Staying Active
Take an Active Role in Your Success
As we have previously mentioned, the Realize™ Personalized Banding Solution is a tool to help you lose weight; however, without exercise and a healthy diet, it is very unlikely that you’ll achieve your weight loss goal. Your bariatric program will provide guidance on an exercise and diet plan that will work best for you – a plan that is safe, effective and catered to your individual needs. Realize mySuccess™ will help you to stick to that plan and it will give you and your healthcare team valuable information that can be used to measure your progress.
Now, you might say, “I never exercise” or “I hate exercise,” or maybe you’ll rationalize and say “I’ll just eat less than I’m supposed to and then I won’t have to exercise.” Simply put, this type of attitude toward exercise will significantly minimize the amount of weight you’ll lose with the REALIZE Band. Strength building exercises can help tone your muscles which will help you burn more calories and may help lessen the amount of skin sag you may experience after losing weight. There is no doubt that it will be tough to commit to an active lifestyle, but you can do it!
Start Slow and Build Up
You don’t have to run a marathon to lose weight and improve your health. Starting simple can have a significant impact on your health. For example, let’s say you choose to watch TV for 30 minutes every night. You would not expend enough calories to lose weight and improve your health. But, if you chose to walk or exercise instead, you could improve your health by43:
- Reducing the risk of diabetes
- Reducing the risk of premature death
- Reducing the risk of heart disease
- Improving health of muscles and bones
- Improving mental health
- Reducing the risk of high blood pressure
- Reducing the risk of colon cancer
Now, we know the average person can’t instantly go from infrequent or no exercise activity to exercise routines lasting 30 minutes. So don’t worry, just start where you are and gradually increase the time you exercise.
A 250-300 lb woman who exercises for only five minutes a day will burn about 11-13 calories a minute, which adds up to burning 55-65 calories a day. If she builds up to 30 minutes of exercise a day, she will burn from 220-260 calories a day; if she does that five times a week, she’ll burn 1100-1300 calories a week!41
For weight control, you may need to increase the amount of time you exercise to burn more calories.42
A word of caution: please remember that you should not start any exercise program until your bariatric team says you are ready, and be sure to follow their recommendations.
When to call the doctor42
If you have any of the following symptoms while exercising, stop the activity and rest. If these symptoms do not go away, call your doctor.
- Heart palpitations (feeling of "skipped" heart beat or irregular heart beat)
- Chest pain
- Increased shortness of breath
- Dizziness or lightheadedness
- Pressure or pain in your chest, neck, arm, jaw, or shoulder
- Weakness
- Unexplained weight gain or swelling (call your doctor right away)
You can do it! Adopting a more active lifestyle is possible. It will just take time, patience, and determination. Don’t forget that REALIZE mySUCCESS will give you and your healthcare team tools and resources necessary for managing your personal exercise plan.
