Chsul

About Transplants - What you should know...

kidneyRenal Transplantation Information

July 15, 2019

Getting Fit After My Renal Transplant

Megan Megan
Anyone who has undergone a renal transplant knows that there is a better chance of full recovery and returning to a normal lifestyle if you exercise.


Brittany Brittany
What kind of exercises are you referring to?



 
 

I followed this advice and it was the best thing that I ever did to help me through the recovery of my kidney transplant.

The doctors told me that if I was able to get involved in and fitness exercises that it would help my recovery but kidtransthat it would also enhance my cardiovascular fitness.

Achieving a new level of fitness was a challenge for me because there were years of physical reconditioning and my physical state had a significant effect on my emotional state. Prior to the surgery it was hard to imagine that I would ever be motivated enough to actually improve my fitness through beachwalkexercise.

Although the doctors were giving me advice to work out after the surgery, I was also warned that there might be some impediments to my success with a program of fitness and sports activities following my transplant.

I had been on long-term dialysis which affected the way my body was able to metabolize minerals and I was at risk of renal osteodystrophy, which meant that bone fractures were a significant risk with any exercise program.

Harmony Harmony
Certain medications for renal patients can cause weaknesses that make bone structures vulnerable to weight bearing activities.


Megan Megan
You always have to be extremely careful with these type of medications.



 
 

Because of these medications, I always had muscle and joint pain before the renal transplant. Moving around was always a challenge, particularly when I tried to sit down or get back up, so I was concerned that this pain might be a problem when I tried to exercise after my surgery.

The first full day after my surgery, I was able to walk in the hospital room with the nurse to relieve some pressure that had built up. This was my first “exercise” and I found that there was very little pain from the surgery. I walked even more the day after that, and every day I was able to walk a little more and a week after the surgery I was able to use the stairs.

This was something that I had always avoided prior to the surgery because of the pain it caused. After I was discharged to my home, I began to walk every day, and after about a month, I increased my activity level a little bit more each week until I was able to run again.

I started to become active enough that my doctor recommended a three-phase approach to my workout sessions. I first begin with a warm-up routine that includes some stretching, then I get into my “conditioning phase” and then a cool down.

These days, my conditioning phase includes different things on different days, but I can now jog almost daily, and sometimes I will run a 5k to increase the intensity. On other days I’ll use a weight machine and work on my muscle building exercises.

The first few months I found it very helpful to keep a workout record, and now I try to exercise in some way every day without fail. I am so glad that I started my exercise program as soon as I was able to after surgery.

Mark Mark
I bet she feels better now.


Megan Megan
Probably! Starting an easy exercise program is one of the best things you can do after these types of surgery procedures.



 
 

transpl

Copyright © 2021 using Wordpress - Genesis -Dynamik - Moose Chat theme · Log in