Partial Hysterectomy

R

Rosann

New Member
Hi,

I have been exercising with Cathe videos for a couple of months after using the Firm Tapes for years. I will be having surgery to remove fibroid tumors this summer and am concerned if the gains i have made through exercise will be lost while recovering. Are there any exercises that I can do while recovering? Thanks.

Rosann D.
 
Hi, not Cathe obviously, but I have had a hysterectomy. Make sure you clear any exercise with your doctor, being specific about what you normally do...the only exercise I was cleared to do was walking for 8 weeks. At 8 weeks I was cleared to resume all activities.
 
the only exercise I was cleared to do was walking for 8 weeks. At 8 weeks I was cleared to resume all activities.

Same Here
 
I had a hysterectomy a few years back also. I slowly return to excercising at 8 weeks but those core muscles really were not feeling it. It took about another 6-8 weeks to get those core muscles together. Any of Cathe's videos that required a lot of jumping you will have to be careful with. Because the abs will be very tender for awhile. You will probably not feel like doing much walking afor about 4 weeks because you never know how much you use you stomach muscles until after you have surgery.

Karen
 
Hi,

I had the same problem with fibroids and had a partial hysterectomy a couple of years ago. A lot will depend on what type of surgery you will have. Have you and your doctor determined whether it will be abdominal or vaginal? If abdominal, will the doctor be able to use the "bikini cut"? The type of surgery and incision will determine a lot.

I got the bikini cut and was up walking the same night. I had to defer any serious exercise for 6 weeks. I started walking and by 8 weeks could do *very* basic step. No weights until 12 weeks. But that was just me.

I know that you have heard this already but you really must listen to your own body. Don't rush yourself (as you don't want to risk internal injury) and don't push when you are tired. And you will find that you tire more easily.

Good luck.

p.s. Did you visit the "Hystersister" site? It was very helpful for me. Many women there have undergone hysterectomies and have a lot of advice on surgeries and healing.
 
Rosann, I just had fibroids removed on March 25. It was a bikini cut with an epidural, and I had no complications. I felt pretty good at 4 weeks and was able to walk for exercise from then on (worked up to about 2.5 miles at 4 mph pace over a few sessions). By five weeks, I was over the tired feeling and pretty much back to normal, doing pretty much what I wanted to do as long as there was no heavy lifting. At my six-week check-up, I was cleared to do whatever I wanted as long as it didn't hurt. That included ab exercises and weight lifting -- I asked very specifically about those. My surgeon just said work back up slowly but otherwise, have at it. Now, at about seven weeks, I've been gardening, digging new beds, hauling 40 lb. bags of mulch, etc. with no bad effects. I do listen to my body and try to keep intense physical activity to about 30 minutes a day, but I feel like I could certainly do more. Next week, I'll just call myself well and exercise, garden, etc. until my body says I'm done.

So far, my only noticeable losses have been in flexibility not strength. My aerobic capacity is about as it was and my strength not noticeably affected.

As always, your mileage may vary. I went into this being pretty fit and with a positive outlook. I was just so happy to have my bladder and kidneys back to full capacity that I was ready to go through whatever was needed.

Good luck with your surgery!
 
Hi Rosann,

I had a total hysterectomy 4 1/2 weeks ago, uterus, ovaries, everything :-( I had severe endometriosis, almost stage IV, along with complex ovarian cysts and endometrial hyperplasia. This put me at an extremely high risk for several types of cancer.

I turned 46 one week after the surgery. I am a certified personal trainer and an advanced exerciser. So I went into the surgery feeling very physically fit. In fact 4:30 a.m. before leaving for the hospital, I had to do a couple of ball-pikes just because I knew that it would be quite a while before I could do them again.

I had a laproscopic-assisted, vaginal hysterectomy. The surgical procedure was not so terrible. In fact, after a couple of days most of the abdominal pain was gone with just a sore, tight feeling remaining.

My surgeon cleared me for easy exercise after 2 weeks. She said "Exercise like someone who as never exercised before." Patients who are unfit prior to surgery are rarely cleared to work-out so early. Week three I started with treadmill walking at about 2.5 mph and SH lifting using about 25% of the poundage I used prior to the surgery for upper body and zero weights for legs.

Week four I worked up to some very easy step tapes like Kari Anderson or Reebok (eliminating the impact completely). I used PH and ME at about 50% of my normal poundage for upper body and about 25% for lower body. I did some prone core work at level one, elbows and knees, only held the position for 20 - 30 seconds.

For week five I plan on doing pretty much the same. I have found that I feel it in my legs the most. I was doing SH squats with a 100 lb barbell and now doing PH with 25 lbs is wiping them out. Upper body feels like I could jump right back in to my old level, but I am really trying to be a good girl and take it slow. Cardio-wise the couple of step tapes that I did felt easy so I know that my endurance will come back pretty quickly.

I have an administrative job so even though the dr. said I could stay out 6 weeks I went back after 3 weeks and stayed a couple of hours a day. I was going a little bonkers at home.

I do find that I get tired and sort of hit the wall at around 4:30 or 5 p.m. And if I am really tired I just take a day off from working out.

The most difficult part for me is the HRT. I am now trying yet another "cocktail" (number 4). Because my ovaries were removed I woke up in instant menopause. Not fun. Night sweats, hot flashes, anxiety, muscle aches, appetite changes (nothing tastes good), lack of concentration, sleeplessness - it has been a real fun time.

In your case, you won't have to worry about HRT, so just concentrate on listening to your surgeon and to your body. Your fitness level will return - don't worry. In December of last year I had a laproscopic ovarian cystectomy and within 6 weeks I was 100% back to normal. So us fit chicks bounce back quickly!

Good Luck and Don't Worry
Debbie Russo
 
I am scheduled for a partial hysterectomy to remove part of my uterus and a very large fibroid. BUT, I am having it done by laparoscopy, and my surgeon has told me my recovery time will be much faster than the norm for hysterectomies done differently. As several people here have asked, what kind of surgery is being performed?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top