Hi friends.

I'm currently 10.5 weeks out from surgery and feeling pretty good most days. I'm losing about 3-4 lbs per week on average. But really, I'm here to ask you about exercise.

I have been cleared by my surgeon for "strenuous" exercise since 30 days post-op. However, when I talk to my friends, or family, or my therapist, they all say the same thing- "You'd better not be exercising". To them, it makes no sense how I could be surviving on a 700-cal a day "starvation diet", and still trying to work out. The more I hear it from others, the more I start to question my surgical team's wisdom. I mean, I've done every single thing "by the book" so far. I walk for 30-60 min almost every night. But, the few times I've tried something "strenuous", I have NO ENERGY. My muscles feel so weak and exhausted after just a few minutes.

I love hiking and swimming (esp. the two in combination!). I like biking and yoga and getting really sweaty at the gym. However... I'm too freaking tired to do any of this stuff! My fiancee & dog have followed me out to random trailheads, just to have to turn back after 20 min because I was so tired!

So what are you doing for exercise? What has been your experience with "amping up the intensity"?? I am totally happy with my current rate of weight loss and I think walking 10+ miles per week is probably ok for now, but I am wondering how y'all are doing it.

I have read on here a couple of times of "couch to 5k". What is that? Right now I am only three weeks out and starting to walk without losing all my air (asthma). I use to do Hip Hop Abs videos, loved them. I got quick results with them until I had my baby three years ago and the weight just went up instead. I want to get back to where I can do them but this couch thing has me interested.

Couch to 5k is a training program that is supposed to take you from doing nothing (i.e.: the couch) to running a 5k in 4-8 weeks. You can do it via an app on your phone or iPod, or just google it, and follow the instructions they give you. I've gone through the online program a couple of times, just never stuck with the running after I completed it! This time I'm using the app, which so far is a lot more fun, for some reason... probably just the not having to keep track of time and distance myself anymore.

Edited August 5, 201412 yr by butterfyeffect

Im 5 weeks post op and was back to the gym 2 days after surgery. The day after surgery I collectively walked 2 miles around the hospital. I mostly do cardio and the weight machines. At 2 weeks I was released to swim so I do a couple aqua classes a day. I found if you add a couple minutes to your cardio every couple days or slowly add sprinting to your walks it makes it so much easier. Just remember to keep hydrated. I also try to eat some protein before going to the gym like cheese or an egg. If it doesn't feel right, take a break, there's no need to push yourself to exhaustion

I am 3 weeks out and I started walking the day after my suregry, not all at once but throughout the day. I sure didn't want to worry about a blood clot.

I am up about 1.5-2 miles a day- I walk before work, during lunch break, after work. I work in a big building so I get some decent walking done in general. I signed up for a 5K in December so I will up the intensity and distance as I can.

Walking does not wear me out, oddly it is when I #2 and take to hot of a shower so I have learned to take cool showers with the door open.

I'm 9 months out and went back to CrossFit at 6 weeks. Of course I was a hot mess for the first few weeks, but I did my best. Eventually, I started being able to really do the workouts again. I increased my calories a bit when I did that…went up to 1,000 from 800. Now I'm working out pretty intensely and will sometimes eat up to the amount burned, trying to keep my average at about 1100. I am not losing as quickly as some, and that is okay. If the goal is health, then this is working.

I wear a heart rate monitor so that I have an accurate idea of calories burned. One of these days I am also going to go have my basal metabolic rate tested just to make sure I'm on track there too.

In short, I don't think you'll exactly hurt yourself if you keep it at 700-800 for a while, but you may perform better if you increase it. My surgeon's office doesn't want me netting less than 800. Your surgeon may feel differently.

I usually eat about 1000 to 1200 calories on my gym days. I do 30 to 60 minutes of cardio. Then I do about 45 minutes of weights twice a week. My lifting these days is slow and heavy. Once a week I take one 55 minute cardio/weights class (a fast and light class). Two days days I swim for 30 to 45 minutes. I do not think I could do that on 600 calories.

My nutritionist said at this point I should be eating 800 to 1200 calories. Most days (since most days I am at the gym) I am eating 1000 to 1200 calories. On rest days I usually eat around 900 or so calories.

I've been exercising hard since week 4. I started walking around week 2. It would have been earlier walking but I landed back in the hospital with pneumonia and that set me back.

When I first started back lifting weights at week 4, my nutritionist told me to up the carbs some. So, I have a piece of fruit or two to help add some Fiber into the diet but the rest of my food is primarily Protein. My calories are staying between 600-800. I'd like to up them some but I just can't fit a lot more food into the day.

I feel a TON of energy -- lifting heavy weights 2-3 times a week with a trainer and doing cardio the other days -- usually 7 days a week. I am doing the Zombies, Run! 5k training program and have signed up for two 5k runs at the end of September and beginning of November. Sometimes after exercising in the morning (my favorite time) I'll also get back on the treadmill at night just to bump it up even more.

If you're not having enough energy to exercise you may need to up the carbs a little. Talk to your NUT. You CAN do this and exercise WILL help.

I'm 4 weeks post op and walk. That's all. Just walk. It feels great and on a tread mill I'm 1.5m/hr so people look at me strange cause I'm walking slow. Any faster than that and my incisions start to remind me that I had surgery.

I'm 6 weeks out and have walked about 2 miles (35-40 minutes) a day for the past 4 weeks. The past two Saturdays, I did strength training at the gym. While not "strenuous", I don't find that they zap my energy at all. They make me feel good, physically and mentally (I've lost 46 pounds). While I don't have any hard evidence, I have to assume that they're helping with the weight loss and my general physique. I've never been a workout guy, so this moderate level of exercise seems to work for me. I'm kind of saving the "strenuous" activity for when I'm a little more fit and have a nasty plateau/stall to bust.