Originally Posted by
JimDDD
Originally Posted by djnzlab1 HI,
The office staff is well aware of my higher level of excercise-- I'm asked about daily excercise at every visit. Because of my height (6'3''), the nutritionist in my program has me on 80mg of protein/day.This is not easy to reach, even with supplements. And multivitamins and extra D, of course. They also do blood draws to track vitamin/mineral levels on a regular basis, escpecially before and after surgery. Malabsorption is less of an issue with lap-band than other weight loss surgeries, but they are still concerned about deficiencies. The patient "contract" that I signed committed me to lifelong followup including tracking of vitamin/mineral levels. These guys are really thorough. This is one of the benefits of going to an academic medical center (Beth Israel/Harvard, in Boston).
The main thing to watch with the riding is fluid intake. Rehydration can be a challenge so shortly after lap-band surgery, so I've been told to make sure I'm well hydrated (even over-hydrated) BEFORE riding. And, of course, drink constantly while riding and monitor my thirst. Better to stop for bathroom breaks than find yourself rehydrating with an IV.
I'm sure I'll lose some muscle mass, along with the fat. Maybe even a lot. This is probably biologically unavoidable. This doesn't concern me too much as long as I have enough muscle left. I can rebuild in a few months. I do this most springs anyway, as I shift from low milage weeks in the winter to full-on commuting. The weight, on the other hand, is a decades long battle.
I always wonder about the muscle mass thing, if one is morbidly obese and loses say 50kg, then some muscles used to haul that extra 50kg around, may not be needed anymore, and losing it isn't a bad thing. Obviously the muscles needed for cycling are not ones you want to lose, but your working on those anyway.
You probably should look into other exercise, that is more upper body oriented, and one thing to remember, walk as much as you can, it works the leg muscles not used for cycling, which tends to work some muscles more then others.