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Advice on a post surgery exercise program

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Posted 3/6/2014 5:36 PM (GMT 0)
Hey Gang,
Im 17 days out of Nerve sparing RALP surgery. Things are going better, but Im still dealing with some leaking, cramping, stomach muscle pain, Digestive issues, lack of stamina, etc. Now I realize this is probably the norm for this post surgery time frame, but Im an active guy and Im thinking the sooner I can get into some sort of physical rehab, the better/faster my recovery will be. But I dont want to do too much and set things back either. I do have an exercise bike, weights, a knock off Chuck Norris machine to work with. Any advice from the work out guys will be greatly appreciated.
Posted 3/6/2014 6:08 PM (GMT 0)
Otis,

My advise would be to walk as much as you can tolerate the first 3-4 months. I know you want to do more but let your body heal first. It's major surgery and you don't want to harm any of the fine work completed by your surgeon. I'm 4 months post op and continue to walk about 3-4 miles a day. I've started some stretching exercises to get ready for the spring golf season. My sons wanted me to go spring skiing out west but I'm not taking the risk.

Keep drinking lots of fluids and take time to heal........You'll have plenty of time to workout in the coming months.

Best Regards............Berk
Posted 3/6/2014 6:19 PM (GMT 0)
I think we are all different. It also depends on what your doc says. He has gotten to know you better than we know you, and he knows if there were any confounding circumstances in the surgery that should affect what you can do.

I had about a month of true down-time and in the 4+ weeks since then, I've really been able to increase what I do. But, we are all different. Different ages. Different fitness levels coming in. Different fitness goals post-surgery. Different details or complications from our surgery or other treatments. If you search for a discussion from a couple days ago with the search word "planks", you can see what I've been doing so far. But, I think I'm doing more than most, and more than most docs would recommend. So, I should probably not be your template.

To be honest, I didn't walk very much in that first month. It's been a cold winter winter with lots of ice (not much snow) where I live, so walking has been tough. So, I worked at getting back to other things. I am planning to get back to running 3-4 miles per day, maybe 3-4 days per week, as soon as the sidewalks melt a little bit. That will hopefully be by the end of this month or so.

Also, while I'm active again, I'm far from where I was and I"m not willing to push to find my limits. I'm guessing that by three months, I'll feel pretty good, but I'll probably wait until 4 months to really start to push at all.

Best of luck.
Posted 3/6/2014 6:36 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Berk & Dmlvt,
When I was first diagnosed in November, I really got back into core exercises including situps, planks & kegals. Plus I did a lot of exercise biking and some mountain hiking to get my cardio back up. I was doing light dumbbell workouts for a while, not so much to up my strength, but to keep my overall fitness level up and felt like I was in decent shape. But just putzing around the house has been an exhausting experience and I'm amazed at how much I'm zapped by the end of the day.

I've been through a number of arm & knee surgeries over the years including a knee replacement in late 2012, but this is my first core surgery. Definitely different!! The pain is less, but it seems like the recovery is slower and when you have a bad day, its usually a BAD day! Core post surgical pain is sure new to me. Guess I have to be more patient and let it come back to me rather than forcing it.
Posted 3/6/2014 6:50 PM (GMT 0)
Mike,

I felt the same way as you. I wanted to tear into an exercise program but I quickly found out that I had to take it easy after shoveling heavy wet snow here in the Laurel Mountains. As you stated, let it come back naturally rather than forcing the issue. Everything heals with time!

Berk
Posted 3/6/2014 8:08 PM (GMT 0)
wait another 4 weeks and then ease into it. Meanwhile walk a lot.
Posted 3/7/2014 1:36 AM (GMT 0)
Your body still in early stage of healing

Walking the best exercise ATM.

All the best to you speedy recovery.

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