Exercise and Sternum Healing - Mixed Messages from Cardio and Surgeon

[Mike1952]

I am 5 weeks post op and had an appointment with my cardio yesterday. My surgeon had told me the sternum heals in two months. But, I've heard a lot of people on this forum say three months. So, I asked the cardiologist his opinion. He seems to be very conservative, he said it takes a full year to completely heal.
I thought it would be reasonable to start jogging and easy lifting for my upper body at three months. My cardiologist recommended waiting six months. (He seems to live a sedentary lifestyle and maybe is most of his patients are not so eager to get back to regular exercise?)

I see from others on this forum that they started exercising much earlier. I am walking about 5 miles a day (when I can fit it in) and at least two miles other days.

I really would like to know when I can start doing some upper body exercise and what would be reasonable? I am not interested in llifting heavy weights, just want to be fit enough to do normal activities. Oh, and I am going to resume building a cabin (65% complete now) so I need to get back in shape for that. Probably won't try to do that until at least six months post-op.

Appreciate your advice and thoughts, anyone!

Mike
Aortic valve replaced, August 9, 2012

 

[tprice54]

So, a few different answers. Cardio workout: 6-8 weeks you should be able to get back to running, etc. My cardio let me run at 4 weeks, my surgeon said 6 weeks so I split the difference at 5! Heavier upper body lifting, you might want to wait a bit more, and start easy. My comparison is this is not like a running injury were I took 4 weeks off and started right back up running hard....no, this is truly like getting hit by a truck, everything you do, you need to start back easy, and slow, and work back into it.

 

[epstns]

I had a rougher recovery - didn't start cardio rehab until almost 12 weeks, although I was back to work (office job) and driving by 5 weeks. In cardio rehab they worked up gradually until I was ready to go back to jogging. They also had us do light free-weight exercises, monitoring our performance and increasing the weight when it looked easy. The only thing I waited longer for was things like push-ups - it just hurt, so I waited longer.

 

[tom in MO]

My surgeon told me that because of the split sternum, lift nothing heavier than a milk jug for the first 6 weeks. No full lifting for 6 months. He said that if I had an active job requiring lifting, then I would be out of work for 6 months. As far as walking, running, swimming, these can all be done as you have the stamina for them. Your cardio knows your heart, but your surgeon knows about your split sternum. Your heart will be ready to lift before your sternum is fully healed.

 

[spartangator]

Perhaps your cardio is referring to the fact that a lot of people don't seem to be fully back to normal for about a year? Many people on here seem pretty good with cardio-focused activity at a few months (like the posters above) and weight lifting after that but report just feeling more 'normal' after a year or so.

The above advice about being easy and working into things is good stuff.

 

[Mike1952]

Thanks, everyone! I am getting a good workout walking (lots of hills) presently. I'm still leaning towards jogging at 3 months. Maybe I can start light lifting at three months, but very light. I'll take it slow! Maybe I'll call the surgeon back and verify with him what is ok.
Steve, I can't imagine doing a pushup right now!!! When I was a kid, I used to do pushups during every commercial, just for fun! Life is wasted on the young!

 

[yotphix]

Good advice all. If I can recommend something to you, it's to do what you are thinking with the light chest exercise to slowly start building things back. If you sprint out of the gate, it will hurt, and that will set you back. I laid a floor at less than 8 weeks and it was awful. (Painting the condo wasn't much better.) I did light chest exercises with dumbells and a stretch band starting at about 12 weeks, and I was doing a bathroom reno without much difficulty at 5-6 months. I was back at my regular job a little more than six months in (with plenty of strenuous moments, and heavy lifting) and no real trouble. My sternum did hurt noticeably, though not terribly, for more than a year, especially when I worked my chest hard so that's probably what your surgeon is talking about.
Cardio though, is good, keep on that, and ramp it up slowly. If you have a rehab program, listen to them, but don't be afraid to let them know that you're keen to advance. The greatest thing they did for me was to keep me from trying to heal too quickly, but I did find them too conservative in their recommendations. The best path was really somewhere between their recommendations, and my own impulses!

 

[Noyolk]

8 weeks at less than 10 lbs, then no restrictions. I took prenatal vitamins proir to and after surgery.

 

[bocco]

I got back in the gym at about 5 weeks. Mostly cardio and some light weights. No chest work at all. I just kept adding weight little by little. At eight weeks I started bring light chest work into the program with high reps. I am just about at 6 months and today I benched 225 lbs which is about as high as I think I want to go. Just try everything with really light weights to see how it feels first. Listen to your body. No more pain meds because if it hurts you want to feel it and stop.

Good luck.

Gary

 

[TheGymGuy]

I got back in the gym at about 5 weeks. Mostly cardio and some light weights. No chest work at all. I just kept adding weight little by little. At eight weeks I started bring light chest work into the program with high reps. I am just about at 6 months and today I benched 225 lbs which is about as high as I think I want to go. Just try everything with really light weights to see how it feels first. Listen to your body. No more pain meds because if it hurts you want to feel it and stop.

Good luck.

Gary

1+ on what Gary said. Slowly get into things, and add 1 rep or 2.5 lbs every week to your load. Use machines with minimal weights to get the motion right, and then add a little every week. Heck, if you add 2.5 lbs every week, thats 125lbs per year.

 

[CWNorman]

I'm just five months out from aortic valve and ascending aorta replacement and only this month has the discomfort in my chest cavity retreated to something akin to normalcy. My sternum is still achy and dully pained by stretching or deep breathing. Coughing is probably the worse experience but even that is much more tolerable than in the first weeks following surgery.

Chest discomfort is getting better and having gotten on my feet early -- I was walking the beach (paved walk) within several weeks -- baby steps at first and with little endurance -- working up to two miles a day by the eighth week is probably the best thing that I did from my side.

One shoulder is still very sore, with limited range of motion and loss of arm strength and the other arm and hand is partially numb -- I'm told it's the result of nerve damage resulting from the position they put me in on the operating table (I was there for the better part of two days due to complications) -- is a nagging reminder of the whole ordeal. Others who have experienced this have told me It will heal, but that it will take time -- maybe a year from now yet.

I'm sixty- five and returned to work after eight weeks. I pull my own and work in a competitive sector, but I'm not building houses. You probably can though and maybe you'll add years to your life by doing it. These procedures seem to be typically an industrial quality repair job and, if all else is up to it, you've got a shot at doing whatever you want. Best regards.

 

[ski girl]

I was told 12 weeks before I could get back to weights. I've been through AVR twice now - the first time I tried doing too much too soon and 10 months post-op I was still getting lots of bad sternum pain. The second time (11 months after the first) I decided not to be a rebel and this time I followed instructions - no ongoing sternum pain. It was worth the frustration of waiting!

My surgeon says that after 6 weeks your sternum is 85% healed, in case you were looking for that info!

 

[Mike1952]

Well, thank you all for the advice. I will be 8 weeks post op on Thursday but all of a sudden, I am feeling soreness on my left side when I take a deep breath. I think I may have over done it with lifting around the house and/or cardio exercise. It feels like it is my lung. I am going to back off a little and see if that helps.

 

[neil]

if in doubt take it easy, no medals given to rushing,

 

[Duffey]

Well, thank you all for the advice. I will be 8 weeks post op on Thursday but all of a sudden, I am feeling soreness on my left side when I take a deep breath. I think I may have over done it with lifting around the house and/or cardio exercise. It feels like it is my lung. I am going to back off a little and see if that helps.

Mike, maybe it is exercise related. However, whenever I read "lung . . . . sore when I take a deep breath . . . . " a red flag goes up in my mind regarding possible fluid in the lung. I'd weigh myself everyday and keep track of any unexplained weight gain. Good luck!

 

[Forrest]

Mike,

Looks like you’re on the right path and doing well. Lots of good tips above (including monitoring your recent pain). I agree that folks should try things slowly as a test, to see if their sternum has progressed, and if in doubt try something smaller instead. Besides the important sternum, you don’t want to have any other set-backs.

I was told by my cardiologist team that after 3 months I could resume all of my activities, with pain as my guide. Of course, I wouldn’t lift any giant bags of gravel or something like that for a little while longer. I asked if could I do push ups, they said yes.

I always stayed within the initial weight restrictions given to me at discharge. And after initial healing I did a lot of small stretching exercises and lifting of small hand held weights that were within the restrictions. And just like you I kept expanding my walks every week from the first day home. After 8 weeks I felt that to be a good intermediate milestone and so I did much more, since my sternum felt good I did small amounts of inclined push ups against the closet door, light running, and I did practice swings with my golf club in the backyard (after 3 months I started to play). My surgeon said I could get back to my usual physical activities sooner than what my cardiologist’s team said. I originally thought that maybe he was looking at me specifically and since I came into surgery physically fit and of lightweight that I could handle things sooner. But I also thought maybe he just subscribes to the philosophy that after an initial downtime getting back to moderate exercise actually stimulates healing. I had to watch myself since I’ve always been the type to push myself when it comes to exercising. To pace myself I really got into making my rehab plans along the way, setting challenging but realistic and safe goals. It was encouraging to watch weekly improvements.

After 3 months I was doing a lot of small fix-it projects around the house, but waited until past 6 months (a great milestone) for heavy lifting. Later that summer we rebuilt our old deck. I was careful pulling up stubborn nails, using the circular saw, hammering and lifting fir planks. I did fine, but your cabin project probably has some larger lifting and overhead work that you might want to test out before you get too exuberant. No body should rush and everyone’s post-op condition can be different, as is their personal medical history, age and unique healing time. But getting back to your normal routine is good for the body and soul, your doctors will help frame some practical parameters, and after you reach whatever milestones are appropriate for you, you’ll probably be the best person to know when your full green light arrives.

 

[Greg a]

Well, thank you all for the advice. I will be 8 weeks post op on Thursday but all of a sudden, I am feeling soreness on my left side when I take a deep breath. I think I may have over done it with lifting around the house and/or cardio exercise. It feels like it is my lung. I am going to back off a little and see if that helps.

As others have already said TAKE YOUR TIME you have a whole lifetime ahead and you don't want to live without a sternum, take that from someone who wakes up everyday without one, our support group has only one member that lost a sternum from being shattered, but that is one too many (the rest of us lost out to infections) the wires can take a lot but thay can also rip into the sternum.

 

[Mike1952]

I have been walking 2-5 miles a day, some up very steep hills but mostly fairly level and feeling good. So, I started riding an exercise bike at the gym for 25 minutes during lunch. The first couple of times I checked my heart rate at the end of the exercise and it was around 145-150. The third and fourth days, I lowered the level so it was a little easier and my HR was around 135 for the 25 minutes.
However, the left side of my chest hurt afterwards, and it hurt to take a deep breath. I called my cardiologist and made an appointment for today. I haven't ridden the bike since last Thursday. The pain has gone away (I did walk 5 miles yesterday, no problem). Very strange, I thought it was ok to do the cardio exercise as long as you weren't stressing the sternum so the bike should have been perfect. I'm wondering if the heart, lungs, and other internal tissue got so beat up during the surgery that it is getting sore from this more strenuous exercise. I'm hoping the doctor will know what is going on!
Good advice from all, I appreciate getting information from others who have been there. Sometimes I think the nurses and doctors aren't even as knowledgeable in some ways as all of you folks who have actually "walked the walk"! I'll post what the doctor says tonight!

 

[TheGymGuy]

The difficulty to take a breath was related to your lungs over-working. This can last several days with over-exertion and self-resolve. That was something call pleural irritation, I think.