"Listen to your body!"

If I had a pound for every time I've been given that piece of advice during this process, I'd be pretty damn rich by now.  However, as frustrating as it can be it really is the best answer.  There's no hard and fast rule for how quickly you will recover, how your body will react to medications or what you should and shouldn't do (other than the obvious; no drinking, smoking etc).

This morning I was feeling pretty exhausted but I dragged myself to work and got on with it.  I'm not going to lie, by the time ALS picked me up from work I was ready to curl up in bed and sleep until morning.  Instead I decided to head to the gym for an upper body session - I'm not ready to try anything that will tax my abdomen/core as I'm still quite tender, but I figured training my chest and arms would be okay.

I was pretty wary but I have to say I feel so much better for it now.  Training tends to give me a mental boost and definitely increases my energy levels - as backwards as it may sound.  A few people have told me to spend a couple more days in bed or resting but I know that the longer I'm inactive, the more tired I get and the harder it will be to get back into it.  This is what it means to listen to your body.  For some people going back to exercise straight away may not work and in other circumstance, it may not have worked for me, but I knew how I felt and I knew that I'd had enough rest and it was time to get back into a routine to get my energy back.

It wasn't a particularly heavy session but I was impressed with how well I managed (without causing any pain in my ovaries/abdomen - I would have stopped immediately if I'd had any problems).  I posted a nice easy 40kg bench press for our gym's current challenge (best total squat, bench and deadlift on a pound for pound basis).  This puts me in the lead for the women as well - not bad considering I've been out of training for 3 weeks and I'm only 2 days post surgery.  I'm really wary of squatting or deadlifting so I'll be leaving that until at least the weekend and definitely won't be putting any sort of heavy weight on.

You are always the best judge of what is "too much".  You know your own body better than anyone else and if you think you're fit enough to get back to regular activities then you're probably right.  Likewise if you're experiencing problems or not recovering as you might expect, don't hesitate to speak to your care provider and do NOT worry that you're complaining or wasting their time just because they said you'd be back to normal by now - that's what they are there for.  Don't be afraid to insist someone check you over if you're concerned!

Listen to your care providers as they know what they're talking about, but remember everyone is different so pay close attention to your own body too and don't ignore your instincts!