so that you're able to do the very things that you've set out to do. And the third thing of course is to have an understanding why. I think the important thing is to have a positive attitude and believe that you can do the things you want to do. I had a certain lifestyle I wanted to get back to and that means playing tennis and I did not let replacing my two knees get in the way of that. I just figured out how to do it, got the right kind of support and I continue to do that everyday.
