Exercise fatigue

HI everyone,

i need some advice. i am 7 weeks post op. have lost around 50lbs  i have 60lbs to go.

i have tried to exercise but get very tired, very fast. i feel like im not doing enough exercise. i can only tolerate around 5 minutes of elliptical. does anyone take any pre workout pills? i am afraid i will stop losing the weight if i don't start exercising more.

the trainer at the gym thinks i have been losing alot of muscle since the surgery.

help please.

You are losing lots of muscle and you are probably using muscle for fuel. Make sure to hit your protein numbers, your water numbers, and increase your fat intake. You want your body to use fat for fuel. The tiredness you have to power through it for a few days. It will get better and once you get the fire started you will tear it up. Water is critical and eat about an hour before you go to the gym so you have some fuel for your work out. Make sure to hydrate before too.

I'm 7 weeks post op too. I experienced a great deal of weakness and light headedness every time I engaged in physical activity. I consulted with the dietician and exercise physiologist at the bariatric center I use, plus I consulted with my trainer at the gym. They all said the same thing. I needed to up my carbs before exercising or I will pass out. So now I'm taking ~60 gm of carbs a day and try to take about 30 gm carbs before I work out. Wendy's chili seems to work well for me. It has protein and carbs and it is watery enough to go down fairly easily. Increasing carbs has also meant I've increased my calories to around 600 a day. I'm still losing weight and I think it is because I'm able to be more active.

Thanks you guys so much. i have not been meeting my protein goals. i will work on that. also i have started eating a little more so that should help. my stomach must be small cause 3 oz fill me up fast. i have been trying to meet the protein goals with just food but i will restart my shakes again. 

I do like chili. i will try that before my workouts and see how it goes.

Thanks again, this forum really helps alot!

I am having the same issues, so I appreciate the feedback here as well...I am only about a month out, but I've only been doing walking for exercise...I can only do about 20 minutes before I lose the energy to continue...I cannot really eat enough to go over about 600 calories a day...I am not sure how you can get "good" carbs in if you are focusing on the lean proteins...in my post-op plan, I cannot have any starches such as bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, corn, etc...what can I eat (besides the recommended chili) that will help me meet the protein goal and still pump up my carbs for energy?  and I am intrigued by the advice about consuming fats, because my dietitian advised me to avoid fats as much as possible...this diet stuff and what is "best practice" really confuses me because of all the variations recommended by people in the same profession   I guess it's not like my profession; I am a CPA, and while there are some variations of advice for a few gray areas, you rarely hear wide variations in opinions...there are just certain standards for my profession that are pretty much universal...why is this not the case for dietitians and nutritionists when it comes to pre and post WLS diets??

Tigerbelle, I understand your confusion. I think there are different "best practices" because there are many different ways to lose weight. Its not really a one size fits all and the key is to find out what works for you.

I'm a year out now and I still do protein shakes. Actually, if you are working out at a gym any trainer will tell you do to protein shakes. I still keep my carbs low because I feel better not having too many but what carbs I do eat I try to eat right before my workout.

Also, at a month out I was just like you, 20 minutes on the treadmill and I would be pooped. Last night, I did 30 minutes on the elliptical and a 1 hour bootcamp... pretty typical for me these days so it does get better! You are on the right track and do a great job.