When I had my knee replaced, everyone was all over me, like a tick on a dog's tail, because I refused to listen to everyone.
Everyone was telling me to "take it easy" so I wouldn't hurt the knee after surgery.
My doctor clearly told me, after the surgery, I could do anything I felt like doing, except riding a bicycle and jumping out of airplanes. Why? Because the sudden impact on the knee would not be good for it. Falling off a bicycle could cause other problems.
I took him to heart and I never let the "pain" stop me one bit. The day I came home from the hospital, I mowed the grass. Well, I tried anyway. It was my right knee, and I was determined to be able to drive again as quickly as possible.
I used the peddle on my riding lawn mower and pushed it with my right leg, over and over. I live in the country, but down the road is a church that has a switch back ramp built in the front of it for wheel chairs. And then steps on the other side. I'd walk over to that church and walk up and down the ramp and the steps in opposite directions, sometimes 100 times a day.
I'd sit in the porch swing with my right foot on the floor and swing the swing, causing my knee to bend a little more and more and more with each swing.
I'd force myself to squat.
Yes, it all hurt. It all hurt a lot .... a lot! But it takes the pain to over come the pain. I healed quickly. My doctor was amazed I had about 95% of all my mobility back within 4 weeks.
I still had swelling, I still had stitches, I still had my leg wrapped up, but I walked, and walked , and walked. I started with a walker and threw that aside the first day I was home. I went to a crutch, and that lasted only 1 more day. I then went to cane, and that was a real trip.
I walked up and down my driveway (250 feet long) over and over again and had to teach myself NOT to limp.
I limped for years on that leg, it was more habit now, and the pain intensified the limping. But I fought through the pain and forced myself NOT to limp. I was in the Army for several years, and up and down that drive way, I forced myself to "march" to some of those old cadences we marched to way back then. It worked. It all forced me to walk without a limp, in spite of the pain.
In time, the pain got less and less and less. Some movements were still hard. At night, I'd lay in bed and force my knee up to my chest, and then stretch the leg as stiff as I could straight out.
I forced myself to start sitting "Indian" cross legged style. It took over 5 years before I could do that again. Still continued to work with that leg and that knee, forcing pain in order to over come pain.
That is the secret to a good recovery. If the knee and the leg hurts, you are on the right track. If you baby the leg and the knee, you'll NEVER ever get over the pain.
In the Army, the expression was, "No pain, no gain!" and with a joint replacement, THAT is truly the key to success.
So, old man, throw that walker away, and JUST GO FISHING! In time, you'll be making movements with that leg and not even realize you are walking and moving "normal" again.
Catch the big one!
Good luck on your recovery. This is my strongest advise! Force the pain, keep the knee moving, and MAKE it do movements it use to do when you were a kid. IT WILL GET BETTER if you do. There will always be a residual feeling, constantly reminding you your knee is not natural. But you get use to that after a while. Don't confuse that feeling with pain. And that sensation will probably be with you the rest of your life!
Good luck!