Doctor’s report/Exercise Guidelines

Well…..I went to the orthopedist today…..and he CLEARED ME TO GO BACK TO ALL ACTIVITIES NO RESTRICTIONS!! Whooho!! Dance here I come!! I might be going back to dance as early as tonight! (yes I do not waste any time here people!). The nurse in the office (whom I have grown to like…not so much in the beginning and will miss after my last appointment in March) asked me how long ago my surgery was and when I said a little under four months (four months on the 13th)  she said that I am moving so quickly! The fastest they usually  send people back to all sports like activities is four months and I am almost a week shy of that even! That is why it is so important to take care of yourself before and during recovery!! .

   Now realistically I know I am not running any marathons or doing any dance competitions today (maybe tomorrow lol), but it is nice to get back into it. It will be a slow and grueling process to get back into training mode, but I am ready! I will not be in these anytime soon (sorry you have to look at my unpainted and red toes!), but I do have a nifty pair of dance sneakers which will be my new best friend for the next couple of months. now look at the bottom and see how they bend These are a dancer’s best friend let me tell you! All dancers (or zumba pals, or any dance fitness person or anyone who likes to dance, you get the hint!) should have a pair of these shoes!! So good!  They give you the flexibility of a dance shoe with the support of a sneaker. My sister in-law told me about them a few years ago and they were the best investment I have made! Now we sit and wait and see if I will be making my dance comeback tonight!

When Should You Exercise

Now my Aunt asked me two questions which I will address below (I love my family!) Now before I start answering these questions please know that this is just my opinion and not a fact. This is just what I feel and there will be others who do not agree with me and that is fine. Feel free to share your opinion on these questions in the comments box.

So first, when should you exercise? I say whenever you can exercise! Those calories you are burning will come off whether you burn them in the morning or at night. Now here is the one exception though. Your exercise should not interfere with your sleep. Yes people will sacrifice their sleep to workout. Personally, if my husband knew I was thinking of doing that he would think I was crazy (well crazier than I am) because to him sleep is the most important thing. Joking aside, if you are someone who likes to stay up late and than tries to get a workout in the morning, you could be doing more harm than good. Sleep is needed for recovery and for your overall health. Plus don’t you notice that when you sleep less, you are more likely to reach for that second cookie (or pizza or whatever) than when you are rested. It is true. Your metabolism is out of wack and you eating patterns can get off.  If you are a night owl, then you should perhaps workout later in the day or try and get to bed earlier if you can so you don’t sacrifice your sleep.

On the other hand, you shouldn’t exercise and then go straight to bed either (unless it is a workout like a PM yoga that is meant to help you sleep). The reason for that is your body temperature rises when you workout, and it is hard to fall asleep when your temperature is higher than expected (just think of how hard it is to fall asleep when you are hot). You need to wait a little while to allow your body temperature to come down to a reasonable temperature!

So how do you get yourself to workout later after work if you are not someone who can workout in the morning (and trust me I can barely get up to go to work in the morning!)  Make yourself accountable. I bring my workout clothes to work with me. If I make the effort to pack my workout clothes and even change before I leave work, then I feel like I have to workout since I made that effort to have my gear with me. Also, set a date to meet a trainer or a friend at the gym or the park. If you are supposed to meet someone to workout with, you are not only cancelling on yourself if you do not go, but letting someone else down too so you are more likely to go then to bail out. If you are someone that works out at home, you can still bring your workout clothes to work with you and change. That way when you get home to workout, you are ready to go and you do not have to “make that effort” to change before heading out for a run or doing a workout dvd (or whatever your heart desires).

Should you eat before working out?

This is also something that is a matter of opinion, but I will share mine with you! If I am waking up and working out right away (which is not usually my thing) then I usually will not eat before working out. As long as you ate a decent dinner then night before (and I do not mean a 2pm early bird dinner I mean a dinner in the dinnertime hours!) than you should have enough fuel to fuel yourself for a morning sweat session with no problems. If however you did not have a good meal the night before or you wait a couple of hours after waking up to work out (which is what I do on the weekends) than I suggest you eating a meal full of good carbs (for energy). See here is the thing, if your body does not have fuel to burn for your workout, then your body has to look for something to burn. If you have fuel, it will more likely burn fat for energy, but if you do not have fuel, than it will more likely burn muscle instead. And well who wants to burn those guns that you have been working hard to achieve! Not me! I work hard for my muscles and I want to keep it!! So lets put it this way. If you have time in the morning to eat breakfast, then at least eat something light before going out to workout (but wait about an hour or so or you might have digestion issues). If you do not have that time (lets say you want to get a session in before going to work), than you should be okay as long as you ate a decent meal the night before.

Now here is my tip for you that is uber important….listen up!   No matter if you eat before a workout or not, you MUST make sure you are properly hydrated before you workout. If you try to workout without being hydrated, you will not only be able to complete your workout but you risk injury to your body and possible fainting and other complications from dehydration. When you workout your body utilizes more liquids than being sedentary, so you have to make sure that you are properly hydrated before working out. Also, make sure you eat something after you work out. When you work out, you are breaking down muscle fibers and you need the proper fuel to repair them. Again, we work hard for our muscles, so we want to treat them right so that you look and feel your best! Just make sure that the food you eat is high in protein because this is what the muscles need to repair themselves. Just do not go overboard, if you are ready for a snack, than keep it under 200 calories. If it is time for a meal, than just eat your normal nutritious meal (just make sure it is high in protein).

Okay I am getting off my soap box now.

I hope you continue to comment below with your questions!! I will do my best to answer them!!!