looly

Gyms and pools are currently shut in the UK. When they opened (during the summer) I went to the pool but not the gym. I reckoned that the chlorine would deal with the virus in the pool, but the indoor gym was too risky, with all that huffing and puffing going on. At the moment, I do two or three outdoor runs a week (either 3 miles or 6 miles). I'm doing 2 or 3 weight training sessions a week and 2 or 3 indoor HIIT sessions. A lot of it depends on the weather (I'm a great big wuss who doesn't like running in snow or heavy rain!). I work out 6 days a week and vegetate on the 7th I've recently bought a skipping rope...we'll see how that one goes! The only downside with all this exercise is that it makes me hungry. It's all very well having healthy snacks available, but calories are calories, where-ever they come from. ?

You don't look old to me, GradyCat! You look smiley and youthful! I'm 53 and I only started running in March. I only did it because of lockdown, but now I love it...I'm continually surprised by what my body can do now. You might be surprised too. ?

For the first 6 months after surgery, I only did regular walking and (once my wounds had healed) some gentle swimming. After I'd lost a lot of weight, I upped the swimming (to the point where I got out of breath) and went to a gym. During lockdown, I started running. I really enjoy these exercises, but if I'd started exercising hard when I was still heavy, I don't think I would have enjoyed them and I think I may have put my joints at risk. Also I felt more confident about my body after I'd lost a substantial amount of weight. I'm glad I waited before I started to push myself - it was right for me.

Don't worry Jane - if you're like me, you won't be feeling pants for too long. I had the surgery 2.5 years ago. I'm 8 stone down, enjoy eating small portions of tasty food and I regularly run 5km - sometimes 10km. The temporary nausea and discomfort after the op was absolutely worth it.

I ran 10K again on Sunday, 20 minutes faster than the first time I did it (and I had surgery In August, so I had a break in training). I actually put weight on during lockdown, but I feel fitter than ever!

My gallbladder is gone and all is well! ?

I'm having my gallbladder whipped out in two days because of stones. How long was it before you guys started to do strenuous exercise, like swimming or running? It was about 6 weeks after my sleeve, but I was wondering if it was more or less after the gallbladder surgery?

I had some knee pain after about the third week of C25K. I bought some elasticated knee supports and they really helped. I don't wear them all the time, but if my knees twinge, then I wear them on the next run - they work a treat! As for me running 10K, it was by accident really. I planned to run 5K downhill and then phone my other half to come and pick me up. But I felt OK and just started to run back. I walked up the really steep hills and I kept thinking "I'll phone him in a bit", but I was having such a nice time pootling away, listening to music and generally nosying into other peoples' gardens, that I just kept going. Before I knew it, I was home!

I ran my first 10K on Monday...I think I've been taken over by a body-snatching exercise-loving alien....don't know what's wrong with me! ?

Since the beginning of lockdown in the UK (and the closure of the local pools) I've also started to do Couch to 5K. I'll be running Week 5 Run 2 tomorrow....it feels amazing to do any kind of running without my back, hips and knees hurting. I never imagined I'd ever run, but I'm actually beginning to enjoy it.

Hi Rob! I was over 50 when I had my op, and it worked a treat - over 120 lbs gone so far. I wasn't given lots of detailed instructions about macros, so I didn't feel overwhelmed. I was told to favour water and protein, but otherwise to eat a healthy diet in very small portions and to take dietary supplements. I was told to gradually build up my exercise levels. These broad principles were easy to follow and worked for me! ?

That's an interesting point of view, summerset: I hadn't considered that possibility. I suppose there's a fine balance to be struck between feeling contented with your weight loss and avoiding significant regain. Life's complicated, innit?!

…..However, as regards when you know you've lost enough weight - it's when you're happy with your loss and feel good surely?

This is an interesting question, because I thought I'd finished losing weight after 19 months. However, I recently had to do another liver-shrinking diet in anticipation of another operation (subsequently cancelled). I had to diet for 5 days and lost 4 lbs. I ate about 600-800 calories a day. I was surprised that I could manage this and it made me think I could use this again in the future....I could lose weight for 5 days, then just carry on maintaining my weight the rest of the time. Hmmmm….could work!

The second liver-shrinking diet has done me a favour, because my weight loss had sort of bottomed-out, 19 months after the sleeve. It's a boost in troubled times!