Taking Walks After Hernia Surgery

Once you are discharged from the hospital and make it back home though, it is time to relax and get plenty of rest. Most people are still drowsy from the anaesthesia and will get even more tired once they begin taking their pain medications so it is perfectly normal to head straight for bed. It should be obvious, but rest is an extremely important component to your recovery and something you should take very seriously. So don’t get back home and immediately start working on the computer or worrying about checking work e-mail, just lay down and relax.

The importance of rest during your recovery cannot be emphasised enough, but there is one physical activity that when done properly and safely can help during your recovery: taking a couple of brief walks during the day. For the first 4 to 6 weeks after hernia surgery, you will have to take it slow when it comes to physical activity and there’s really nothing you can do to speed up your recovery, but taking slow, short walks is one activity you can do that will help. The recovery process is not like lifting weights or working out where pushing your body will result into a better or faster recovery. However, taking brief walks does help with your rehabilitation for a few reasons.

But isn’t walking counter-intuitive to rest?

Rest, particularly right after your hernia surgery, is very important in the recovery process. Your body needs time and patience to heal, but this doesn’t mean you should get home and stay in bed for a week straight without moving. Without a little movement, your muscles can atrophy which leads us to our next point.

Walking increases circulation and promotes blood flow

One of the main benefits of a little bit of walking after hernia surgery is because it helps increase circulation and promote blood flow throughout your body. By increasing the blood flow and circulation throughout your body, the damaged tissue and muscles around your repaired hernia will benefit from this movement.

When should I start walking?

You can begin walking as soon as you are comfortable enough to do so. Don’t rush into it though. From our personal experience, we waited about 1-2 days after getting home before we started walking again, outside of walking to and from the bathroom. You don’t need to begin a walking regiment right after you get home, but most people feel comfortable enough to walk at a very slow rate after a few days. Every situation is different though so take your time. If you don’t feel comfortable walking until after about a week, then you should wait that long. Don’t feel like you have to match another persons post-hernia results.

How often should I walk?

There’s not set amount of time or number of times you should walk after hernia surgery. Every situation is different and it is not an exact science. Because of this, we recommend taking it slow and don’t try and overdo it at first. Yes, walking helps with your hernia surgery recovery, but if you overdo it and strain your recently repaired area, you could do significant damage. Pushing your body too quickly will do more harm than good. If you don’t think you can walk comfortably, don’t. However, if you can walk safely without straining, you can do a couple sessions a day for as little as 5-15 minutes at a time. This is not a regimented strength or rehabilitation program though.
Don’t expect miracles from walking. Walking a little bit after your hernia surgery can go a long way so keep it to a few brief 5-10 minute sessions per day for the first week or so after your surgery.

Where should I walk?

It doesn’t matter where you walk, as long as it is a safe, sturdy surface to walk on. In fact, we don’t even recommend going outside for at least the first couple of days. Even if you have a small apartment, just walk a few laps around the inside of your apartment. You’re not trying to set the world record for speed walking, all you are trying to do is increase the circulation in your body for a few minutes. If the weather is nice and after a few days you feel comfortable going outside, you should be fine. However, just make sure that wherever you are walking is a safe, dry surface. There is no reason to take any unnecessary risks while walking.

Get a walking partner

We recommend getting a walking partner just in case something unexpected were to happen while you were walking. You should be eliminating all potential risks like avoiding slippery surfaces and walking at a very slow pace, but you still could fall, twist your knee or have something unexpected happen while walking. Because you can’t control everything, we recommend get a walking partner for these short walks. However, if you do have a walking partner, don’t lose focus on what you’re doing. Sure walking seems second nature to you, but you should stay focused during this time to accomplish your goal of safely completing a brief walk. If you don’t have a walking partner, grab your cell phone while your walking, even if you are walking inside. It may seem silly but if you fall and can’t get up, you’ll want to be able to call somebody to help you before you strain to get back up on your own.

Walk with caution

Hopefully we have already stressed this point enough, but walk with extreme caution following your hernia surgery. Walking has shown to help many patients recovering from hernia surgery, but it doesn’t help if you are straining while you walk or fall down and hurt yourself. Remember only to walk in excellent conditions and avoid any potential risks. Walk like you are walking on egg shells at first until your repaired area starts to feel better.
One area we recommend avoiding for a few days are stairs. It is possible to go up or down stairs after hernia surgery, and you may have to do it just to get back home after your surgery, but we recommend avoiding them if you can. If for some reason you must go up or down some stairs, we have three recommendations: 1)hold on to the rail 2) have somebody stand next to you to assist you if you start to fall 3)take your time!

Don’t overdo it – listen to your body

A limited amount of walking after hernia surgery has shown to help patients with their recovery. However, walking is not a magic pill that will dramatically increase your recovery time. Unfortunately, you will still be looking at a time-frame of about 4 to 6 weeks for your recovery before you can resume a lot of physical activities.

Added benefit – Helps relieve constipation

There is an added benefit to having short walks after your hernia surgery: it helps to relieve constipation. You may have read our other posts talking about how constipation can be a serious problem many hernia surgery patients face after surgery. We’ve detailed the ways that may help you relieve constipation after hernia surgery, and walking is one of the ways that can help generate a bowel movement.

Talk with your doctor first

Before you begin walking after hernia surgery, talk with your surgeon first. Before surgery, ask them how soon you can begin walking and whether or not they recommend taking a few walks during the days following your surgery. If you are healthy and don’t have any other physical ailments, they will most likely give you the go ahead to begin walking, but it is better to be safe than sorry. Additionally, we have never had a double hernia surgery and are unsure how difficult it is to walk afterwards. Regardless, talk with your surgeon before/after surgery and confirm that any walking you want to do is acceptable to them.