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Hey Gang!

   A very long time no hear! I've been kind of busy since 2012 having 9 surgeries at Mount Sinai Hospital here in Toronto with Dr. Zane Cohen. After one failed K pouch (and rectum removal, and yes, it hurt, A LOT!!!), 2 failed end ileostomies, and then finally, a functional K pouch, with a few surgeries in between, for lysis of adhesions (which caused a ton of pain and bleeding), I'm finally done with surgery for now. My last was just this past December 16th, and for the first time in years, I'm able to start getting back in shape.  It wasn't until a few months ago that I was able to begin my transformation back to the body are used to have in my 30s  (I'm now the ripe old age of 48).

   I begin slowly by walking a few kilometers, then five, then 10, now a typical walk is about 20 to 25 km, and I'm starting to cycle again,  so far I've managed to cycle 95 km in one day, but average about 50km/day, alternating walking/cycling every other day, which was my usual before this round of surgeries, but this time I want to take it to a whole new level.  All my life I've always wanted to have a REALLY good body, but I have never been able to, because of health, or lack of time or energy to do so. We discovered that my testosterone levels were extremely low, and that my body had all but stopped producing it, which would explain why I had no energy, so I now give myself a testosterone injection every week, after a bit of tinkering, my doctors and I found the perfect dosage for me (0.5cc/week).

   I noticed an instant boost in my energy levels, and now that I was forced to retire two years ago because I have less then 5% of my entire GI tract left, and officially now have short bowel syndrome and PTSD to boot (it's taken a terrible tole on my mental health) I'm therefore classified at totally disabled, which was in itself a very hard pill to swallow, pardon the pun. But now, I have all the time in the world, so I'm focusing on my life long dream of having a great body, at least, the best I can possibly have under the circumstances, but I'm so concerned about my pouch, why? Now that I've lost a ton of weight, when I look down at my pouch, which is stapled to the inside of my abdominal wall, the left abdomen is almost flat, but the right, where the pouch is located, sticks so far out it literally looks as though I have a breast sticking out of my waist! I guess my question is, have any of you noticed this too, and if so, have any of you found a way to work out, and let your abdominal muscles push it back in so your abdomen is nice and flat? I'm about to start weight training in a few months, but I don't want to risk damaging the pouch, especially after the hell I've been though!!!!!

  My goal  is to have a weightlifters body, nothing too excessive, I already have very muscular legs, but that's a genetic trait, I've had them all my life, but just for once in my life I want my upper body to look as good as my lower body,  and above all else, finally have an ass!!! (I've never had one, I'm talking flat as a pancake!, and I hate it, i have no padding, all I ever do is sit on bone! I want a butt that stands up and takes notice dammit!!! Lol!), but I do not want to start doing ab workouts and end up damaging my pouch, because it took me almost 5 years of surgery to get a  perfectly functioning K pouch.  In the way, I am afraid to start working out my abs, because the facts are, if this pouch fails, I have almost no intestine left to work with, which would lead to another, and final end ileostomy, and would also lead to permanent lifelong TPN, and that's one step that I do not want to take, because I fought so hard to avoid that, and I'll fight as hard as I can to keep myself healthy enough so that  that never happens. 

   I am booked to see my doctor, but it's a long wait and won't be able to see him until October, I don't want to wait that long to start working out, and thought perhaps some of you may have some advice, or know something that could aide me in working out without damaging my pouch.  I'm getting really tired of everybody on the street staring at my abdominal boob!, that is so obviously sticking out of my side, people even make strange remarks, most assume that it's a tumor, and began to tell me I should go see a doctor, the nerve of some people....those are the ones I lift my shirt, remove the bandage, and show my stoma to, just to gross them out, and to teach them to never assume, and be more polite to a complete stranger!

   Anyways guys, any and all advice would be greatly appreciated, good talking to you all again, and I hope to hear back from you soon! 

Cheers!

Eric

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