Help with workout!!

Hi everyone!! I am going to a gym.  Just started.  I do not have a restriction as to weight limit or anything like that.  I was wondering if anyone had a program that i would follow.   Right now i am just walking on the treadmill for 2 miles then trying to do the ab machines.    Please help.. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanx

Hi Mel, ...I'm in no way an expert... Tonight, I've been looking at the information over in the excercise & fitness *resistance Training*, the *Flexibility Training* and the *Beginner's Guide*.  I already bought a special notebook after I got inspired by Jeremy's article about keeping a training log...I really like the idea of taping inspirational pictures and sayings a I go along.  So, tonight I wrote some goals and some of the things from the Beginner's Guide into my own little training log.  I think that's a key...that it's my own.  A couple of weeks ago, I drove my car around my house late at night & mapped out a 4 mile walking route.  Luckily, I live by a lake and the walk is very scenic.  I'm pre-surgery and I don't like to walk in the day.  I'm very ashamed of how I look...so I'm doing my walks with my little terrier mix, HoneyBaby when I get off work at 11pm.  Just going little by little day-by-day.  One thing to remember with your ab work is that the muscles in the whole small of your back work in conjunction with the abdominals.  So, maybe look at the link in the resistance training and think about adding some back to your routine.  Best of luck.   Dee

Thank you gypsy i will look into it!!!

Jeremy's article? Hey...I wrote that. That's alright...Jeremy's cuter than me anyway. Earl

Dee; I think it's great that you're getting some exercise in pre-op, but please be careful if you're walking alone at night. I'm probably one of the most paranoid people around, but bad things can happen to us girls when we're out alone at night. If you can't find an exercise buddy, please make sure someone knows when you're going, when to expect you back and the route you take. Be healthy, but also be safe!

Jennifer,      Thank you for your understandable concern.  You are totally right.  I'm pretty much the exception...just cuz I'm prior military, very safety conscious & worked 3rd shift for about 20 yrs.  So, I've walked various  dogs in the middle of the night in many different neighborhoods.  My new (& maybe forever) neighborhood is very safe w/mostly gated "communities".  Of course, one never knows...but HoneyBaby has a serious security agenda for being a teeny-tiny terrier mix.  I've lived alone for so many years that the thought of someone knowing where I'm going & when to expect me back...while is very sweet...is pretty much not where my lifestyle is.  My family is all gone and I work, work, work.  While I have "friends" at work, I'm extraordinarily independent.  When the hospital asks me who to contact in case of emergency, I tell them to contact the coroner.  Seriously, my Dr.'s biggest task for me is to round up people to take care of me after the surgery....which I have done.  My Dr. very seriously says "This is major surgery", and I know that and that after surgery is the last time to feel a need to be independent.  The reality is that after reading what seems like thousands of after hospital stories....I really can't see what I can't do myself with excellent pre-planning & excellent organizational skills.  So, I'm thinking I only need my friends to get on me to make sure I haven't sprung a leak & passed out.  This turned out kind of long-winded....but again, thanks for your concern.  Will you tell me what you think about the after I get home from the hospital "care" thing.  I'm planing on taking a cab home, which Dr. Sudan said was ok, as long as someone would be at home to take care of me.  Seriously, that concept seems sweet for other people....but really, I take care of myself.  Am I missing something????

I too am fairly independent, however, I have my moments of freaking out that I could be dead, kidnapped, whatever and no one would notice for a few weeks. I tend to not go out at night because I fear something bad could happen - yeah, this is probably why I have a concealed handgun license. Anyway, back to your question...I didn't need a lot of post-op assistance. The only things I couldn't do in the immediate weeks post-op were carry in bags from grocery shopping and take out the trash. A 10-15 lbs. lifting restriction is very common for up to 6 weeks post-op. I was released to drive as soon as I'd been off pain meds for 48 hours, so I was driving the day after I came home from the hospital. So, if you do enough grocery shopping before you go into the hospital, you should be fine on that front and if you have a friend or neighbor that can come by every few days to pull the trashbag and then take it to the curb on trash day, well, then you're set. If you're like me, you're just going to want to sleep the first week post-op and you don't need anyone around to watch you sleep.

Jennifer,  Thanks for your reply.  I hadn't even thought of the garbage.  I guess for the 1st 2 (?) weeks I'm not supposed to pick up anything heavier than a gallon of milk.  (Guess that would mean nothing heavier than a gallon lol)!  And, I love the concealed handgun part.  That's on my serious to-do list!!!          Can I make you one of my "friends" when I figure out this new profile thing???  Oh, I'm changing my name on these boards from Dee/Gypsy4 to Drifter.   So, bye for now... Drifter

Drifter; I just requested you as a friend. Once you approve it, we're connected. I don't know what the CHL class is like in IA, but in TX, it's 9 hours of class room instruction and then shooting at the pistol range. It's a long day, but well worth it.

Thanks, Jennifer....    I approved you....so we're friends!  The hand gun is on my new year's list.  Thanks again.  Drifter