Working out after VSG

After my 2 week post-op visit, my surgeon and nutritionist instructed me to go ahead and get back to the gym with light weight lifting and my cardio regimen I was doing pre-op. I didn't feel quite ready for that and gave it another week but went today (3 week post op) and worked pretty hard on the elliptical, getting 35 minutes in at a  steady 160-180 heart rate. Felt fine during the workout but as soon as I finished, I almost blacked out and took me almost an hour to stop feeling light headed and dizzy. Will reduce my intensity next time but even considering backing off all together for another week and just go back to walking. Anybody else experience this or when did you feel right going back to the gym?

Stop doing 160-180 beats per minute. That's too much.

You should google "zone 2 exercise" and calculate your zone 2. After that, manage your aerobice workouts so your heart rate stays in zone 2. You'll get the best results by doing that consistently. Also, doing super heavy aerobic exercise coupled with a calorie restricted diet pushes you toward adrenal failure. The quick and dirty way to calculate zone 2 is 180 minus your age +/- 5 beats. You aren't at a stage yet where +5 is an option.

Also, I must point out a common misstake, all those hours of aerobics aren't going to affect your weight loss for the better. The majority of your weight loss will come from dietary choices you make. Exercising can improve your cardio vascular function, and can lead to a longer healthier life, but is there's really no compelling evidence that it affects weight loss.

As kooky as this sounds, it's all well documented. If curious, search for "Gary Taubes" on YouTube and watch the speech he gives to the Cleveland Heart Institue. It's about 48 minutes long but is one of the newer ones with prettier slides.

I was only allowed to walk for the first six weeks post-op, so I worked on doing that and getting my time up to 1 hour.  Doing what you did on the treadmill would have been way too hard for me.  Once I could go for an hour, I worked on increasing my pace.. but it was a very slow process.  

I think the best way to injure yourself is to try to do too much too soon.  

OMG - why in the world are you working your heart rate up to 160-180 bpm?!?  That's crazy intensity even for super-athletes.  You're lucky you didn't pass out.  

Follow G5x5's advice for figuring out your target heart rate.  And make sure you are fully hydrated before attempting any exercise and that you drink during your exercise period too.  And start off slowly for goodness sake!  

I started walking right away post-op but was told not to do any lifting until at least 6 weeks out.  

Thanks for the responses and really what I expected to hear. I had been doing the eliptical for 4 months before surgery 4 times a week at 30-45 min/day and was actually going at a higher pace (130-140 rpm) than today which was in the 110 - 120rpm and at a lower incline and resistance so I had toned it down but my heart rate was up considerably higher than before the surgery. I wa****ting 150-160 heart rate pre-op with the higher intensity. It was just odd that I felt good throughout the workout and not feeling any shortness of breath, fatigue, etc and then it hit me instantly when I stopped. I've also been dealing with light headed during non workouts which I told the doctor and he checked my blood but hasn't found anything yet.

Will tone down for sure tomorrow and maybe just get back to the walking. Will look up the links you shared as well. Very much appreciated and good to hear what others have done.