Just saying Hello!

justreneturner0847

Hello! My name is Rene I’m 54 years old and trying to lose weight and feel better. Unfortunately I’m having an issue with exercise. I have a severe back injury and am going to have surgery in August. So I’m not sure what I can do. I’m eating keto-vore and I feel I have a good handle on that. Any exercise suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I have difficulty standing for long periods and walks are out of the question right now.

AnnPT77

Have you by any chance had a course of physical therapy? If not, can you be referred for that? Good physical therapists not only help us improve difficult physical conditions - sometimes literal treatment- type improvements, but also sometimes just learning ways to move that reduce further strain on body parts that are sub-ideal. They also can be a good consultant to help us understand what mainstream exercise types are most likely to be beneficial and least likely to be injurious, given our current status. (Yes, I have experienced all of those things with physical therapists.)

Pretty much no one here has physical therapy expertise, nor are we medical professionals of other types. We can therefore only give generic advice, and you will need to evaluate whether that advice is suitable/safe for you, or not.

I'm sure you know that exercise is optional for weight loss. Yes, moving more burns some extra calories, and can be good for a body, but weight loss can happen entirely on the eating side of the equation. That you're doing well with that is a big positive for you. With the injury in the picture for you, I'd suggest avoiding truly aggressively fast weight loss, because that's an additional physical stress on the body. Moderate loss rate could be good, but do ask your doctor about the tradeoffs in your individual situation with your health history.

I have worked out a solid activity routine for myself that works around some physical limitations (osteoarthritis in various places, osteoporosis, torn meniscus, etc.). Mainly, I cautiously experimented to figure out what I could do.

In your case, the specifics of your back injury are going to matter. I don't know whether you can do upper body resistance exercises (weights or resistance bands, for example), seated chair exercise videos, pool exercise (which works for some people because part of body weight is supported by the water). I limit walking myself, but found I can do things that involve straight-line hinge motions of my knees, so cycling (including stationary) is an option; I don't know whether your back would let you do that. Those are just a few thoughts about possibilities.

If your overall average nutrition can be improved, that may in itself help you feel better. I personally can't give you ketovore advice, because I'm nearly the opposite eating style, a balanced-macros vegetarian. I hope others will have suggestions about what good ketovore nutrition looks like, if you aren't completely there with excellent nutrition yet.

I'm not sure what else to suggest; I hope you're able to find an approach that works for you, and that your upcoming surgery will make huge improvements for you.

Best wishes!