Maintaining Good Health Even When You're Busy

After Weight Loss, Use Exercise To Keep Your Healthy Physique

by Caitlin Obara

After you've had a tummy tuck, one of your goals might be to adopt a healthy fitness regimen that keeps your body in tip-top shape. If you've struggled with your weight in the past, it's important to develop an understanding of how to keep active to avoid regaining the weight you've just lost. While joining a gym can help you meet your fitness goals, doing so isn't absolutely necessary. With a little knowledge about cardiovascular exercise and strength training -- and how often to perform these exercises -- you'll be well on your way to maintaining a fit physique.

Cardiovascular Exercise

Also known as cardio or aerobic exercise, cardiovascular exercise refers to activities that use several muscle groups concurrently and raise your heart rate. This form of exercise can be light, moderate or vigorous. Examples of cardio include walking, jogging, swimming, in-line skating and riding your bike. Several team sports, such as soccer, ice hockey and basketball, also have cardio elements. One of the chief benefits of cardio is this form of exercise's ability to help you burn calories to lose or maintain weight.

  • How Much To Work Out: The general rule for performing cardio exercise is the higher intensity you use, the shorter your workout can be. Adults should aim to get a minimum of 150 minutes of cardio per week if using moderate-intensity exercises such as walking. If you work out at a vigorous rate, performing exercises such as jogging or swimming laps, you should aim for at least 75 minutes per week. It's ideal to break your guideline into multiple days; a 30-minute walk, five days per week, for example, will get you to the 150-minute limit.

Strength Training

Although strength training doesn't have a rapid caloric burn, it can boost your resting metabolism rate to help you burn more calories throughout the day. Strength training, also called weight or resistance training, can take several forms. The simplest way to perform this type of exercise is through body-weight activities such as push-ups, crunches, lunges and squats. You can also use free weights such as dumbbells and barbells to perform exercises such as curls and squats.

  • How Much To Work Out: You should aim to perform strength-training exercises at least twice per week. It's typically best to allow a day or two of rest between exercises to allow your muscles to heal. A key to strength training is to work all your body's major muscle groups evenly to keep your body in a state known as symmetry.

Before beginning any post tummy tuck workout program, talk with your surgeon. Contact a local center, like Body Spectrum Plastic Surgery Center - Bruce R Barton MD, for more information.

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