physical activity
Before your weight loss surgery
Exercise does play a big part of your weight loss journey and you are encouraged to increase your physical activity even before you have surgery - we are not advising you to go to the expense of a gym membership at this stage, increasing your daily steps by walking more will make a huge difference.
You will be contacted after surgery by a specialist fitness advisor who has worked closely with weight loss surgery patients for a number of years . You will be given personalised fitness information and advice about physical activity after surgery.
You will be given personalised fitness information and advice about physical activity before and after surgery from one of our Fitness Advisors.
Exercise does become easier after you have lost some weight and from experience, those patients who worked with their surgery by increasing their physical activity have seen better results than those who did nothing. You are advised to increase your activity levels before your operation for two main reasons:-
Firstly, it will make the transition to exercising after surgery more manageable and secondly it can make the surgery easier by decreasing your levels of body fat/weight.
Before your operation you will be advised to make simple changes to your lifestyle including:-
- Parking your car further away from the place you are visiting
- Getting off the bus one or two stops before you need to
- Taking the stairs instead of the lift
- Taking a 10 minute walk at lunchtime
- Following a walking programme, monitoring your progressions with a pedometer
After your weight loss surgery
After your operation you will be advised to be up and walking as much as possible.
This is very important and will help your circulation, reduce the risks of blood clots, promote wound healing and bowel function.
Try and take several short walks per day increasing in distance and intensity as you feel able.
The best types of activities to choose include low impact exercises such as swimming, cycling and walking, however, our fitness advisors will assess your physical capabilities and personalise these activities for you.
Your weight may plateau at some point and it is likely you will need to increase your activity levels at this stage. As highlighted before, our Fitness Advisors will be able to guide you accordingly dependent on your physical capabilities at the time.
