How long does it take to lose muscle?

atynk
atynk Posts: 400 Member
edited September 21 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey all,
I am having my tonsils out in November, and everyone I talked to that have had the same surgery said they basically laid in bed for at least 2 weeks eating pudding and jello. Most of them even said it was 3 weeks before they could do any activity. I am wondering how long it takes for a women to start losing muscle from not exercising.. I will probably drop 10lbs , but i don't want it to be the 10 lbs of muscle I worked so hard to get in the first place lol...
I will be doing NOTHING for at least 2 weeks and basically only drinking water and eating pudding. I am going to get protein shakes to hold on as much muscle as possible..

Any tips or has anyone gone through the same thing?

Replies

  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
    I think you'll be fine. You're so much stronger and in better shape than I probably was at 18 and I was eating chicken nuggets all weekend and was completely fine by about day 3! I can't remember if I was working out or eating well at that point but I don't think you should worry about it.
  • futballuvr73
    futballuvr73 Posts: 24 Member
    My fitness guru told me for every day you are 'off' (other than a recovery day) it's worth 3 days of exercise. I went 3 weeks without before she told me that... EEEK! Of course, if you're healing it could be different.
    Will your doc not allow you to at least walk? My thought is with it being in your throat that they'd allow it- as long as you took a bottle of water?
  • tattoodfreek
    tattoodfreek Posts: 520 Member
    I had hernia surgery in April and I was allowed to walk after only one rest day. I would think as long as you aren't getting winded and huffing and puffing, light exercise like slow walking should be ok almost immediately.
  • atynk
    atynk Posts: 400 Member
    My fitness guru told me for every day you are 'off' (other than a recovery day) it's worth 3 days of exercise. I went 3 weeks without before she told me that... EEEK! Of course, if you're healing it could be different.
    Will your doc not allow you to at least walk? My thought is with it being in your throat that they'd allow it- as long as you took a bottle of water?

    I can walk... but from everyone I have talked to that have had it said they didn't even want to leave their bed for 2 weeks they were in so much pain.. Apparently it is a pretty intense surgery, not like having wisdom teeth out.
  • lilchino4af
    lilchino4af Posts: 1,292 Member
    Maybe they just have a low tolerance to pain. I was up and moving within a few days, granted I milked the pudding, ice chips, etc for as long as I could (can't blame me, I was 7 lol). As good of shape as you're in, I would venture to say you'll bounce back fairly quickly.
  • skygoddess86
    skygoddess86 Posts: 487 Member
    Yeah its gonna suck, sorry. My 16 yr old had to be carried to the bathroom the first week and seriously practically crawled the second. It was 3 long bad weeks. You will get it all back so don't let that worry you, you are gonna have enough to deal with. Temporary set back.
  • cuddlyaries87
    cuddlyaries87 Posts: 24
    hai..i've had the same surgery last year..i started eating semi solid food the night after surgery..and then discharged the morning after and was running on my two feet that evening..3 days later, i'm eating normally..you'll be okay..just bear the little pain..my doctor said, the sooner u eat..the faster it will heal..
  • a1schwei
    a1schwei Posts: 617 Member
    it totally depends on the person...i got mine out at 19 and was down for the count for a few days (lost a few lbs too) but by the end of the first week i was good to go :) don't push yourself too hard but as others are suggesting, take some little walks when you feel up to it...and be careful about not eating too much icecream :)
  • imagymrat
    imagymrat Posts: 862 Member
    Firstly the protein shakes will be a total waste of time to take if you're not inthe gym..I don't understand why they would help you retain muscle? maybe I misunderstood what you were trying to say? It wouldn't be the first time...lol, so please correct me if I didn't get it. That being said, I had my tonsils out in February of this year, too many bouts of tonsilitis that then turned into different infections. I missed two days inthe gym...I didn't find it all that painful, but I think I have a high pain tolerance. I was drinking smoothies like crazy to keep my calorie count up so that I didn't lose the weight, cause muscle will be the first to go! which really sucks cause it takes forever to put on! You may still feel fine as far as doing light weight work, wait and see. Your health should come first, you already know what it takes to put that muscle on, so in the event that a little does go, you know how to put it back on. I'm a bit of a freak that way, I know better, but I swear that if I don't work my muscles everyday i'm gonna wither up and turn into one of those waif like tarts on TV..
  • eliaison
    eliaison Posts: 34 Member
    yeah, i'd say it must depend on the person, because I too was only in real pain for the first 3 days or so. I was definitely not in bed for 2 weeks! :-)
  • atynk
    atynk Posts: 400 Member
    When I talked to the doctor about it, he said something like getting your heart rate up is bad and can cause infections in your sores in mouth.. I hope I feel good after a week at least... I can play with some 3 lb weights to keep up lol
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