People get a rhinoplasty for a wide variety of reasons; some don’t like the shape of their nose while others have structural issues that make it difficult to breath. The procedure is carried out thousands of times every year in all sorts of clinic and hospitals around the world. Although the procedure doesn’t take long, the healing process lasts a few weeks or sometimes months.
Here are some tips for exercising after a rhinoplasty.
Use Contact Lenses
If you have just visited a nose surgery clinic (called คลินิกเสริมจมูก in Thai)and you’ve scheduled an appointment for a rhinoplasty, you must be careful when exercising during the recovery phase. Many of us don’t like to wear contact lenses, but they are a must when you exercise after the operation. Lenses allow you to work out and avoid pressure on your nose.
Take it Easy
Although a rhinoplasty isn’t as restrictive as something like breast surgery, it is still an invasive procedure that needs time to heal. For the first 7 days, you should not do any sort of exercise. After the first week has passed, you can start light, low impact exercise like walking. Although you might feel good, you will need more time before you hit the gym.
Aerobic Activity
Your nose will need time to heal and strenuous physical exercise would be difficult just after the surgery, not to mention dangerous. Before you progress to jogging, running or any other type of aerobic exercise, give your body at least 2 weeks to heal.
Heavy Lifting
It is best to avoid any heavy lifting in the first few weeks of recovery as pressure can build up in the nose and cause stitches to burst. Patients should not try to lift anything over 10 kg, that includes young children and pets.
Sports
Contact sports are obviously riskier after surgery as there is a chance you could get hit in the nose by another opponent or object. Before you get back to sports, especially contact sports, give your nose at least 6 months to fully recover. Swimming is also not recommended for the few weeks.
Doctors encourage their patients to move around one week after surgery, it promotes blood flow and healing. If you are an avid gym-goer, you will have to wait a couple of weeks before you return. Your nose needs time to heal, so avoid doing any high impact exercise or sports during the first few weeks of recovery.