Lap-band surgery helps obese people lose weight by restricting how much food the patient can eat. An adjustable band is placed near the top of the stomach, creating a smaller pouch that holds about 4 ounces of food. Although lap-band surgery can help you lose weight by limiting how much food you can eat, adding exercise is suggested to achieve the best results. Find out how to safely add exercise to your lifestyle after having lap-band surgery.
You should start a walking program as soon as possible after surgery. The goal is to walk for at least 30 minutes every day. During the first several weeks after surgery, your doctor will probably recommend that you don’t run or try more strenuous forms of exercise.
A month after surgery, you should plan to add resistance training to your workout routine. In the first month after lap-band surgery, most patients are told that they can lift up to 20 pounds. Patients can usually lift double that amount in the second month. Before starting a regular weight training program, talk to your doctor for specific recommendations about how much weight you should be lifting.
After two or three months of resistance training and regular walking, you may be able to add sit-ups to your routine. It’s very important to consult your doctor before doing sit-ups to ensure that your band has properly healed and will not slip. Walking regularly shortly after surgery and adding resistance training later should help your body heal more quickly so you can move on to other types of exercise.
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