Training after abdominal surgery

[Grunter]

Long story short, I went in to the ER with a blockage in my small bowel on May 1. Two days later I had a small bowel resection due to a severely distended portion before the blockage site, doc's were very concerned the portion had a high chance of perforation due to the size of distention. Today marks 4 weeks since the surgery. I haven't done any training whatsoever. The surgery removed approx. 10 inches of the small bowel. This is the second resection I have had since Sept 2010. The incision is approx. 6 inches long and runs from a couple of inches above my navel to a couple inches below.

Has anyone had any experience training after abdominal surgery similar to this? The doctors say not to do anything for 6 weeks to give the area/muscles time to heal and only then to start really slow and light.

Am I doomed to switching to bro building template and focus on swole or can I one day expect to get strong?

Thanks

[Mark Rippetoe]

I was training 4 days after an old-style open appendectomy, and 10 days after a bilateral hernia repair. Yes, you can train. But how did you manage to obstruct your ileum TWICE?? What are you eating?

[Grunter]

First surgery was due to the fact that my Crohn's had caused the small bowel to become severely diseased and narrowed which had begun to cause other malabsorption issues; not uncommon for patients with crohn's. The second surgery was a result of a buildup of scar tissues from the first surgery and because I was going through a flare up this time, a complete narrowing of the bowel occurred causing the blockage. My diet, in my opinion, had nothing to do with the blockage.

It is also not uncommon to have a second surgery for someone with crohn's.

So I guess there's still hope with training.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Of course you can train. You should start now. Read the boards, there are many people here with Crohn's disease who have learned how to manage it, and many people who train after abdominal surgery.

[Grunter]

I guess I was just looking for others experiences with training shortly after this type of surgery and wondering how they 'got back into it'. I'm going to take it easy for the first little while and see how it goes.

thanks for the feedback.

[Mark Rippetoe]

While you're busy taking it easy, read the boards.

[I_iz_a_fatass]

You also need better medications for Crohn's. I started Remicade and have been flare-free for over a decade.