All surgeries have inherent risks and complications. Specifically, one of the particular risks of liposuction is post-operative blood clotting. Exercise can play a significant part in eliminating the risk of blood clotting as well as playing a fundamental role in your rehabilitation and ongoing wellbeing.
Liposuction is not a cure for weight gain or obesity. It does certainly have benefits, however without complementing your new body shape with regular exercise and a sensible diet you place yourself at risk of repeating the same process which led to the unwanted fat deposits in the first place. There are a number of ways to tackle this issue.
The first is to take steps prior to surgery to change your exercise and diet habits. The benefits of this may include: ensuring surgery is necessary for the body parts you wish to target; decreasing the requirements of the surgery recommended; increasing fitness levels and general health to assist recovery post surgery; and creating a new habit which you can sustain after surgery.
The second way is to ensure your reasons for surgery are sound. Consult with your doctor and ensure that surgery is necessary and will be effective in your specific case. Many people use liposuction as a trigger to initiating a new lifestyle with great effect. However, a change in lifestyle is necessary to maintain the results of surgery.
The third is to commit to this lifestyle change immediately following surgery. All patients are unique and your doctor should be specifically consulted in regards to your exercise habits following liposuction surgery, however a reasonable guide may include
First few days – walking and performing specific exercises to decrease swelling and the risk of blood clotting (compression garments also have a very important role in this process so be sure to follow your doctor’s instructions on wearing these).
First few weeks – gradually undertake normal pre-surgery levels of physical activity.
After one month – full vigorous activity can be resumed in most cases after consultation with your surgeon.
As stated, these are guidelines only and every individual is different. The important thing is that you are doing some exercise and gradually increase it as you recover. A good guide is to start at about 25 percent of what you were doing pre-surgery and add 10 percent each week as your body recovers, adapts and improves.
You should also be aware of the following warning signs of complications:
- Noticeable shortness of breath
- Undue cramps or pain around treated areas
- If your healing is not progressing rapidly after around the first few days.
Any of the above could be indicative of either a blood clot or an infection. If you had recently lost a considerable amount of weight prior to your liposuction surgery, you should be particularly careful during the rehabilitative phase.
It is recommended to consult with an exercise professional both before and after surgery to facilitate an effective and rapid recovery. Your exercise professional should be well qualified and comfortable consulting with your surgeon and GP to obtain the specifics of your case.
For more information on liposuction, see the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons website.
