Pre-Post Gastric Bypass Exercise Programs

Developing an individualized exercise and physical activity plan is one of the most important steps of obesity surgery preparation and post operative. An exercise program that implements light resistance training and cardiovascular training should begin well before and after (make sure you have clearance from your Health Care Professional)should be resumed as soon as possible after bariatric surgery. Even a small increase in exercise can improve a patient’s flexibility, range of motion, and balance, as well as decrease the chance of injury and soreness.

Exercise After Bariatric Surgery

Exercise plays a crucial role after bariatric surgery. Patients take in far fewer calories directly following surgery, sometimes causing the body to react as if it were starving. In its search for more energy, the body can begin to burn muscle instead of fat. To prevent this, it is imperative to begin exercising regularly as soon as possible. This alters the metabolism so that the body begins to burn fat instead of muscle. Exercising also helps patients lose weight more rapidly.

What exercises are best to help me achieve my weight loss goal?

Everyone is unique and because of this, your exercise program may differ from other people who have undergone this surgery. With clearance from your Doctor, you will undergo a fitness assessment with an exercise specialist at 30 in a hurry fitness before your surgery or after your surgery, depending on the procedure used to perform your surgery (open or laproscopic). Your fitness professional will evaluate your current physical ability and exercise needs and tailor an exercise program for you. As your strength and endurance increases, your fitness professional will adjust the program.

Weight lifting exercise benefits:

Easier weight loss or weight maintenance.

Leaner, stronger body.

Improved appearance.

Better posture.

Lower blood pressure.

Increased resting metabolism rate.

Improved balance and coordination (used to be called "grace").

Stronger bones, and protection against osteoporosis.

In simple terms, this means you'll look better and feel stronger. And if you need to lose weight, strength training is an absolute must. Low calorie diets lower your metabolism - it's been known for years that trying to lose weight with a low-calorie diet alone will just put you on the yo-yo diet roller-coaster. If you want to get off the roller-coaster and lose your excess weight permanently, you need to do something different.

You need to use simple strength training exercises combined with a healthy diet low in sugar and fat, because this regimen will let you lose weight fast - and keep it off for good.

Fat-burning benefits of lifting weights:

Because muscle cells burn more energy than fat cells, and strong muscles burn more calories than flabby muscles. They also store sugar as a source of energy for the next time they're used.

The sugar stored in muscle cells doesn't turn into fat. And the improved metabolism means that you don't have to worry as much about dieting. If you've been dieting for years, weight lifting exercises are even more important, because they allow you to correct the metabolic damage caused by your low-cal diets.

Weight lifting leads to permanent weight loss:.

Why does an efficient metabolism matter? Because a slower metabolism means you'll gain weight if you don't reduce the amount of food you eat. And according to Covert Bailey, dieting alone can actually slow down your metabolism, which just makes matters worse. The best way to lose weight and look fantastic is to eat a healthy diet filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, while also using both aerobic exercises and strength training exercises throughout the week.

Eat right, practice a simple weight lifting program three times a week. Walk a few more blocks to work. That's all it takes to get the improved metabolism that helps you lose weight even when you're resting and having fun. Wayne Wescott, Ph.D., fitness director at the South Shore YMCA in Quincy, Mass, conducted a study that put 70 people on a low-fat diet while also testing the effects of exercise. One group did both endurance and strength training, or weight lifting, and lost twice as much weight as the group that only used endurance exercises. What's more, the group that didn't lift weights lost half a pound of muscle in two months, while the weight lifting group gained two pounds of muscle.

Evidently, dieting and exercising without strength training can cause you to lose muscle mass, which will slow your metabolism. That means you won't be able to maintain your weight loss, and will slowly regain your lost weight when the diet is over.

Weight lifting for osteoporosis - build stronger bones.

If you're older, say 35 or more, weight lifting exercises offer even more. Some people have found a reduction in their arthritis symptoms, and many doctors insist that their patients with high blood pressure need to begin lifting light weights. It has also been shown that we begin to lose muscles by about a half pound per year after the age of 35 - and replace that muscle with about 1 1/2 pounds of fat! This does more than make you look pudgy - the reduced muscle mass will lead to feeling fatigued and weaker as you get older. Lifting light weights three or four times a week, and getting out of the house to do some walking, will help to reverse this natural trend.

But perhaps the most important reason to take the time to lift weights a few times each week is the threat of bone loss, or osteoporosis. As we age our bones begin to lose calcium, causing them to become brittle and easily broken. We don't have to sit back and just wait for it to happen - we can actually reduce the calcium loss, and even reverse it, with simple strength training exercises.

Research at Tufts University found that post-menopausal women who lifted light weights at least twice a week actually gained bone mass at about 1% a year, while their more sedentary counterparts lost bone mass at the rate of about 2% a year. By strengthening the bones, older women can stay active, involved and independent throughout heir lives.