Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!

How I Prepared for Surgery Part 1 - My Body



Recommended Posts

Many people over this last year have asked me what I did to prepare for my weight loss surgery. There were many things that I did and not one was more important than another. The biggest thing to keep in mind is that your preparation heading into surgery and especially the liquid diet the week or two prior will be the hardest and most important thing you do as a part of your journey. You will work hard to prepare your mind, your body, and to some degree your spirit to go though the surgery. Once you do have the surgery the hardest part is over. If you can survive the months before taking the plunge then everything you do after will be a piece of cake in comparison.

I am here to tell you that anyone who says having a weight loss surgery is taking the easy way out is someone who will never understand what it truly takes to go through this process. To some degree I feel sorry for those who don't get it. They will never understand the joy and excitement that comes with going through this transformation. To be honest, even though my wife loves me and has been an amazing support through this whole process, she will never full know or understand what it is like to make this decision and prepare for the surgery like I do.

This is part one, in a series of three posts, detailing my preparation for surgery. The first aspect of this preparation I will cover is how I prepared my body. This was pretty simple for me really. I was in bad shape and was huffing after just sitting up from a chair; as my transformation video in an earlier post has shown. I was miserable! I would practically crawl through my front door after just my first night back to work. I work as a pharmacy technician at a hospital and walk 8 to 12 miles a night. I was living off of Tylenol and Bengay. Honestly I smelled like I was probably 90 years old. Looking back I find myself completely disgusted that I ever let things get that bad.

Since I could not really do much working out because of the toll work was taking on my body, what could I do? The answer came from my brother. He is a nurse and knows a ton about medicine. I honestly think he should have became a doctor, but he didn't want the added responsibility. Before I had fully decided on having the bypass surgery and long before anyone knew I was even contemplating that option my brother came to me, as serious as I had ever seen him. Those that know my brother know he's a bit of a joker and very lighthearted. His demeanor kind of scared me, but in this conversation would be the answer that would help me prepare my body for surgery.

He explained to me that he wanted to see me healthy, that he wanted me to be able to be the cool uncle when he had kids, and how he wanted his brother back. He was scared that I wouldn't be around much longer and didn't want to see me die. Looking back I really think he was right. Then he did something that floored me and provided and amazing answer to how I would physically prepare for the journey I was about to take. He explained to me that he wanted me healthy so badly he would pay for my gym membership if I promised to go three times a week and swim. On a side note; He religiously checked up on my progress with the gym manager to make sure I was going and even went so far as to meet me at the gym and swim with me. I swam on a team in junior high and he explained to me the benefits of working out in the Water.

Water has the ability to take all of the pressure off of your knees and other joints. It can keep you cool if you are prone to overheating and provides an amazing about of resistance if you find ways to take advantage of it. He set up a plan and told me just to come three times a week to swim and do what I could. So that is what I did. I did not want to let me brother down and I would hope he would agree it was the best investment he ever made.

So that is what I did; I swam. I swam freestyle, I swam breast stroke, I saw backstroke, and when I was feeling particularly squirrely, I swam butterfly. Butterfly was my specialty when I was on swim team but man it is a butt kicker. I started out with 10 laps, which was a lot better than I had thought. I found I could move more freely and with less pain in the water. From there I just simply added one or two laps each time I went. Before I knew it, I was approaching my surgery date and I was swimming close to an hour non-stop!

Why should I work out prior to surgery?

There is a very simple answer. To prepare your body. You need to prepare your body for what you are about to put it through. This is major surgery and not something to take lightly. You also want to work out to build up your cardiovascular and pulmonary endurance. Strengthening the heart will make you strong for surgery because your body will be stressed, because of this your blood pressure will spike for a short time after surgery and it is a lot to put on yourself. Strengthening your lungs will help keep you from a common post surgical complication which is pneumonia. My goal in preparing my body was simply to be able to survive the surgery, keep my complications down, and my hospital stay short as should be your goal as well. I want to tell you right now that preparing my body worked out well. I had no major complications and I left the hospital three days later, which was the minimum hospital stay my doctor required for his full bypass patients.

What if I can't swim?

The key here is to simply get moving. If you can walk, then walk. If you have access to a pool, then you can water walk or water jog. If you love biking and can do that, then do that. You just need to move. Your goals with this are simple. First, you want to make sure you are panting a little from being out of breath when you are done. This will show you that your lungs have been pushed a little and if that is true then your heart will have been pushed also. Second, each time you work out, just add a little to it. If your taking laps on a track, add a lap or a half a lap each time. If you are walking your neighborhood then walk for another 30 seconds or a minute. If you do this early, as soon as you begin contemplating surgery the further along and better prepared you will be, come surgery day.

As always, if you have any questions, or if there is anything unclear, please post your questions and comments below and I will work to answer them all as soon as I can. Also check out my blog again soon for part 2 of the series about dealing with the psychological aspects of preparing for the amazing journey you are taking.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Congratulations on your decision towards a healthier life! You are not alone... we are all out here supporting you!

Blessings!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

This was a great post. I will say that my 2 week pre surgical diet was nothing compared to what I've gone through after my surgery, unfortunately.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Trending Products

  • Trending Topics

  • Recent Status Updates

    • Prdgrdma

      So I guess after gastric bypass surgery, I cant eat flock chips because they are fried???  They sell them on here so I thought I could have them. So high in protein and no carbs.  They don't bother me at all.  Help. 
      · 1 reply
      1. NickelChip

        It's possible for a very high fat meal to cause dumping in some (30% or so) gastric bypass patients, although it's more likely to be triggered by high sugar, or by the high fat/high sugar combo (think ice cream, donuts). Dietitians will tell you to never do anything that isn't 100% healthy ever again. Realistically, you should aim for a good balance of protein, carbs, and fat each day. Should you eat fried foods every day? No. Is it possible they will make you sick? Maybe. Is it okay to eat some to see what happens and have them for a treat every now and again? Yes.

    • NovelTee

      I'm not at all hungry on this liquid pre-op diet, but I miss the sensation of chewing. It's been about two weeks––surgery is in two days––and I can't imagine how I'll feel a couple of weeks post-op. Tonight, I randomly stumbled upon a mukbang channel on YouTube, and it was strangely soothing... is it just me, or is this a thing? 
      · 1 reply
      1. NickelChip

        I actually watched cooking shows during my pre-op, like Great British Baking Show. It was a little bizarre, but didn't make me hungry. I think it was also soothing in a way.

    • Clueless_girl

      How do you figure out what your ideal weight should be? I've had a figure in my head for years, but after 3 mths of recovery I'm already almost there. So maybe my goal should be lower?
      · 3 replies
      1. NickelChip

        Well, there is actually a formula for "Ideal Body Weight" and you can use a calculator to figure it out for you. This one also does an adjusted weight for a person who starts out overweight or obese. https://www.mdcalc.com/calc/68/ideal-body-weight-adjusted-body-weight

        I would use that as a starting point, and then just see how you feel as you lose. How you look and feel is more important than a number.

      2. Clueless_girl

        I did find different calculators but I couldn't find any that accounted for body frame. But you're right, it is just a number. It was just disheartening to see that although I lost 60% of my excess weight, it's still not in the "normal/healthy" range..

      3. NickelChip

        I think it's important to remember that the weight charts and BMI ranges were developed a very long time ago and only intended to be applied to people who have never been overweight or obese. Those numbers aren't for us. When you are larger, especially for a long time, your body develops extra bone to support the weight. Your organs get a little bigger to handle the extra mass. Your entire infrastructure increases so you can support and function with the extra weight. That doesn't all go away just because you burn off the excess fat. If you still had a pair of jeans from your skinniest point in life and then lost weight to get to the exact number on the scale you were when those jeans fit you, chances are they would be a little baggy now because you would actually be thinner than you were, even though the scale and the BMI chart disagree. When in doubt, listen to the jeans, not the scale!

    • Aunty Mamo

      Tomorrow marks two weeks since surgery day and while I'm feeling remarkably well and going about just about every normal activity, I did wind up with a surface abscess on on of my incision sights and was put on an antibiotic that made me so impacted that it took me more than two hours to eliminate yesterday and scared the hell out of me. Now there's Miralax in all my beverages that aren't Smooth Move tea. I cannot experience that again. I shouldn't have to take Ativan to go to the lady's. I really looking forward to my body getting with the program again. 
      I'm in day three of the "puree" stage of eating and despite the strange textures, all of the savory flavors seem decadent. 
      I timed this surgery so that I'd be recovering during my spring break. That was a good plan. Today is a state holiday and the final day of break. I feel really strong to return to school tomorrow. 
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      Now that I'm in maintenance mode, I'm getting a into a routine for my meals. Every day, I start out with 8-16 ounces of water, and then a proffee, which I have come to look forward to even the night before. My proffees are simply a black coffee with a protein powder added. There are three products that I cycle through: Premier Vanilla, Orgain Vanilla, and Dymatize Vanilla.
      For second breakfast on workdays, I will have a low-fat yogurt with two tablespoons of PBFit and two teaspoons of no sugar added dried cherries. I will have ingested 35-45 grams of protein at this point between the two breakfasts, with 250-285 calories, and about 20 carbs.
      For second breakfast on non-workdays, I will prepare two servings of plain, instant oatmeal with a tablespoon of an olive oil-based spread. This means I will have had 34 grams of protein, 365 calories, and 38 carbs. Non-workdays are when I am being very active with training sessions, so I allow myself more carbohydrate fuel.
      Snacks on any day are always mixed nuts, even when I am travelling. I will have 0.2 cups of a blend that I make myself. It consists of dry roasted peanuts, cashews, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, pistachios, and Brazil nuts. This is 5 grams of protein, 163 calories, and 7 carbs.
      Breakfast and snacks have been the easiest to nail down. Lunch and dinner have more variables, and I prepare enough for leftovers. I concentrate on protein first, and then add vegetables. Typically tempeh, tofu, or Field Roast products with roasted or sautéed vegetables. Today, I will be eating leftovers from last night. Two ounces of tempeh with four ounces of roasted vegetables that consist of red and yellow sweet peppers, sweet potatoes, small purple potatoes, zucchini, and carrots. I will add a tablespoon of olive oil-based spread, break up 3 walnuts to sprinkle of top, and garnish with two tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese. This particular meal will be 19 grams of protein, 377 calories, and 28 grams of carbs. Bear in mind that I do eat more carbs when I am not working, and I focus on ingesting healthy carbs instead of breads/crackers/chips/crisps.
      It's a helluva journey and I'm thankful to be on it!
       
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
  • Recent Topics

  • Hot Products

  • Sign Up For
    Our Newsletter

    Follow us for the latest news
    and special product offers!
  • Together, we have lost...
      lbs

    PatchAid Vitamin Patches

    ×