When can I exercise, lift weights or play sports again?

From the second week, you can start gentle stretching and functional exercises without weight, ideally guided by a physical therapist, and increase resistance gradually. Avoid heavy loads, running and high-impact sports involving the treated area for at least one month. Your doctor confirms when you can return to your full routine or your sport during your follow-up, based on how you feel and how the treated area is responding.

For active patients, the question of when they can get back to the gym, the golf course or the tennis court is often the first one after treatment. A well-planned return protects the treated area while the regenerative process takes place, and it helps you get the most from your treatment. This guide explains the phases of recovery, what you can do in each one and how to adapt the plan to the area treated.

Why a gradual return matters

After the application, the treated area goes through a controlled inflammatory response, and the mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) release signals that help organize repair. Tissue repair takes time, and overloading the area too early can increase pain and swelling and work against the process. At the same time, appropriate movement supports circulation, joint mobility and muscle strength. The goal is the right amount of activity at the right time.

International guidelines support this balance. The NICE guideline on osteoarthritis (NG226) recommends therapeutic exercise, tailored to the person, as a core part of managing joint osteoarthritis, and the NICE guideline on low back pain (NG59) recommends exercise programs for back pain. After a regenerative treatment, the same principles apply, with a careful start.

Phase 1: days 1 and 2, complete rest

• Rest completely on the day of your treatment and the following day.
• Do not exercise.
• Short walks inside your room or home for basic needs are fine.
• No ice or heat on the treated area during these two days.

You spend the first night at our facilities under nursing and medical monitoring.

Phase 2: days 3 to 10, gentle daily activity

• Light daily activities, such as walking around the house, short errands and desk work, as tolerated.
• Avoid exercise sessions, lifting, running or sports.
• From the third day, you may apply heat or ice for 10 minutes, then rest for 2 to 3 hours before applying again, if you have soreness.
• Listen to your body: if an activity increases pain, reduce it.

Phase 3: after day 10, walking

• Walk for up to 30 minutes on flat ground, at a comfortable pace.
• Do not over-exercise. Avoid hills, stairs for exercise, uneven ground and long distances at first.
• Increase gradually if walking feels comfortable.

Phase 4: from the second week, guided exercise

• Stretching and functional exercises without weight, ideally guided by your physical therapist.
• Range-of-motion exercises to recover mobility in the treated joint.
• Gradual strengthening, increasing resistance slowly, as your therapist and doctor recommend.
• Low-impact cardio, such as a stationary bike with light resistance or swimming, may be introduced when the doctor or therapist approves and the injection sites have healed.

Phase 5: after one month, progressive return to sport

• Avoid heavy loads, running and high-impact sports involving the treated area for at least one month.
• Your doctor confirms when you can return to weightlifting, running or your sport during your follow-up.
• Return gradually: start with lighter sessions and shorter durations, and increase step by step.

Guidance by area

For spine treatments, soreness can last longer than after a joint injection, sometimes a few weeks, so the return to activity is usually more gradual.

Specific activities

• Weightlifting: avoid loading the treated area for at least one month. Training other body parts with light loads may be possible earlier, but ask the doctor first.
• Running: usually one of the last activities to return after knee, hip or ankle treatments. Start with walking, then intervals of light jogging when cleared.
• Golf, tennis and pickleball: these involve rotation and impact. Return when the doctor clears you, starting with short sessions.
• Swimming: can be a good low-impact option once the injection sites have healed and the doctor approves.
• Cycling: a stationary bike with light resistance can be an early option for knees and hips when approved.

Daily life: work, stairs and driving

• Desk work: many patients return to desk work a few days after treatment, once the first two days of rest are complete and they feel comfortable. Get up and walk briefly every hour.
• Physical work: if your job involves lifting, kneeling, climbing or long hours standing, discuss your return with the doctor, since it may need more time or temporary adjustments.
• Stairs: use the handrail and take one step at a time in the first days after a knee, hip or ankle treatment.
• Driving: do not drive on the day of your procedure, especially if you received sedation. After that, drive when you can move comfortably and react safely, especially after a right knee, hip or ankle treatment or a spine procedure.
• Household tasks: light tasks are fine after the first two days; avoid heavy lifting, moving furniture or carrying heavy bags with the treated area.
• Sleep: use pillows to support the treated joint in a comfortable position during the first nights.

Why physical therapy helps

Regenerative treatment can support the repair of a tissue, but strength, mobility and movement patterns depend on training. A physical therapist helps you:

• Recover range of motion safely.
• Rebuild the muscles that support the treated joint or spine.
• Correct movement patterns that may have contributed to the problem.
• Progress at the right pace for your body.

Many patients continue physical therapy at home after treatment, and our team can recommend it during follow-up.

Athletes

If you compete in a sport, tell the doctor during your consultation. Your return-to-play plan depends on your sport, the area treated and your level. The 2020 NBA Orthobiologics Consensus Statement, written by team physicians and researchers, discusses the use of biologic treatments, such as PRP, in professional athletes, where the return to play is decided individually by the medical team.

Signs you are doing too much

Reduce your activity and contact the team if you notice:

• Pain that increases after activity and does not settle by the next day.
• New or increasing swelling in the treated area.
• Warmth or redness at the injection site.
• A feeling of instability or giving way in the joint.

Common questions

Can I go to the gym the week after treatment? You can walk after 10 days and start guided exercises without weight from the second week. Avoid loading the treated area for at least one month.

Can I train my upper body after a knee treatment? Possibly, with light loads and without stressing the knee. Ask the doctor first.

When can I play golf again? When the doctor clears you during follow-up, usually after the first month, starting with short sessions.

Will exercise damage the treatment? Appropriate, gradual exercise supports your recovery and helps you get the most from your treatment. What you want to avoid is overloading the area too early.

Questions to ask your doctor

• When can I return to my specific sport or training?
• Should I work with a physical therapist, and how often?
• Which exercises are safe in the first month?
• What signs mean I should slow down?

Bottom line

Rest for two days, walk on flat ground after 10 days, begin guided exercises without weight from the second week and avoid heavy loads, running and high-impact sports involving the treated area for at least one month. Your doctor confirms your return to full activity during follow-up. A medical evaluation can help determine whether this type of regenerative treatment is appropriate for your condition, goals and medical history.