I have not gone through the procedure myself, but my dad had his hip replaced three years ago at the age of 55. It has made a world of difference to him. He has more mobility and no pain! He was two weeks recouperating. The first day post-op he was out of bed and using a walker. Within two weeks he was walking on his own without any aid. Phisiotherapy was intense but it worked. They drive to Florida every winter, a 22 hour drive from here, and he does it straight. He's a little stiff after sitting that long, but anyone would be.
He had a total hip and socket joint replacement. He had no socket left on his pelvis and no ball joint on the top of his femur. They removed the top quarter of his femur and cemented the hip into the center of the bone. He has no pins in the repair.
Also, he plays 18 holes of golf everyother day and walks the course.
Hope this helped,
sferg