Martial artist curious about recovery, swelling, etc.

[NewLifeGuy]

So I'm having surgery done this coming tuesday and one of the things I'm interested in hearing involves the Post-Op treatment of how you handle yourself.

I notice a lot of guys mentioning some 3 to 6 months after wards experiencing swelling and to those guys I ask; Were you following the doctors advice or did you decide to reduce the amount of time spent resting/wearing the compression garments?

As a general rule of thumb, can anyone tell me what's more beneficial, wearing the compression vest for a pro-longed amout of time or after a certain period wearing it less and less? My original thought was that wearing the vest for awhile would help the skin contract and contour, am I wrong in this thinking?

Also, how long before you began simple stretching and general walking and then streamlined into more gradual exercise?

I compete in martial arts but for now have taken a four month hiatus and gained some weight prior to having the surgery, with the gland removed and slight liposuction, any tips on how I can get back into shape without risk of hurting myself?

Look forward to all the answers!

[lighting506]

I think most people don't see swelling after a few months. Most of it goes away in the first few weeks.

You should always go with your doctors advice, don't take it into your own hands. I've got the impression that the more time you wear it the better. I've heard of people that only wore it 1 week and later complained about the results.

I'm 5 days post op and I can walk around freely. I assume that in a few days I would be able to take long walks - you should probably wait around 2 weeks for the stretching (and no streching the chest muscles for around a month).

You should start up gradually, and only get into full capacity at around 4-6 weeks.