Went to a support group meeting for all types of WLS last night at a local hospital. It is not the hospital where I had surgery. The patients in this support group were told not to do sit ups and crunches (even after 6 weeks post op)? I need feedback. I assumed that it would be okay to resume those activities when I was ready.

I was told no abdominal focus for three months but I had complications which required my ribs to be spread and holes cut into my chest so that might be why mine was further out than most. I will say that at four months I went to a Pilates class with a friend which I thoroughly loved because it worked all my focus areas, but the day after I was in so much pain in my rib cage I had to call the doc and ask if I'd screwed anything up. He said to go ahead and continue if I wanted but not to push the abdominal area as hard as I had, and to phase it in, listening to my body. Sore is ok Pain is not.

I was told no abdominal focus for three months but I had complications which required my ribs to be spread and holes cut into my chest so that might be why mine was further out than most. I will say that at four months I went to a Pilates class with a friend which I thoroughly loved because it worked all my focus areas' date=' but the day after I was in so much pain in my rib cage I had to call the doc and ask if I'd screwed anything up. He said to go ahead and continue if I wanted but not to push the abdominal area as hard as I had, and to phase it in, listening to my body. Sore is ok Pain is not.

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This is kind of funny. When I first read this, I didn't realize it was you writing it, Iggychic. So, I was thinking...wow...ANOTHER horror story. I am sorry you had a rough time, but I am relieved that you did not have a "twin" experience-wise with this surgery. I do totally agree that there is a huge difference between being sore and feeling pain. REally, it's the only thing that makes sense.

I'm not sure why on Earth they would be banned for WLS paitents' date=' but from a fitness point of view, they are about the biggest waste of time you can do in the gym. If you want to work your core (and we all should) there are so many better ways to do it. As Gmanbat stated, kettleball work is great for this. Also, hanging knee raises are very effective for the whole abdominal wall, planks (both facing down and either side) are great for the posterior chain and obliques. These exercises work the core as it was meant to be worked...as a unit. Crunches are the wrist curls of core workout exercises. They are an isolation exercise at best, barely working half your abdominals. And as previously stated, the muscles they work are going to be the last muscles any of us every see.[/quote']

How much truth is behind this statement we cannot do crunches or sit-ups? Oh wait, don't answer that, it's the Internet....

Seriously, I am working my abs quite a bit in strength training. Not just crunches and sit-ups, but also lots of other bending and twisting exercises with hand weights for strengthening the core.

Yeah that sounds pretty crazy, perma ban from ab work? Good luck getting up from a chair. Hell, even running with proper form where you support with your core would be impossible. Nearly any exercise done standing up uses core muscles for stabilization, so good luck not stressing the core/ab muscles. Even after a good long bench press session will leave my abs spent.

re; curious - See. This is what I mean. The forum can be helpful' date=' but it can make you crazy when the information is conflicting. I won't see my doctor again until the 3-mos. mark, so I guess I won't do anything too crazy with my middle until then.[/quote']

I was just saying the same thing. Once I read something that makes me uncomfortable, I'm Googling away to find the truth...uuughhh - how frustrating!

I was just saying the same thing. Once I read something that makes me uncomfortable' date=' I'm Googling away to find the truth...uuughhh - how frustrating![/quote']

So, this is just one more topic on this site where there is no 100% agreement. In some ways, being part of an "in-person" support group at a hospital is insulating. As I said elsewhere, I was the only person at the meeting who hadn't had surgery at this hospital and they "snortled" when I mentioned things I have read/learned at this forum. It's less confusing if you are told what to do by your doctor and you surround yourself with people who have been told the same thing. This forum is confusing because there are so many differences pre-operatively and post-operatively between what surgeons tell us.

I do think that it comes down to what someone else said, "Sore is okay. Pain is not." I also should add that 1/2 the patients in the WLS support group had bypass surgery, not the sleeve. I get the feeling that bypass patients have to be more careful not just over what they eat, but also what they do post-operatively.

The fear is a hernia, Intenal or external. Too much increase in intraabdominal pressure can stress on the tummy can cause bulging though areas of the stomach that don't close perfectly, leaving some areas weak.

I am a fan of starting slow and listening to your body. The laparoscopic surgery DOES cut through your muscle but so do many other surgeries. Think all those c-section moms don't do abdominal exercises?! Haha but I agree, much better ways to work out abs than crunches. Good luck!

The fear is a hernia' date=' Intenal or external. Too much increase in intraabdominal pressure can stress on the tummy can cause bulging though areas of the stomach that don't close perfectly, leaving some areas weak.

I am a fan of starting slow and listening to your body. The laparoscopic surgery DOES cut through your muscle but so do many other surgeries. Think all those c-section moms don't do abdominal exercises?! Haha but I agree, much better ways to work out abs than crunches. Good luck![/quote']

I was thinking about c-section moms, too. That alone is a good reason not to believe that you can never exercise your middle area.