Will surgery undo all my work?

Nottafattie
Nottafattie Posts: 140 Member
edited November 11 in Fitness and Exercise
I'm relatively new in the fitness department and I only do about an hour to two hours a week (light strength training and cardio). This worked fine for me as I had no plans of competing anywhere or looking like a model. I simply wanted to reverse a few signs of aging (the gravitational pull effect in particular).

The problems is that my doctor has scheduled me for surgery about six weeks away, and she told me that I won't be able to do ANYTHING more than walking for six weeks after. So now I'm concerned that I will have to sit back and watch the work I did deteriorate while I'm helpless to do anything about it.

The questions I have now are 1) Will this six week exercise ban cause the muscles I have improved to revert back to pre-exercise status if I maintain my current nutrition? 2) Should I step up my game in the weeks before surgery to create stronger muscles in case the six weeks sedentary does cause a loss of strength in them? 3) What is the best way to avoid a backward slide during my recovery time?

Any help would be appreciated.

Replies

  • NoelFigart1
    NoelFigart1 Posts: 1,276 Member
    You're thinking at way too fine a granularity if you're freaking out over six weeks of not working out.

    I'm not seeing how long you've been working out, but lemme give you some anecdotal evidence (for what it's worth)

    I started lifting and working on swimming in July '06 to try to lose some weight. I could swim about 400 yards in 20 minutes. I got to the point where I could swim 900 yards in 20 minutes by the end of December, when I had to take off a few weeks because I got ACL reconstructive surgery. (A woman in her mid thirties who is over 200 lbs ought not be attempting a flying side kick, just saying...) Anyway, I was out of the pool for a month.

    Did I lose some strength and speed? Lord have mercy, yes! Was I back to June '06 levels? Nope. Not at all. I was back to full strength and progressing by about March.

    And prehab is always a good idea as long as you don't injure yourself before you surgery.
  • deksgrl
    deksgrl Posts: 7,237 Member
    You won't lose it all. It might feel like it but when you are able to exercise again, you will quickly get back to where you were when you stopped.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    edited January 2015
    What kind of surgery (if it isn't too personal of a question)? Talk to your doctor about physical therapy. Also, there are great programs for exercises you can do while sitting in a chair (one of them, "Sit and Be Fit", has been broadcasting on PBS for over 20 years) and maybe your doctor can Ok something like that.

    Oh, and do not discount the benefits of walking. If your doctor has already OK'd that to start right away, go for it.
  • yesimpson
    yesimpson Posts: 1,372 Member
    edited January 2015
    NoelFigart1 wrote: »
    (A woman in her mid thirties who is over 200 lbs ought not be attempting a flying side kick, just saying...)

    Try everything once.
  • Graceious1
    Graceious1 Posts: 716 Member
    There are sitting exercises you can do. You Tube is flooded with low impact exercise programmes. Doing something is way better than doing nothing at all. All the best.
  • Nottafattie
    Nottafattie Posts: 140 Member
    earlnabby wrote: »
    What kind of surgery (if it isn't too personal of a question)?

    Let's just say that I am the mother of twins and some things got damaged (of the non-cosmetic nature) during the pregnancy process. I cannot do anything that will mess with my core too much. No lifting, squatting, crunching, twisting, weights, bouncing, bending of any sort. Pretty well much my whole routine there, and my core is the area I'm most focused on. I can walk, but I can't walk the dog (he's the dragging or being dragged type).
  • kaotik26
    kaotik26 Posts: 590 Member
    Yes, you're gonna lose it. Sorry but from the type of surgery your talking about you aren't even going to want to move for about a week. (I was down for a few days just after getting my tubes tied) <<sorry if that's TMI :) But anyway, you can lose your hard work after just a week of stopping it unless you have had a good routine for quite a while, your body will always revert to the state it has been the most.
    But, working out and staying fit up to the surgery will greatly improve your ability to heal and probably help you get back into it sooner.
    I have some medical training and a tad personal experience so that's how I can say this confidently.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,988 Member
    Train hard now. Get in to as best shape as possible going into the surgery so the RECOVERY takes less time.
    Yes you will lose strength, endurance, and your muscle will atrophy some, but that's normal for anyone who doesn't use their muscle that physically. Don't worry, the important thing is that if your diligent, you can get back to pre surgery status if you come back slowly.
    I have a client now who's had 6 back surgeries and we started off on a walker. He's now walking without one and we're working on him getting back on his motorcycle.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    Nottafattie wrote: »
    earlnabby wrote: »
    What kind of surgery (if it isn't too personal of a question)?

    Let's just say that I am the mother of twins and some things got damaged (of the non-cosmetic nature) during the pregnancy process. I cannot do anything that will mess with my core too much. No lifting, squatting, crunching, twisting, weights, bouncing, bending of any sort. Pretty well much my whole routine there, and my core is the area I'm most focused on. I can walk, but I can't walk the dog (he's the dragging or being dragged type).

    Look into some of those seated exercises. There probably are some that work the arms without any stress on the core, plus you sit in a hard backed chair for support. Leg work may be more difficult to find because you use your abs and back so much when moving your legs.

    Whatever you do, make sure your doctor signs off on it!

  • Nottafattie
    Nottafattie Posts: 140 Member
    Is there any particular nutritional tricks I can implement to help reduce the rate of loss? I think I can face this with a positive attitude if I know I've done everything in my power to prevent as much slide as possible.
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