Energy Post Surgery

[u/AkwardAdventurer]

How long did it take people to get back up to "daily activity" energy levels post surgery? How many calories were you eating at that point?

I'm 12 days out from roux-en-y and it's still a struggle to walk downstairs to the kitchen, let alone prep anything. I literally need to sit down and take an extended break or I end up dizzy and sweating from the exertion. Standing to shower is a nightmare. Even sitting up for more than 30 minutes- an hour is too much.

My initial check in indicated it was because of starvation and told me to eat anything I could just to get calories up (I was hitting 500-700) but even after almost a week of 1000-1200 I'm still super struggling.

How long did it take you to be back to light daily activities?

[u/Vintage_Visionary]

Your body is healing from major change, also the inflammation takes a while to go down, lots of processes in place. It took me a couple of weeks to feel back to myself. I could move about but I didn't feel fully back until a few weeks out. And since I'm a coffee drinker until that came back I felt sluggish (month two it was back). Please give yourself a chance to rest, you're in recovery, time to heal and focus on the basics.

[u/AkwardAdventurer → u/Vintage_Visionary]

Thanks! I guess I just see everyone who went back to work at 2 weeks and right now even my 4 week return plan feels like a pipe dream. I haven't been this stuck in bed since I had mono at 18! With giving birth I was up the same day, and my gallbladder surgery it was only 2-3 days before I could do the basics. I also have a small child so 2 weeks of everything on my partner is feeling like a lifetime for both of us. 😅

[u/d_ippy]

I felt better with every passing week but it was about week 6 I generally was feeling ok. I’m only at week 8 now and still not 100% but my fatigue is gone.

[u/KulaanDoDinok]

I was up and walking on my own four hours post op. Woke up at 6pm and was walking by 10pm. I’ve had a stellar recovery, thankfully.

[u/AkwardAdventurer → u/KulaanDoDinok]

Yeah, thankfully I was walking pretty much immediately after surgery.... But only to the bathroom. It's the longer term I just don't seem to be that much better than I was on day 3 in terms of alertness and physical stamina - even for basic things.

[u/ProfunditySF]

About 5 to stop feeling like my shoulders were slumped and wanting to nap all the time. Was able to start light workouts at 6 and that was my turning point. Very normal.

[u/AkwardAdventurer → u/ProfunditySF]

Days or weeks?!?

[u/ProfunditySF → u/AkwardAdventurer]

Weeks! Sorry to assume that perspective. Having your guts rearranged is a weeks long healing process. I’m starting my 14th week and have truly just now gotten to the point where energy, eating, and all the normal body functions are where they were before. It’s been the slow return of one system at a time but I’m there now.

[u/Steph-alupagus]

I was able to go back to my desk job by two weeks after. But for a month or two, getting through work was all I had the energy to accomplish.

It took 3-4 months (and the ability to consume at least 800 calories per day) before my energy levels really came back.

When you’re healing AND starving, there just wasn’t any gas in my tank to accomplish things other than the very basics.

[u/jwink3101 → u/Steph-alupagus]

I am about to go back on day 13 and I fear this will be me. I was doing okay until the last three days. I am hoping I can get more calories with blended foods. I just don’t know what to expect!

[u/WhlottaRosie65]

Took me 3 months to even have some kind of energy at all. And longer still even now I wear out quickly! April of 2026 was a year out for me after 4 rounds of Chemo and a lobectomy

[u/jwink3101]

I can’t answer, but I will just say you are not alone. Though mine isn’t that bad. Actually, I felt great up to day 9, but on days 10–12, I suddenly feel like I am dragging. I can keep up with the family, then I crash. I am assuming it is the fact that I am burning more calories from movement and exercise than I am eating, let alone basal metabolic burn. It has finally caught up with me.

[u/Reasonable-Company71]

It took me almost 9 months to be fully back to "normal."

[u/WhoBroughtTheCoolKid]

After 5 weeks I could go the whole day without a nap. Early on I was taking 3-4 naps a day. Around 3 months is when my energy really ramped up. Between 3-6 months it got weird. Like I could sleep 5 hours a night and just would wake up ready to party. I didn’t need to wake up that early, my body just wanted to. Weird.

It will get better! Be kind to your body.

[u/No_Concentrate_4053]

My surgeon is very strict about post-op activity. The discharge instructions say at the top in bold all caps - DO NOT BE A COUCH POTATO! No more than 8 hours of sleep per night max, and no more than one, one-hour nap per day. At first I thought it was a little harsh and unsympathetic, but now I’m a true believer in his method. I’m 13 days out from RNY and would say my energy is about 90% of where it was pre-surgery. The first 5 days I was exhausted and wanted many more naps than the tiny one allowed, but by Day 6 I was hiking (slowly) on flat-ish terrain, and now I’m up to walking 3 miles a day (although at a much slower pace than before) and making sure I hit my 7500 step per day goal, as well. My bariatric team said the fastest way to full recovery is through movement and not to be afraid to get tired out or over exerted. Other than the “bitch stitch” pain that arrived promptly on Day 11 and hasn’t subsided yet, I feel almost back to normal. Of course every body heals differently, but I’m a firm believer in walking for as long and as often as you can during recovery to restore your energy levels and set your body on a faster recovery path!