Hello Lovingdunume, After a standard Abdominoplasty Tummy Tuck procedure, patients are allowed to walk gently 3 to 4 hours after the procedure, as most of these procedures are performed in ambulatory facilities. The patients realize that they can indeed walk, although with some discomfort. Walking daily around the house or apartment is generally recommended, as complete bed rest is not advised; since activity decreases the risk of deep vein thrombosis (blood clots) in the legs. I recommend brisk walking for exercise at about 3 weeks after the procedure, and then gradually increasing in intensity. Sit –ups and crunches are avoided for 3 to 4 months as there may be discomfort in the midline at the areas of muscle plication (tightening). In some instances where the diastasis (spreading ) of the rectus muscles was very wide , and I do an extensive tightening of the muscle , as well as external oblique tightening, I advise the patient to wait for 6 months, to allow good scar tissue to form in the repaired muscles. Your surgeon will best advise you about exercise, based on degree of muscle reconstruction done, and an assessment of your progress during your post-operative visits. I hope this answers some of your concerns. Norman G. Morrison, MD, FACS
i encourage my patients to start walking the day of surgery. of course, i don't want them to over do it the first wk but 20 minutes is not much activity. certainly by 3 wks you should be able to do more than that, assuming you are not developing a seroma (internal fluid build up in the abdomen) david berman md northern va, plastic surgeon
