Seasoned vet as far as weightlifting and cardio

[Bigdog56 17]

I have been weightlifting and doing cardio my whole life and one of my biggest questions is has surgery affected your ability to exercise after surgery?? Other than the obvious EASE as the weight comes off... I would consider myself an expert in this area all the way up to my degree in kinesiology, but I am wondering if anyone has had issues staying hydrated and exercising hard and heavy after surgery... I have asked my nutritionist, but I don't suppose there any better experts out there on this topic than those of you that have had surgery and are doing it. I am 37 and am also hoping that my muscle mass will help with the loose skin aspect of surgery... I have been told that because of the amount of muscle I have coupled with my "youth"that I might not have as much of a loose skin issue...

Thanks for your help everyone in advance!

[AvaFern 3,516]

I have had no issues getting back into hard cardio and lifting. I was concerned that not being able to drink a lot of Water would bother me, but it really hasn't. I used to guzzle 3-4 20 oz bottles of Water at night at the gym and now I sip my way through maybe 1 or 2 over the course of 2-3 hours. I'm 13 months out from surgery and I'm doing the same amount of exercise I was doing 4 years ago when I was the same size I am now, but did not have the sleeve.

[Forsythia 882]

Other than having to wait for six weeks to get back to lifting, I have had no issues with working out or drinking during said workouts post op. I always do about an hour of cardio and 45 minutes or so of weights.

We're the same age, but keep in mind how long you have been overweight and genetics will also factor into the loose skin issue. I have loose skin on my sides by my boobs, my inner thighs and on my upper arms. There is some by my stomach but not as much as those other areas. But then again my stomach seems to be the last to go. So in the end I won't know how or if the skin is going to bounce back. I just make sure to moisturize every day and keep on working out.

[swimbikerun 1,045]

Yes but for the positive. I can't do anything now, even walking can be an issue but that's a different story.

[DaronB 103]

I'm 27 and am hoping post op weight lifting and exercising will help me not have loose skin issues.

[melissa44 1]

Staying hydrated is hard! But other then staying hydrated, I was cleared by my doctor to start cardio 2 weeks after surgery and weight lifting 4 weeks.

[B-52 7,113]

I lost a little over 100lbs....and have no loose skin. At least not what is talked about here...

I work out at least 5 times a week, usually between 5-6am.

My workout routine is this:

First, when I get to the club, I sit in the whirlpool for about 20-30 minutes...I can also stretch while in there.

Then I get dressed and go out and run 3-5 miles. After which I will do some lifting. Not much, just go through the circuit at least once, doing 2 sets of 12 at each. I also spend some time with the kettlebells for some core work.

After that, I may run some more, maybe just a few sprints.

Then I will go to the locker room, get out of my sweaty clothes, and sit in the sauna for at least 30 minutes. I like to do a ice plunge right after (when it's working) or at least a cold shower. Then back in the whirlpool for 5-10 minutes, then a hot shower, shave, fresh clothes, a recovery shake form the "juice Bar" and off to work.

During this entire time I go though 20-32 oz's of Water. And I have the Lap band so I cannot gulp Water at all....

I also use moisturizer creams.

Don't know which, or maybe a combination of all...but no loose skin.

I do not worry about my weight as much as I do my body fat % which I can measure at the gym, and if I want I can pay $10 and get a full body analysis.

I have a very low body fat index, about 15%.

I should add as a footnote, I am 3 months short of my 63rd birthday, I had lap band surgery about 4 years ago, before which I had one heart attack resulting in surgery, I was a diabetic, high BP, Cholesterol, you name it, I had it....I would get short of breath carrying groceries into the house...

so I don't have much patience for excuses.

[CowgirlJane 14,259]

No problem with hydration. It is harder the first say 2 months, but after that most of us have no problems at all. I am very active.

I lost over 160#. Excercise tone muscles which makes you look better and TIME helps skin shrink some, so the two really help... but let's not be dellusional, exercise does not shrink skin. If someone can find me scientific research that shows exercise shrinks skin... I would love to see it...

When I was much younger I lost like 65# and had zero excess skin. Losing 160# in my late 40s was a bit of a different story, after decades of obesity.

so, post sleeve, my excess skin wasn't that bad until about the last 30-40# weight loss... so one solution is to stay a little higher weight. But trust me, if you go from 308 to 140, there is skin for two people and it is noticable. It is a good problem to have though compared to obesity!!!

[jess9395 5,449]

I don't do a lot of lifting (need to work on that part) I run (half marathon this weekend) do yoga (2-3x a week) and enough biking and swimming to do the occasional triathalon.

Anyhow, after the first couple months hydration wasn't an issue. I can drink plenty and even gulp when I need to. Fueling is a bit harder.... I have been working on it though and with effort its def do-able. Protein shakes after, complex carbs before and when I really really need it I do Gu's and shot blocks and stingers in the middle of distance runs.

Dunno about the skin issue. I can see lots of muscle def below my saggy skin, but the skin still sags. But I am 45 and less than a year out. Lost 125. Maybe need to be patient, but not sure how patient I am...looking forward to plastics!

[aroundhky 1,174]

No issues here other than the first couple of months after surgery. Give your body time to heal and adjust and you should be even better with exercising, stamina, intensity, etc. It's always good to have a bottle of Water handy or Water fountain nearby if you can.

[butterfyeffect 257]

I found that my strength decreased briefly after surgery, probably just from taking the four weeks off from weight lifting, and then the lower Protein intake leading to some muscle loss. But now four months after getting back into it, I am lifting about the same weights as I was prior to surgery. I am actually doing squats with higher weights than prior. But if you take into account the 60 pounds I've lost, I guess I'm actually squatting less? IDK

[Forsythia 882]

I found that my strength decreased briefly after surgery, probably just from taking the four weeks off from weight lifting, and then the lower Protein intake leading to some muscle loss. But now four months after getting back into it, I am lifting about the same weights as I was prior to surgery. I am actually doing squats with higher weights than prior. But if you take into account the 60 pounds I've lost, I guess I'm actually squatting less? IDK

Percentage wise you are squatting a higher percentage of your body weight.