From Amy Gets the Answers, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 15, 2007
Q: I have a daughter who is 24 and has battled endometriosis for seven years.
During the battle she has been blessed with a baby (three years ago) and due to the endometriosis has gained a considerable amount of weight (she is 5-foot-6 and weighs 208). About a month ago they finally did a hysterectomy, and she is now cleared to exercise. We have joined a Jazzercise class so she can start working off the weight. As you might imagine she is in a hurry and frustrated because she is unable to do the crunches for her stomach. Can you suggest less painful exercises she might be able to do in the meantime?
A: Your daughter is on the right track already.
Though we understand her frustration, they say patience is a virtue for a reason.
Dr. Rosanna Gray-Swain, a Washington University OB-GYN at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, says she recommends to avoid weighing yourself for at least one month after initiating a weight-loss program.
Gray-Swain says that most patients can return to modest abdominal exercises 4-6 weeks following an abdominal hysterectomy.
"Isometric abdominal exercises are a good place to start," she says.
Gray-Swain recommends these exercises:
— Sit on an exercise ball with your feet flat on the floor, hands akimbo and arching your back followed by contracting the tummy, or rectus, muscles and curling the shoulders toward the pelvis slightly. Release and repeat as many times as you feel comfortable.
— Get in an all-fours position on a mat and arch the back followed by tucking the gluteus muscles and tightening the tummy muscles while curling the shoulders toward the pelvis. This is sometimes referred to as a "reverse sit-up."
— Stand with feet hip-width apart and tilt from the waist directly to the side running the palm of your hand down the side of the leg toward the knee. Switch sides.
Of course, if your goal is to lose weight, you''ll have to combine cardiovascular exercise (walking, cycling, swimming and even the cardio portion of Jazzercise).